§ Mr. Beresford Craddockasked the Minister of Food what further details he can give of the investigations into bread improvers which are now in progress.
§ Major Lloyd GeorgeThe investigations referred to, which are being undertaken by the Ministry of Health, the Medical Research Council and the Research Associations of the milling and baking industries in association with my Department, are designed to assess the relative suitability of various bread improvers, including agene, chlorine dioxide182W (which is widely used in the United States), vitamin C (ascorbic acid) and a recently developed aeration process in which improvement is effected by high speed mixing. They comprise studies of any chemical changes produced in the flour constituents, the effects of feeding the treated flours on the health and growth rates of experimental animals, and assessments of the quality and acceptability to the consumer of breads made from the treated flours. The work is being pushed on with all possible speed, but the problems involved are complex and if they are to be adequately examined a quick answer cannot be anticipated.