During the 1920s, high-pressure processes were applied to new uses and new needs. Synthetic methanol in particular drew directly on the technology of synthetic ammonia, as did to a large extent synthetic gasoline. These developments were driven by both industrial planning and export programs. However, there were anomalies in the ammonia industry. Thus whereas self-sufficiency in ammonia forFertilizersnitrogen nitrogen fertilizers was a political priority in Italy, elsewhere in Europe the leading manufacturers of ammonia from the late 1920s grappled with problems of overproduction, especially for export markets. The situation changed in the 1930s when ammonia for both fertilizers and national security increasingly dominated national planning. By the end of the decade, growth in both Europe and the US was driven by the threat of war. From 1945, growth was driven by food shortages. Around 1950, production of synthetic ammonia was still based on first generation technologies dating from the 1920s. The main process changes took place in production of hydrogen-containing synthesis gasSynthesis gas (syngas), subsequent to the convergence of industrial hydrogenationHydrogenation and high-pressure chemistry; this encouraged ongoing development of methods for the generation of synthesis gasSynthesis gas (syngas) from hydrocarbons, by steam reforming, of both methane and naphtha, for use in the synthesis of ammonia.