NOURISHING THE PEOPLE

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXX, 26 March 1936, Page 2

NOURISHING THE PEOPLE

TO INCREASE CONSUMPTION “A sphere in which it has been indicated that Governmental activities may to some extent fill the gap in foreign .trade, is that of an improvement in the food of those sections of the population that are under-nourished,” said the chairman of the National Provincial Bank, Mr Colin F. Campbell, addressing the annual meeting of shareholders in London. “It has been suggested that in trying to stave off ruin from farmers, Governments have tended too much to regard the problem as one of reducing supply to fit the lower level of demand. If it were approached from another angle and increased consumption were aimed at, this might be a more satisfactory way of spending funds now devoted to subsidies to producers or to export bounties. The British Government has already made a start through the provision of cheap milk, and it is stated that methods of extending such schemes to other sections of the population are being considered. It has been estimated that if the undernourished classes in Britain were able to enjoy a full diet, there would be an increased trade in foodstuffs amounting to about £200,000,000 a year, giving revived activity to British farming without harming overseas trade or shipping.”