Mr. Andrew F. Bennettasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what representations he has received about the proposal to remove the obligation to add nutrients to white bread; and what are his reasons for this proposal.
Mrs. Dunwoodyasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether he has plans to remove the legal requirement that minimum levls of certain vitamins and nutrients are present in bread.
Mr. JoplingThe proposal follows the recommendations of the report on the nutritional aspects of bread and flour by a panel of the committee on medical aspects of food policy. The report was published in May 1981 and the views of all interested bodies were sought before the proposals for new bread and flour regulations were issued in April this year. The Government again invited comments and a large number have been received both for and against the proposals. They will be carefully considered before the Government take any decision.
Mrs. Dunwoodyasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food why his Department has stopped checking for the addition of vitamins and nutrients to flour in the production of bread.
Mr. JoplingAnalyses conducted by my Department in co-operation with the milling companies ceased in 1980 after they had demonstrated that then: was very little variation in the nutritional composition of flour. These analyses had no connection with enforcement of the Bread and Flour Regulations, which is a matter for local authorities.