HC Deb 30 October 1975 vol 898 c615W
Mr. Wm. Ross

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what were the export tonnages of seed potatoes from Northern Ireland in 1965, 1970, 1973 and 1974; what is the estimate for 1975; and what were the average, the minimum and the maximum prices per ton in each year.

Mr. Merlyn Rees

Seed potato shipments from Northern Ireland for the years in question were as follows:

Crop Year Total Tons
1965 83,378
1970 79,641
1973 58,824
1974 64,605

As it is very early in the 1975–76 season it is not possible yet to give a reliable estimate of the total tonnage of seed potatoes to be shipped from Northern Ireland from this year's crop.

The price per ton paid to producers by the Seed Potato Marketing Board for Northern Ireland is determined for individual varieties and remains constant for each variety throughout the season. The following figures thus refer to the overall average price per ton paid by the Board taking all varieties purchased into account and indicate the range of prices between varieties in the crop years concerned.

PRODUCERS' PRICES
£ per ton
Crop Year Average Minimum Maximum
1965 17.92 14.00 25.00
1970 21.99 17.00 34.00
1973 36.31 25.00 55.00
1974 42.34 30.00 75.00

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