HC Deb 13 March 1929 vol 226 cc1134-5W
Viscount SANDON

asked the Secretary of State for War what would be the annual total excess and extra excess costs of supplying, to the extent to which expense is at present the only obstacle, all home personnel for one, two, three, four, live, and six days a week, with rations where available solely of fresh home produce, such as milk, cheese, butter, eggs, vegetables, etc., each of these items being given separately, in addition to the total, the question of meat being excluded as already dealt with?

Sir L. WORTHINGTON-EVANS

The articles comprising the soldier's rations are supplied in three ways:

  1. (1) Those purchased by the War Department and issued in kind, such as bread and meat.
  2. (2) Those supplied by the Navy, Army and Air Force Institutes out of the commuted ration allowance, such as cheese and bacon.
  3. (3) Those purchased regimentally from Navy, Army and Air Force Institutes out of a daily cash allowance of 3d. a head, such as vegetables, milk, etc.

As regards the first category, the following in addition to meat are purchased by the War Department and issued in kind to the troops:

  • Bread.
  • Flour.
  • Sugar.
  • Tea.
  • Salt.

No information is available as to the source of flour used in bread purchased by contract. In Army bakeries home milled flour is used, but it is impossible to say to what extent it is made from English wheat.

Sugar.—The bulk of the supplies are home grown. The prices for home grown and foreign sugars are substantially the same.

Salt.—The cost of home produce, which is purchased, is less than that of foreign supplies.

As regards the second category, the following items are supplied by the Navy, Army and Air Force Institutes out of the commuted ration allowance:—

  • Bacon
  • Cheese
  • Jam
  • Margarine.

If the allowance were based on the prices of home produce, the total annual excess cost for the issue on one day a week would be approximately as follows:—

£
Bacon … 10,000
Cheese … 6,000
Butter for margarine … 22,000
£38,000

The portion of the commuted allowance in respect of jam is based on the price of home produce. As regards the third category, it is not possible to say to what extent home produce is purchased, though everything possible is done to encourage such purchase.