§ 80. Mr. C. S. Taylorasked the Minister of Food if he will now say whether he proposes to allow cream to be sold during the soft fruit season this year.
156W
§ Mr. WebbFollowing is the text of a statement on this subject which I issued to the Press on 27th April
I am still considering the extent to which the production of cream in the United Kingdom could be started again and, as I said yesterday in the House of Commons, I hope that it may be possible to agree to some limited production this year in certain parts of the country.I must make it clear however, that any relaxation in this field must be limited by my anxiety to avoid, if I can, the reintroduction of general milk rationing in the late summer. I must, of course, weigh even a limited renewal of cream production against the risk of reducing the home output of other more important milk products such as butter and cheese. Similarly, although I shall be prepared at the appropriate time to consider permitting the import of cream, I cannot do so at the expense of imports of butter which we still need.As soon as I have been able to assess the possibilities more fully, I will make a further statement.