§ 9. Mr. Hurdasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will consider the revision of his Department's calculation of crop yields to take into account excess moisture content in a wet harvest which must be removed to bring the grain to marketable condition ; and if he will give an estimate of the percent age reduction that would apply to the 1956 estimates of grain yields if this were done.
Mr. AmoryI am looking into the possibility of making an allowance for excess moisture content. I am not, however, in a position to make an estimate of the reduction for excess moisture which would be applicable to this harvest.
§ Mr. HurdDoes not my right hon. Friend agree that it would be a good thing to be able to compare like with like, and that if 15 per cent. is the standard moisture content of grain before it can be sold, it would be a good thing to keep all our crop estimates on that basis?
Mr. AmoryI agree that one should always try to get better and better statistics, but this year, I think, they have been produced on exactly the same basis as during the last ten years.
§ Mr. ChampionHow is the right hon. Gentleman going to make an allowance in this case if he cannot compute the moisture content caused by this year's harvest?
Mr. AmoryFor the future, I mean. I am considering looking at the possibility of making an allowance in future returns. The difficulty this year has been that the figures we have had cover grain some of which has been dried and some of which has not, and on the returns from individual farmers it is very difficult to compute an average moisture content.