§ Mr. Doddsasked the Minister of Food if he can yet make a statement in respect to flour improvers.
Mr. AmoryI have now received a report from the Sub-Committee which was set up under the Chairmanship of the Chief Medical Officer of the Ministry of Health to consider this question. A detailed experimental study has been made under the aegis of the Medical Research Council. The methods of flour improvement which have been examined are 273W agene, chlorine dioxide, potassium bromate, ascorbic acid and an aeration process.
The experiments have confirmed that agene-treated flour, when fed in large quantities, causes fits in dogs and have shown that none of the other improvers tested does the same. Since other methods of flour improvement exist which have not produced these symptoms in animals, the Government are of the opinion that, although no ill-effects in man due to the use of agenised flour have been established, effect should now be given to the decision taken in 1950 to discontinue agene.
In view of this decision, the National Association of British and Irish Millers have agreed to recommend their members to discontinue the use of agene and to give an undertaking that the equipment for treating flour in this way will be removed from their mills by the 31st December, 1955. Some delay is inevitable because new equipment has to be obtained to treat flour by other means. The National Association of Flour Importers have similarly agreed to recommend their members to ensure that no flour treated with agene will be imported by them.
The further investigations undertaken by the Medical Research Council have 274W revealed some differences between the effects on flour of the other methods of improvement, but the effects demonstrated are not sufficient to require the discontinuance of any of the other four improving processes. These methods of flour improvement will continue to be kept under close scrutiny in collaboration with the milling and baking industries.