Spanish Strawberries (Hansard, 4 May 1995)

The Parliamentary Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (Earl Howe)
My 1480 Lords, my noble friend is, I believe, referring to the examination by the Horticultural Marketing Inspectorate of a consignment of Spanish strawberries in Hull on 8th March. A significant proportion of the fruit was found to be white, rotten, hollow, or a combination of all three. Some of the fruit was also distorted in shape but that is allowed for in the legislation. It was the other defects that determined the inspector's decision to withhold a Class I or Class II designation from the consignment as a whole. On the inspector's advice, the consignment was re-sorted and the wholesome fruit legitimately sold on the open market.

§ Viscount Mountgarret
My Lords, I thank my noble friend for that very expansive response. Is he aware that the article in the Yorkshire Post, which is a highly respected daily newspaper not given to general tittle-tattle, suggests that it was the shape of the strawberries in that consignment that may have encouraged Her Majesty's inspectors to take their decision? Having said that, will be ensure that the whole question of inspection, environmental health, and so on is looked at with a view to examining the remit of those officials and at least give people the chance to make up their own mind on whether they wish to purchase fresh or rotten fruit? Can the decision not be left in their hands?

Earl Howe
My Lords, I can reassure my noble friend that the EC quality standards for strawberries and indeed other fruits permit defects in shape. The newspaper story to which he referred was incorrect. The point to note is that the quality standards that the inspectorate applied are applied to all stages of the marketing chain and not just to supermarkets. There is a value to consumers and traders in having a general level of assurance that produce is marketable and that the quality is consistent and predictable.

§ Lord Carter
My Lords, it is clear that the Government are in something of a jam over this. Is it correct that the inspectors did not insist that the strawberries were square but that they were flattened and not sufficiently strawberry-shaped?

Earl Howe
No, my Lords, that is not correct. The reason why the consignment was rejected was, as I said, that it was unfit to be marketed.

The Earl of Halsbury
My Lords, does the noble Earl agree that the references to the two-dimensional projections of a solid object are evidence of somewhat sloppy drafting? To be specific, to which of the five platonic solids—tetrahedron, cube, octahedron, and so on—is the ideal strawberry supposed to approximate?

Earl Howe
My Lords, I am not aware that Plato mentioned the platonic form of the strawberry.

§ Lord Skelmersdale
My Lords, has it occurred to the Government that the final cost to the consumer of fruit and vegetables depends far too much on the packaging? Does the Minister agree that that would be reduced if strawberries, carrots or whatever were more square in 1481 shape? Having said that, is he aware that the House will be well relieved that the consignment was rejected on grounds of quality and not on grounds of shape?

Earl Howe
My Lords, my noble friend makes a very good point about packaging. There is a general awareness that packaging is an expensive ingredient in the marketing chain. We certainly encourage retailers in particular—not that they need encouragement, because they undertake it of their own accord—to make sure that packaging is economical and subject to minimum waste.

§ Lord Mackie of Benshie
My Lords, is the Minister aware that the shape does not matter and packaging does not matter? Does he agree that what matters is the taste of the strawberry, and the taste of the Scottish strawberry is superior?

Earl Howe
My Lords, the noble Lord, Lord Mackie, is correct. That gives me the cue to say that over the past few years the British strawberry industry has been a major success story and, thanks to the innovation and skill of our breeders and growers, we can now grow strawberries from April till Christmas to a standard that cannot be beaten anywhere in the world. I commend to noble Lords some of our excellent British varieties such as Eros, Pegasus and Cambridge Favourite.

§ Lord Pearson of Rannoch
My Lords, does my noble friend agree that, even if the strawberries in question were condemned for their lack of quality rather than their shape, the same cannot be said for the London bus, our fishermen or lettuce growers? They are all facing genuine threat of extinction under the Treaty of Rome and the crazy bureaucracies in Brussels and in this country.

Earl Howe
My Lords, my noble friend highlighted a number of matters. The trouble is that many of the stories we read in the press are complete myths. Whether it is strawberries, the curvature of bananas, hairnets for fishermen, WI jam stalls or the Euro-lavatory, it seems that if one has a good story that can be dressed up so as to knock the European Union, it does not matter where the truth lies. Trivial as this instance may seem, the cumulative effect of such misleading stories can do great damage, and that is to be regretted.

§ Lord Geddes
My Lords, I congratulate my noble friend on failing to slip on a straight banana skin.

§ Lord Peyton of Yeovil
My Lords, will my noble friend agree that he is being slightly ungenerous in not congratulating our noble friend Lord Pearson on the extraordinary way in which he can propagate myths using all possible weapons?

Earl Howe
My Lords, I was merely seeking to ensure that the strawberry story was well and truly squashed!