§ Mr. David Steelasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what is his estimate of the likely shortfall in the potato acreage for the current year as against the 485,000 acres target.
§ Mr. BishopIt is too early yet to make any firm prediction of the total potato acreage this year, but plantings in Great Britain are already estimated to have reached last year's level. Given normal yields, production should be sufficient to meet our requirements for the forthcoming season.