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Permission is always granted for experts to examine the meat on
behalf of the persons from whom it has been seized, and such meat
lies at the Town Hall for this purpose for 24 hours after seizure.
After the meat is condemned, the case in all its particulars (except
the name of the person from whom it was seized and the place
where it was seized), is laid before the Public Health Committee.
If there is any difficulty in the case, and the person from whom
it was seized wishes to lay before the Committee any extenuating or
mitigating circumstances, he is permitted to see the Committee on
his own responsibility Each case is carefully considered by the
Committee on its merits, and after all the circumstances have been
stated, their instructions as to prosecution or otherwise are
carried out.
Our method of Meat Inspection may therefore be summarized as
follows:—
(а) Seizure of the unsound or diseased meat by the Inspector,
unless voluntarily surrendered.
(b) Examination of the meat by the Medical Officer of Health.
(c) Submission of the meat to the Magistrate presiding at the
Police Court for an order of condemnation and destruction,
the owner being permitted to have the meat seen on
his behalf by experts if he so wishes.
(d) Report of the facts of the case to the Public Health Committee.
The owner, under exceptional circumstances, meets
the Committee and lays his interpretation of the facts
before them.
(e) Carrying out the Committee's instructions in regard to
prosecution or otherwise.
During the year under review we have only had 9 prosecutions;
in each case a conviction has been obtained. The table of prosecutions
1901-1905 is as follows:—