Colonel Clarkeasked the Minister of Food what has been the annual cost in recent years to his Department of cleaning the dried fruit bought on Government purchase from the Near East.
§ Major Lloyd GeorgeTo ensure that dried fruit reaches the consumer in good condition my Department meets certain expenses which may include the expense of cleaning fruit, but which arise mostly from repacking fruit which has arrived in damaged boxes.
No separate account of the expense of cleaning is kept, but in the three years ended 31st March, 1950, 1951 and 1952 the amount we paid for the reconditioning of dried fruit from the Near East was £12,640, £9,600 and £7,500 respectively. The cost of the dried fruit purchases was about £8 million in each year. A substantial part of the reconditioning expenses is, however, recovered from the shippers.