§ Mr. Granvilleasked the Minister of Food if he is prepared to grant special facilities for the making and baking of meat pies for agricultural workers and their families and the same allocation of meat and ingredients to those distributing meat pies as to industrial canteens in factories, in addition to any existing arrangements available to groups of farmers.
§ Dr. SummerskillArrangements already exist whereby the local authority or any responsible voluntary organisation, 93W or any group of persons with the approval of the county agricultural committee, or failing any of these, a local trader may be licensed to operate a rural meals scheme, and to obtain allowances of rationed foods for meals for the workers and inhabitants of rural areas. These meals usually consist of meat pies and cake or flour confectionery. The allowances of meat and other ingredients are similar to those granted to industrial canteens.
There are at present over 3,500 rural meals schemes in operation serving one and three quarter million meals a week. We are prepared to give similar facilities for the operation of new schemes in any area where the divisional food officer is satisfied that the need exists and approves the proposed method of distribution. We are, of course, always prepared to issue a licence to any farmer or group of farmers to operate a canteen for the benefit of their workers and to make the full range of rationed foods available for this purpose.