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38
DAIRIES, COWSHEDS AND MILKSHOPS.
The number of registered dairies and milkshops in the Borough at the end of
the year was 168, of which 70 were in St. Giles and Bloomsbury, and 98 in the
Holborn District.
Under the London County Council (General Powers) Act, 1908, Section 5,
any Sanitary Authority may remove from, or refuse to enter on the Register, the
name of any person carrying on, or proposing to carry on, the trade of a dairyman
or purveyor of milk, upon premises which are in the opinion of such Sanitary
Authority, for any reason unsuitable for the sale of milk therein.
I made enquiries of the Medical Officers of Health of a number of large
towns which have special milk clauses, as to their requirements and the action
taken by them, and after very careful consideration prepared a paper on the
subject (published in " Public Health," February, 1909), which formed the opening
of a discussion at the Metropolitan Branch of the Society of Medical Officers of
Health, and my paper and the recommendations of the Branch thereon comprised
my detailed report to the Public Health Committee.
All the dairies and milk shops in the Borough were carefully inspected by me,
and this is the case also with all applications for registration.
Under this new Act 14 purveyors of milk were removed from the
register, and 7 applications for registration were refused. The premises were
unsuitable for one or more of the following reasons: bedroom communicating
directly with milk shop ; insufficient ventilation ; or, sale of offensive articles.
In 10' cases the premises were made suitable, and the applications of the
purveyors for re-registration were granted. In a number of other cases applicants
for registration, or purveyors of milk already on the register, at once agreed to
make the: necessary alterations to make the premises suitable, and in those cases
therefore it was not found necessary to refuse the applications or remove names
from the register.
In all 27 dairies and milk shops were newly registered, 6 belonging to St. Giles
and Bloomsbury, and 21 to the Holborn District.
In addition to my inspections the Sanitary Inspectors made 542 inspections
of these premises, and 22 notices were served for sanitary defects or breaches of
regulations, and in many cases alterations were carried out without the service
of notices.
The only cowshed in the Borough was frequently inspected during the year,
and no sanitary defects nor breaches of regulations were found. During the
greater part of the year no cows were kept there, and the cowshed and adjoining
dairy were finally closed at the early part of the year 1910.