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16.
ORIGIN AND PREPARATION OF FOOD CAUSING ILLNESS
L.C.C. Restaurant; 12 handlers involved.
PLACE AT WHICH FOOD CAUSING ILLNESS WAS CONSUMED - School
Estimated number of consumers at risk - About 250.
PROBABLE ORIGIN OF INFECTION OR CONTAMINATION OF FOOD
Contributory Factors - Probably at least 2 careless carriers.
During the investigation into one of the individual cases an item of suspected
food was synthetic cream stated to have been purchased from a dairyman in the
borough. A small quantity of this cream 'which was left was submitted for bacteriological
examination and the following report was received:
"General appearance and smell; Sour smell.
Direct microscopic smear; Numerous Gram-negative bacilli and
Gram-positive cocci.
Viable bacterial count at 37°C: >1 million per gram.
Coliform bacilli (all faecal) present in 0.01 gm.
Direct Cultures: Coliform bacilli and aerobic spore-
bearing bacilli.
Enrichment Cultures: Coliform bacilli.
Organisms of the Salmonella or Dysentery group or coagulase positive
staphylococci NOT FOUND.
NOTE: The viable bacterial count for this cream was very high and faecal
coli were present. It would be interesting to know the condition of
this cream when it was originally used. The results indicate that
faecal contamination of human or animal origin had occurred".
It was ascertained that the cream was purchased by the retailer from a firm
in Edmonton, who obtained it in bulk from Belfast, N. Ireland in sealed metal tins.
One of these sealed tins was opened by the Public Health Authority at Edmonton,
and samples takan from it were submitted for examination. The results showed that
the bacteriological condition of the cream wa3 unsatisfactory, which indicated that
the substance was contaminated in Belfast.
The Medical Officer of Health of Belfast stated that he had had trouble in
enforcing compliance with the Northern Ireland requirements under the Public
Health (Prevention of Contamination of Food) Regulations (N.I.) 1948, and in
September legal proceedings were instituted against the manufacturers of the
synthetic cream in question for infringements of the Public Health (Preservatives
in Food) Regulations by the use of Formaldehyde in synthetic cream, and a conviction
was obtained. He further stated that following the Edmonton investigation,
samples of various batches of the synthetic cream were examined and found to be
grossly contaminated bacteriologically, that 1,000 gallons had been seized and
destroyed, and that proceedings were being taken against the manufacturers.