§ VISCOUNT BLEDISLOEMy Lords, I beg to ask the question standing in my name on the Paper.
§ [The question was as follows:
§ To ask His Majesty's Government, whether they can furnish any estimate of the proportion of total home-grown food now represented by the produce of small holdings, gardens, and allotments and other areas of small-scale food production in Great Britain; what is roughly the percentage increase of their food output since the commencement of the present war; and how does it compare with similar small-scale production in the last war.]
THE JOINT PARLIAMENTARY SECRETARY OF THE MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE AND FISHERIES (THE DUKE OF NORFOLK)My Lords, my noble friend will appreciate that the subject of his question is one on which only approximate estimates can be given, since the class of 67 production which he has in mind is derived partly from land outside the scope of the agricultural returns. No estimate has been made of the production from small holdings over one acre in size. My reply, therefore, is concerned only with production from holdings of one acre or under, including gardens, allotments, and plots cultivated by the Services, etc. It is estimated that this class of land now contributes some 10 per cent. of the total tonnage of home-produced food; the percentage increase which has taken place during the war is estimated to be not far short of 50 per cent. Production from this type of land in the last war was on a similar scale, but the information in regard to that period is insufficient for any close comparison to be made.