HC Deb 22 July 1957 vol 574 cc23-4
45. Sir J. Lucas

asked the Minister of Health if his Department will investigate the effect of human beings who eat artificially caponised chickens.

48. Lieut.-Colonel Bromley-Davenport

asked the Minister of Health what is the latest information he has obtained from the Medical Research Council about the long term effects on the population of this country resulting from the increased sales of chickens caponised by the injection of hormone pellets; and whether he will consider the appointment of a committee to supervise intensive scientific examination of this question.

Mr. Vaughan-Morgan

No advice on this aspect of the subject has reached me from the Medical Research Council. I propose to get in touch with them. Investigations in America have shown that ill-effects are very unlikely.

Sir J. Lucas

Will the Minister bear in mind that it would be cheap and painless to carry out experiments on ferrets and dogs by feeding them with the necks of chickens or the heads of caponised chickens, either boiled or raw, and that, in a few months' time, the experiment would enable very sound views to be formed as to whether or not there was any real effect on fertility?

Mr. Vaughan-Morgan

I am sure that the Medical -Research Council will bear all these matters in mind.

Lieut.-Colonel Bromley-Davenport

If offal containing the heads and necks of caponised chickens is harmful to large and powerful animals, surely it must have some effect on human beings?

Mr. Vaughan-Morgan

I know that my hon. and gallant Friend was very interested in this subject two or three years ago, and if he has any untoward evidence to give to the Medical Research Council note will be taken of it, but the difference seems to me to be that the heads of poultry are not normally eaten by human beings.

Lieut.-Colonel Bromley-Davenport

Is it not a fact that if housewives buy two or three caponised cockerels which have been killed early, from which the hormone pellet has not been taken away but is still embedded, and makes soup of them, surely there is some danger of the public caponising themselves?

Mr. Vaughan-Morgan

I am sure that the whole human race will take note of my hon. and gallant Friend's comments.