FOOD AND DRINK.

Hauraki Plains Gazette, Volume XXXIX, Issue 5226, 13 January 1928, Page 3

FOOD AND DRINK.

DIET IN NEW ZEALAND. WHAT STATISTICS SHOW. Official figures just published in the Year Book give some idea of what Nejw Zealanders consume per head, statistically considered, for some people forswear cheese, teetotallers, esche.w strong drinks, and, considering its price, many people eat sparingly of fruit. However, on the population basis the average consumption of meat per head is 291 pounds per annum, an;', in addition 14341 b of bacon and ham. Beef tops tihe meat list w'th a consumption of 1841 b per person ; mutton is 751 b, and pork 191 b ; lamb —in producing which New Zea> land leads the, world —is 131 b. The weights include bone. In butter New Zealand, would seem to lead with 271 b per head, while cheese is a paltry 51b per head. Why ’ May not the answer be found in (1) the immature and insipid cheese usually sold in the shops, or (2) in the fact that New Zealand, not being a beer-drinking country, as England is, cheese has an inconspicuous place, in the dietary scale ? At Home cheese bread and beer often nv’ko a worker’s meal, and a nourishing dne, too ; but cheese and -tea I Seme of thr finest cheqse .of its type in the whole world is sent from New Zealand to London, but it is of the very best according to its grade when it leaves the Dominion, arid when it .arrives it is usually in excellent condition and an attraction to the palate. Cheese consumed in Great Britain is exactly double the quantity per head of that eaten in New Zealand, tlie home of the very high-grade article. Local consumption of flour is 2091 b per head, and potatoes follow at 1901 b per head. Onions are a long way at per head —and here again the consumption of this wholesome vegetable is far below what it ought to be in the interests of public health. At Id to l%cl per pound the onion ought to come into its, own in New Zealand. Otago may or may not be responsible for the greater part of the consumption of oatmeal at per head, but considering the nutritive value of this foodstuff the consumption appears to be low. Rice stands at 51b per head, and tapioca at 21b ; cornflour and other farinaceous foods are very small at l%lb a head. Celery, lettuce, spinach, silver beet, roots., and other vegetables are not dealt with. FRUIT AND VEGETABLES. Fresh fruit, like vegetables, is much too dear • forla rge consumption by families with limited incomes. But the official figures show that in this essentially fruitgrowing country not enough fruit is being eaten. The calculation is 371 b of apples per person over a whole year—very far from an apple a day, No relief, however is to be looked for- in ether fruits, for bananas only amount to 17M!b pW head per annum, and oranges 101 b per head per annum, and pears, which crop abundantly, are dolwn to a meagre 6%1b. It does rot need a vegetarian to see the fcilly of a. national diet in so highly productive a country as New Zealand o,f 2911 b of meat and 271 b of apples per head per annum. LIQUOR AND TOBACCO. Including total abstainers, and nonsmokers, the consumptoin of beer in New Zealand .amounts to 97 gallons per head per annum ; of spirits half a gallon, or three bottles, per head per annum ; of wine, a. paltry one-sixth of a gallon, a mere bottle per head per annum all round. Tobacco is represented by’ a consumption of 31b per head, but it is not ascertainable for how much of this .women”-, smokers have, become responsible.