A few weeks ago I drew attention to the large
quantities of canned fruit and vegetables imported into this country which might be grown at home. Sir Edgar Jones, the chairman of 'the newly--formed National Food Canning Council, states in the Daily Express that we have " no excuse for the importation of canned apples, plums, soft fruit, peas and other vegetables which can be . grown here." He -adds that we import dried peas from Japan, which, if grown in this country, would utilize 50,000 acres. There seems to be a prejudice among the " upper classes " here against canned things, but how great is our consumption in the large cities is shown by the fact that last year we spent £28,000,000 on canned food. Medical authorities in America have, I. understand, been urging those engaged in the canning industry to educate the public on the point that the vitamin C is destroyed in the household cooking of green vegetables, but is preserved when they are cooked inside the can in the absence of air. A campaign is to be started in this country to persuade us to eat more home-grown canned food. Iii this connexion I noticed in an Atherican paper last week that the per capita consumption of oranges in the United States has been nearly doubled as a result of the " Eat More Fruit " campaign.
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