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In a circular letter dealing with the Regulations the Ministry of Health
referred to some practices which do not lend themselves to control by regulation
and in regard to which improvement can only be effected by force of public opinion
and the refusal of the public to buy their meat where such conditions obtain.
An instance of this is the common practice of touching the meat before buying it.
To deal with this the co-operation of the meat trade in the Borough was invited
and suggestions were made to vendors that notices should be exhibited in their
shops urging customers not to handle meat before purchase. The butchers readily
responded to this suggestion and in 22 shops the notices are exhibited; in other
cases the butcher states that handling by customers is discontinued; in some very
few, if any, "pieces" are sold. In most of the shops forks are provided to
enable "pieces" to be moved or turned over by customers without direct
handling. In two shops where customers do not handle meat before buying it
the notices are not required and in one case the proprietor has now promised to
exhibit the notice and provide forks.
Proposed Regulations for the Sale of Fish.
During the year letters were received from the Town Clerk of Bermondsey
and the Honorary Clerk of the Metropolitan Boroughs Standing Joint Committee
respecting proposed Regulations for controlling the sale of fish and other articles
of food on the lines of the Public Health (Meat) Regulations, 1924.
Except that no complaints have been made as regards uncleanliness during
transport of fish the need of protection of fish is very much the same as in the
case of meat.
While making inspections of butchers' shops in connection with the new
Meat Regulations a certain amount of dissatisfaction was expressed by butchers
on the fact that they among food purveyors were singled out for restrictive
legislation.
It must be admitted in many fish shops a high standard of care is mantained;
the fish are displayed on impervious slabs and frequently cleansed by a current
of water directed by a hose; on the other hand in some fish shops this high
standard is not maintained.
The latest Circular on the Meat Regulations states that the same general
standard of freedom from contamination should be aimed at both for shops and
stalls selling meat; it is an obvious corollary that shops and stalls selling fish
should be treated in the same manner.
At the same time as a matter of actual practice it would be an advantage
to obtain experience in the working of the Public Health (Meat) Regulations
before urging the issue of Regulations to govern other articles of food; the Holborn
Public Health Committee were of this opinion and, therefore, took no action in
the matter.
Places where Food is prepared for Sale.
Under this head are included kitchens of hotels, restaurants and eating-houses
of all sorts, slaughter-houses, tripe, offal and other meat shops, fried fish, eel
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