HC Deb 15 May 1970 vol 801 cc368-70W
Mr. Newens

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what is his estimate of the rate of investment in horticulture; whether he is satisfied that it was maintained in 1969; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Hoy:

While it is difficult to make an estimate of total investment in horticulture a useful indicator is the estimated cost of proposals for grant approved under the Horticulture Improvement Scheme. Grant-aided investment has increased in all except the fruit sector and this trend was well maintained in 1969. The figures for 1967, 1968 and 1969 are:

in higher prices as the value of their sales over the same period rose by some 28 per cent. In the same period also the number of regular, wholetime workers on full time horticultural holdings in England and Wales diminished by 24 per cent. In the four years between 1964–65 and 1968–69 growers whose accounts have been analysed in the Farm Management Survey reduced the labour element in their costs from 37 per cent. to 35 per cent. Their greater reliance on mechanisation is illustrated by the corresponding increase in the machinery element from 12½ to 13½ per cent.

Mr. Newens

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what increase has been made during the past four years in the output of the main kinds of horticultural produce; and how this compares with the import of similar produce during the home season.

VALUE OF THE UNITED KINGDOM OUTPUT AND COMPETING FRESH IMPORTS
(£ million)
1966–67 1967–68
Group United Kingdom Output Imports United Kingdom Output Imports Remarks
Top Fruit … 25.9 12.0 29.1 20.6
Soft Fruit … 12.6 0.4 12.0 0.3
Total Fruit … 38.5 12.4 41.2 20.9
Total Vegetables (in the open) 75.1 10.6 78.9 9.5 Excluding peas for harvesting dry
Vegetables under glass … 18.0 12.9 19.9 11.4
Flowers under glass … 18.2 0.8* 19.5 1.0*
Total Glasshouse … 36.2 13.7* 39.4 12.4*
Hardy Nursery Stock … 17.0 3.3 17.1 3.6
Flowers in the open … 5.8 0.7* 6.1 1.0*
Bulbs … 0.7 4.8 0.8 5.5
Total Hardy Nursery Stock Flowers … 23.5 8.8* 24.0 10.1*

(£ million)
1968–69 1969–70
(Provisional) (Forecast)
Group United Kingdom Output Imports United Kingdom Output Imports Remarks
Top Fruit … 33.6 13.4 30.9 12.4
Soft Fruit … 14.2 0.4 18.1 0.4
Total Fruit … 47.8 13.8 49.0 12.8
Total Vegetables (in the open) 85.8 10.3 90.3 14.1 Excluding peas for harvesting dry
Vegetables under glass … 21.8 13.3 22.3 13.9
Flowers under glass … 20.1 1.4* 20.6 1.2*
Total Glasshouse … 41.9 14.7* 42.9 15.1*
Hardy Nursery Stock … 18.5 3.7 21.8 4.0
Flowers in the open … 6.9 1.4* 7.0 1.2*
Bulbs … 1.1 5.6 1.1 5.3
Total Hardy Nursery Stock Flowers … 26.5 10.7* 29.9 10.5*
*Import figures for flowers do not differentiate between "under glass" and "in the-open". For this table imports have been arbitrarily split in half between the two categories.
Notes:
(1) Channel Island production has been excluded from this table.
(2) Mushroom production has been excluded from this table.

Mr. Hoy:

The figures show that in general the value of home output has increased somewhat faster than that of competing imports of fresh produce, i.e. that the share of United Kingdom growers in their home market is increasing. The figures are as follows: