SECTIONAL TRANSACTIONS.— M. 439 



is no difficulty about producing the food. The difficulty is in enabling 

 the food to be purchased. 



A short statement will be given showing the improvement which could 

 be made in the national physique and the reduction in disease and the 

 resulting saving to the State in health services, and the suggestion will be 

 made that the Government, instead of having a purely agricultural policy, 

 should consider the advisability of having a national food policy based on 

 subsidised consumption and reorganisation of distribution, the main ob- 

 jective being to bring a diet adequate for health within the purchasing 

 power of the whole community. 



Sir Daniel Hall, K.C.B., F.R.S. — National nutrition and British 

 agriculture : meat, general agriculture (10.30). 



Can a national policy for agriculture be framed that will fit in with the 

 nutritional needs of the people ? The desiderata are more milk and live- 

 stock products, eggs, potatoes and green vegetables and fruit, all products 

 eminently congenial to our soils and climate. All are relatively dear, the 

 cheapest sources of energy being cereals and other grains, foods deficient 

 in the necessary accessories. 



Since this country produces less than two-fifths of the total food it con- 

 sumes, a choice can be exercised between the commodities we import and 

 those of which we will encourage the production at home. At the same 

 time legislation has provided powers through which the course of farming 

 can be adjusted to a national plan. On this basis the existing subsidies to 

 the production of wheat and sugar are ill-designed. They are cheap in 

 the world's markets ; they are the easiest foods to import in time of war ; 

 land is being diverted to them that is better adapted to the production of 

 live-stock and vegetables. The production of milk ,is already 30 per cent, 

 in excess of its consumption as milk, but a high price to the public is being 

 maintained to cover the loss on the conversion of the surplus into cheese, 

 etc. As regards vegetables and fruit, the supply can be extended by divert- 

 ing to them some of the assistance accorded to less desirable commodities. 

 But as regards vegetables, milk and meat, reform is necessary in the methods 

 of distribution and retail sale. The country is committed to planning in 

 agriculture : what is needed is a comprehensive plan that will take the 

 nutritional needs of the people into account. 



Prof. J. A. S. Watson. — National nutrition and British agriculture : 

 meat (11.0). 



The expansion of the milk industry, highly desirable in itself from the 

 point of view of national nutrition, will obviously, other things being equal, 

 tend to reduce the amount of pasture available for beef cattle and for sheep, 

 thus tending to restrict supplies of mutton and of the better qualities of 

 beef (i.e. of steer and heifer as opposed to cow beef). 



The production of milk as at present carried on is associated with a very 

 high wastage of cows. The cause of this is largely the heavy incidence 

 of four diseases — bovine tuberculosis, mastitis, contagious abortion and 

 Johne's disease. The importance of the wastage problem is obvious if it 

 is considered that the ordinary life of a healthy cow is about eight or ten 

 lactation periods, whereas the average life of the dairy cow is about three 

 and a half lactations. A determined campaign for the reduction of disease 

 would result in a decreased output of inferior cow beef and would leave 



