196 AGRICULTURAL ORGANISATION 



whereas the value of 120 imported eggs in January- June, 

 1911, was 7$. lid., the value of the same quantity in January- 

 June, 1912, was 8s. 4J^., an increase of $%d. per 120 in this 

 short period. 



Of the total imports of eggs in 1911 Russia sent no less 

 than 52-69 per cent., or more than all the rest of the world 

 put together. Denmark, which imports eggs from Russia 

 for domestic consumption, sent us, of her own better 

 qualities, equal to 20.95 per cent, of our total from abroad. 

 Only one other country, Austria-Hungary, exceeded 5 per 

 cent. 



As showing the distance of the countries from which eggs 

 are brought to Great Britain, it might be mentioned that 

 imports reached us in 1911 from, among other places, 

 Morocco, Canada, Asiatic Turkey, the United States of 

 America, Roumania, Gibraltar, China, Bulgaria, Servia, 

 Canary Islands, New Zealand, European Turkey Madeira, 

 and the Cape of Good Hope, the quantities from these 

 different countries diminishing in magnitude in the order 

 given. To what extent the eggs imported from the more 

 distant countries may have been used for various manu- 

 facturing purposes cannot be told. 



When one bears in mind that the genuine new laid egg 

 favoured on British breakfast tables should not be more 

 than three days old, the initial advantage which the English 

 egg-raiser has over his foreign competitors is abundantly 

 manifest ; and this initial advantage becomes greater still 

 in proportion as the foreigner keeps more of his eggs at home 

 for his own consumption, or, alternatively, as Germany 

 absorbs more of the eggs that might otherwise come to us 

 in still greater volume from Russia and Southern Europe. 



In regard to poultry the maximum value of imports 

 attained in 1908, namely, 934,679, has not since been 

 surpassed, while it is significant that, though the imports 

 from Russia have shown a large increase, those from the 

 United States where consumption is so steadily overtaking 

 production have shown a marked decline, as will be seen 

 from the following table : 



