§ Mr. Dobsonasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what consideration has been given since 1979 to developing the national food survey as an instrument of nutritional surveillance in relation to health.
§ Mrs. FennerThe national food survey contributes to nutritional surveillance by monitoring trends in the patterns of food consumption of the population as a whole and of particular groups. The national food survey committee, which oversees the methodology and developments of the survey, considers that the results provide valuable information on the diet of groups which may be "at risk". Special investigations have been carried out to supplement the survey results and to monitor more closely the nutritional adequacy of the diet of such groups. This approach is considered to be more appropriate and cost effective than further widening of the scope of the national food survey.