Mr. David Adamsasked the Undersecretary of State for the Colonies whether he is aware of the discontent in Jamaica owing to the continued destruction of bananas; and what action is being taken to utilise this valuable foodstuff by manufacture into various edible products for which there is a ready sale in this country and America?
§ Mr. George HallMy Noble Friend has no reason to believe that the considerations which have obliged the Government to suspend imports of bananas from Jamaica are not fully understood and appreciated locally. As my hon. Friend will be aware, steps have been taken to preserve the banana industry by a guarantee of purchase by United Kingdom funds, and active and successful steps have been taken to increase sales of bananas to Canada and the United States. The question of importing bananas into this country in manufactured or processed form has been considered in consultation with the Ministry of Food, but as I informed my hon. Friend the Member for Shipley (Mr. Creech Jones) on 8th October, my right hon. Friend the Minister of Food has decided that the nutritive value of dried bananas is not sufficient to justify the allocation of shipping space for their import into this country. Fresh bananas and banana flour are extensively disposed of locally, and my Noble Friend has received no report that it has been found necessary to destroy any surplus bananas.