Eggs

HC Deb 24 July 1950 vol 478 cc12-4

16. Mr. Boyd-Carpenter

asked the Minister of Food what is the average period elapsing between the laying of an egg and the retail sale of that egg.

Mr. Webb

A fair average time would be about 2½ weeks.

Mr. Boyd-Carpenter

Does the right hon. Gentleman recall that, before the war, there were a large number of eggs sold as newly laid, which meant less than seven days old, and is he not aware that the figure he has given to the House indicates that there has been an increase of time between the hen and the consumer, with generally disastrous effects on the egg?

Mr. Webb

I recall some of these eggs; the smell lingers in my nostrils even now. The point is that, short of having an inspector to watch every hen, I cannot guarantee that every egg we sell is, in fact, newly laid. The point we have to concern ourselves with is collection, and, as has already been said, the average time taken between the point of collection and sale is between seven and nine days.

Mr. Baldwin

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that the fault does not lie with the hen and that it is not necessary to have an inspector to watch every hen? The fault is in the time taken between the packing station and the consumer, and not between the hen and the packing station.

Sir William Darling

Will the right hon. Gentleman consider licensing the primary producers in cases where they give an undertaking to supply the consumer direct?

Mr. Webb

If hon. Members on the other side want to go back on the marketing schemes, for the introduction of which they claim credit, that is another matter altogether.

Mr. Nabarro

Can the Minister say how he reconciles the period of between seven and nine days with the fact that eggs in increasing number are going to the grocers in a rotten, green and maggotty condition?

Mr. Boyd-Carpenter

Has the right hon. Gentleman considered dealing with the matter by increasing the frequency of collection? Is he not aware that a very considerable part of the egg's life is spent before collection?

Mr. Webb

I think that is getting the thing down to sensible proportions. Bad eggs are no new phenomenon at all; they have always been part of our civilisation. If we could have some practical proposal to meet the requirements of the marketing scheme, with which hon. Members opposite would agree, and which would improve collection, I should be glad to consider it and do my best to carry it out.

38. Mr. Hurd

asked the Minister of Food what quantities of eggs he has so far received from the Colonial Development Corporation's poultry project in the Gambia; and if they are now being distributed to consumers in this country.

Mr. Webb

None so far, except for a small experimental shipment last year.

Mr. Hard

This must be a great disappointment to the right hon. Gentleman. Was it not stated during the Colonial Affairs Debate that we were going to get some of these eggs in June?

Mr. Webb

I have no idea what the assurances were. We are examining a claim made that they are able to supply us with a reasonable quantity of eggs. We are going into negotiations; if they can supply eggs at a reasonable price we are prepared to take them.

Mr. Nabarro

Can the Minister say whether they will arrive in the United Kingdom less than two and a half weeks' old, and, if not, what steps he will take to prevent their deterioration to the musty standards of our home-produced eggs?