§ Mr. BOWERMANasked the Minister of Food if his attention has been drawn to the sale by auction at Mincing Lane of Turkey figs at from 36s. to 45s. per cwt., equal in quality to those for which the Ministry is asking 92s. per cwt.; and whether, in view of the stocks of Turkey figs in bonded warehouses in London, stated to be 190,943 bags, as compared with 119 bags in 1919, and 122 in 1918, these auctioned figs can be sold at 6d. per 1b., he will state the justification for maintaining a retail price of 1s. per lb.?
§ Mr. McCURDYI am aware of the fact that a quantity of Turkish figs was recently sold by auction at the prices mentioned in the first part of the question. These figs were a portion of a consignment that was not, in the opinion of the Ministry of Food's official brokers, of good average quality,i.e., worth 93s. 6d. per cwt., the maximum price payable for figs. My Department, therefore, took over only a portion of the consignment at reduced prices, settled by arbitration, and granted the importer permission to dispose of the rest of the figs for the best price obtainable. Figs of inferior quality are sold by the Ministry of Food at reduced prices, so as to enable them to be retailed at less than 1s. per 1b. The maximum retail price of 1s. per 1b. is not a fixed price, and there is nothing to prevent inferior figs, purchased cheaply, either from the Ministry or elsewhere, being retailed below this figure, which is justifiable in the case of higher grade figs.