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Dáil Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 21 Nov 1956

Vol. 160 No. 9

Written Answers. - Food Values.

asked the Minister for Agriculture if he will state the relative food value or calorific content from a given area, say an acre, of fairly good land according as it is devoted to the production of beef from permanent pasture (taking this item as base=100), milk, barley, wheat, beet and potatoes respectively.

The following figures indicate very approximately, and subject to the reservations mentioned below, the relative food values of the commodities in terms of starch equivalent per acre:—

Beef

100

Milk

410

Barley (fed to live stock)

570

Wheat (used directly for human consumption)

1,720

Potatoes (used directly for human consumption)

2,660

Potatoes (fed to pigs)

740

Sugar Beet (roots only)

3,200

Sugar Beet (including by-products)

3,700

The foods resulting from the forms of production mentioned are of a very different character and are replaceable by each other in a satisfactory dietary only to a limited extent. In this connection, it has to be kept in mind that a dietary must be adequate in all nutrients, e.g., proteins, carbohydrates, fats, minerals and vitamins, and that foods cannot, therefore, be judged solely on calorific value. Furthermore, proteins differ in biological value, meat proteins being regarded as superior to vegetable proteins. Also, the efficiency with which foods such as grain and potatoes are converted into live-stock products such as meat, milk or eggs depends on the kind of animals fed, as well as on other factors such as housing, health and management. It must be emphasised, therefore, that, because of the many complicating factors involved, any conclusions or comparisons which can be drawn from the above figures are of limited value. They cannot, of course, be regarded as representing relative economic values.

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