§ 2.35 p.m.
§ LORD DOUGLAS OF BARLOCHMy Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question which stands in my name on the Order Paper.
§ [The Question was as follows:
§ To ask Her Majesty's Government from what country the potatoes reported by the Government Chemist to contain excessive quantities of solanine were imported, what steps were taken to detect and prevent the sale of other potatoes from the same source, and what measures are taken to ensure that imported foodstuffs containing toxic substances are not sold to the public.]
LORD ST. OSWALDMy Lords, the replies to the points raised in the noble Lord's Question are as follows. The potatoes in question are said to have been imported from Israel. When the facts were known, the Medical Officer of Health of Westminster was asked to sample imported early potatoes at Covent Garden, but no Israeli potatoes were left. No solanine was detected in potatoes from the Canary Islands, Morocco, Spain and Sicily which were sampled. Imported foodstuffs are subject to examination for fitness by port health authorities and by other local authorities at any stage before sale. Solanine is a poisonous alkaloid occurring naturally in variable quantities in potatoes, but at levels which my right honourable and learned friend the Minister of Health is advised are normally well below those likely to give rise to ill effects. The risk is insufficient to justify any special measures, and there need be no alarm about potatoes as an article of diet.
§ LORD DOUGLAS OF BARLOCHMy Lords, while thanking the noble Lord for that somewhat reassuring reply, 360 may I ask him whether this case did not come to light because some consumers of these potatoes were poisoned by them; and does that not indicate that the control was not brought into operation at a sufficiently early stage?
LORD ST. OSWALDMy Lords, I do not know whether the noble Lord wants me to go into any great detail about the case, but what happened, as I understand it, was that a particular family ate these potatoes on three successive Sundays, and four out of the five members of the family suffered as the result of eating them. The fifth member of the family did not. They called in a medical authority and consulted him. After an understandably lengthy investigation of trial and error, it was discovered that solanine must be the cause of their trouble, because solanine occurs in all potatoes but in larger quantities in the skin than in the flesh of the potato. The four members who suffered ate the potatoes in their jackets, whilst the fifth did not. All this took some time to discover, and I cannot feel that the time taken was unduly long.
§ LORD DOUGLAS OF BARLOCHMy Lords, I am very much obliged to the noble Lord for that reply, which is not the reply to what I asked him. That was whether this matter was discovered after the poisoning had taken place, and whether that does not indicate that insufficient steps were taken to sample at the port of landing?
LORD ST. OSWALDMy Lords, I think I answered that question in my original Answer. I said that this poison is, in fact, natural to all potatoes. It is in varying quantities, but in these particular potatoes it appears to have been in larger quantities than in others.
LORD HAWKEMy Lords, would my noble friend say what are the ill-effects that can be derived from eating solanine in too large quantities?
LORD ST. OSWALDMy Lords, I should say that this sort of case is extremely rare—I might say that it is satisfactorily rare. The results are painful, but are seldom dangerous; and in this particular case those who suffered from it were completely over their trouble within 24 hours. As I say, four out of the five suffered.
LORD HAWKEMy Lords, with all due respect, my noble friend has not really answered my question. I asked for information as to what are the effects of eating overdoses of solanine.
LORD ST. OSWALDMy Lords, I should prefer to describe the effects to my noble friend outside, if he does not mind.
§ BARONESS HORSBRUGHMy Lords, might I ask the noble Lord whether, as a good many dieticians have put out information that there is greater nutrition obtained if potatoes are eaten in their skins, they are now going to change and say that it is more dangerous?
LORD ST. OSWALDMy Lords, I think I said in my original Answer that my right honourable and learned friend was satisfied that there was not a danger in eating potatoes.