London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
Finsbury 1903
Report on the public health of 1903
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an exception, might bear another interpretation, but a continuously high return over 10 years is a fairly reliable indication. In 1902 this Borough had six per cent. more adulteration than the average for all London. The comparative figures for that year (the most recent obtainable) work out as follows:-
| Percentage of Milk Adulteration. | |
|---|---|
| Borough of Finsbury | 22.2 |
| London | 15.6 |
| Twenty largest towns of England and Wales | 10.3 |
| The rest of England and Wales | 10.0 |
The percentages of adulteration for every five years since 1877 for England and Wales may also be added for comparative purposes:—
| MILK | No. of Samples in 1902. | Percentage of Adulteration in | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1902. | 1901. | 1900. | Quinquennium. | |||||||
| Examined. | Found Adulterated | |||||||||
| 1897-01. | 1892-96. | 1887-91. | 1882-86. | 1877-81. | ||||||
| 29,452 | 3,427 | 11.6 | 11.2 | 10.8 | 10.6 | 12.3 | 13.2 | 16.7 | 21.1 | |
Thirdly, an examination of the table of results of analysis will
show that much the most common adulteration is that of added
water. It is, of course, the easiest to manage, and appears to the
offender a less formidable undertaking than absolutely " tampering"
with the milk. Nor is this feature of adulteration common to
Finsbury. In London as a whole in 1901, out of 952 adulterated
milks, 618 were cases of added water, 384 of abstraction of fat,