14 COCOA AND CHOCOLATE 



(Messrs. Fry and Sons are the oldest English firm of 

 chocolate makers, having been founded in 1728), we 

 read that " Chocolate . . . pays two shillings and 

 threepence per pound excise, besides about ten shill- 

 ings per hundredweight on the Cocoa Nuts from which 

 it is made." 



In 1784 a preferential customs rate was proposed in 

 favour of our Colonies. This they enjoyed for many 

 years before 1853, when the uniform rate, until re- 

 cently in force, was introduced. This restrictive tariff 

 on foreign growths rose in 1803 to 55. lod. per pound, 

 against is. lod. on cacao grown in British possessions. 

 From this date it gradually diminished. High duties 

 hampered for many years the sale of cocoa, tea and 

 coffee, but in recent times these duties have been 

 brought down to more reasonable figures. For many 

 years before 1915 the import duty was id. per pound 

 on the raw cacao beans, id. per pound on cacao butter, 

 and as. a hundredweight (less than a farthing a pound) 

 on cacao shells or husks. In the Budget of September, 

 1915, the above duties were increased by fifty per 

 cent. A further and greater increase was made in the 

 Budget of April, 1916, when cacao was made to pay a 

 higher tax in Britain than in any other country in the 

 world. In 1919 Imperial preference was introduced 

 after a break of over sixty years, the duty on cocoa 

 from foreign countries being fd. a pound more than 

 that from British Possessions. 



Duty on Cacao. 



1855-1915 1915 1916. I 9 I 9- 



Cacao beans per lb. id. i|d. 6d. 4! d. foreign, 3fd. British 



Cacao butter per Ib. id. ijd. 6d. 4-^ d. foreign, 3fd. British 



Cacao shells per cwt. 2s. 35. ias. 6s. foreign, 55. British 



In considering this duty and its effect on the price of 

 the finished article, it should be remembered that 

 there are substantial losses in manufacture. Thus the 

 beans are cleaned, which removes up to 0.5 per cent.; 



