Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Lewisham Borough]
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54
Adulteration of food
The number of samples taken during the year under the Food and
Drugs Act was 778, of which 109 were formal samples and 669 informal.
After examination the public analyst reported that 13 of the formal
samples and 8 of the informal samples were adulterated or below
standard; the percentage of adulteration amounted to 11.93 in the
formal samples, 1.19 in the informal samples, and to 2.69 of all the
samples submitted compared with 1.81 in the previous year.
The following table gives the groupings and the results of the
samples analysed :—
Table 32
ARTICLES | Examined | Adulterated | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Informal | Formal | Total | Informal | Formal | Total | |
Bread.and.butter | - | 22 | 22 | - | 4 | 4 |
Butter | 18 | - | 18 | - | - | - |
Cereals, bread, baking | - | |||||
powder | 29 | — | 29 | — | — | — |
Cheese | 5 | — | 5 | - | — | — |
Cocoa, coffee, tea | 18 | - | 18 | - | - | - |
Confectionery (sweets) | 15 | — | 15 | — | — | — |
Condiments and | ||||||
flavourers | 127 | 6 | 133 | - | - | — |
Cream | 5 | — | 5 | - | - | - |
Drugs | 58 | 3 | 61 | — | — | — |
Fish, tinned | 9 | — | 9 | _ | - | — |
Flour | 17 | _ | 17 | _ | - | — |
Fruit and vegetables | 5 | 1 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
Icecream | 55 | — | 55 | — | — | — |
Lard and suet | 17 | 4 | 21 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
Margarine | 18 | — | 18 | — | — | — |
Meat, canned and pies | 15 | 1 | 16 | — | — | — |
Milk | 112 | 44 | 156 | - | 7 | 7 |
Milk, condensed | 5 | - | 5 | - | - | - |
Paste, fish and meat | 36 | 1 | 37 | 1 | — | 1 |
Sausages | 50 | 3 | 53 | 2 | — | 2 |
Soft drinks | 12 | — | 12 | — | - | — |
Spirits | 11 | 12 | 23 | — | - | — |
Other foods | 32 | 12 | 44 | 2 | 2 | |
TOTALS | 669 | 109 | 778 | 8 | 13 | 21 |