NEW ZEALANDERS’ DIET

Sun (Auckland), Volume 1, Issue 142, 6 September 1927, Page 3

NEW ZEALANDERS’ DIET

WHAT STATISTICS REVEAL beef and beer (From. Our Resident Reporter.) ' v ' v I:i,I.I.\GTO\, Monday, interesting information aßout bv the”'r- S eat and drink is given ?L“ e Government Statistician, Mr. Ma-coim Fraser, who in the “Monthly Stati stics” has made drygu'ane "S talk in very plain lanWho, for instance, would liT ° n paper - every person ° mmlon 0 consumes 76 pints of of mm y yea Vl When the number yomen, children, and teetotallers is taken into consideration, the thirst of those who are responsible for the consumptmn of 13,249,824 gallons of b appears to be remarkable. ■New Zealand is one of the greatest fA.S'; nS co hntries in the world, and it might confidently be expected, says ~ i*. that the annual consumption of butter and cheese a head of the population would be high; but, this is the case with blitter ci? head — jt is not so with cheese, tne 51b a person being very small compared with a consumption of head in th e United Kingdom. The people of New Zealand have always been regarded as great meateaters, and that this assumption is based on more than mere supposition is amply borne out by the figures. The average consumption of fresh meat per head of the population in the Dominion is 3551 b, while in addition 2§lb of preserved meat and 14111 b of ham and bacon are consumed. Beef easily heads the lists, with an average consumption of 2371 b a person, followed by mutton 781 b. pork 321 b, and lamb 81b. For purposes of comparison, the figures for Australia and Canada are given: Beef, 1101 b and 751 b; mutton and lamb, 691 b and 81b; pork (all kinds), 141 b and 781 b respectively. “Of the agricultural products, flour leads the way with 2091 b, closely followed by potatoes, 1191 b. Onions are credited with 12Alb, and oatmeal, rolled oats, and other similar preparations •with 9ilb. Of the imported articles, rice has an average consumption of 51b a head, sago and tapioca 21b, and cornflour, etc., l§lb. The figures for dried fruits are also substantial, those for raisins and sultanas, dates, and currants being naturally most prominent. “Fresh fruit is now regarded as quite an important article of food, and the consumption figures throw some light on the extent to which the different fruits are consumed in the Dominion. The ever-popular apple comes easily first with 371 b for each person, bananas being second with 1711 b, oranges third with 101 b, and pears next with 611 b. “Coming now to the articles looked upon more as luxuries than as real necessities, we find that the average consumption per person of tobacco is 31b; of ale and beer, 91 gallons; of spirits, four pints; and wine, one-sixth of a gallon.”

Other figures show that the annual per capita consumption of salt is 491 b, of refined sugar 911 b, and of tea 7.81 b.