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
City of London 1912
Report of the Medical Officer of Health for the City of London for the year 1912
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Weight of Fish Delivered, Fish seized as Unsound, and percentage of Fish Condemned to that Delivered, at or near Billingsgate Market during 1912 and the five tears 1907-1911.
| Year. | Weight of Fish Delivered. | Total. | Weight of Fish Condemned. | Ratio of Fish Condemned to that Delivered. | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| By Land. | By Water. | ||||||
| Tons. | Tons. | Tons. | Tons | cwts. | qrs. | ||
| 1907 | 162,115 | 71,630 | 233,745 | 783 | 16 | 0 | 1 ton in 297 tons, or .335 % |
| 1908 | 177,892 | 63,295 | 241,187 | 1,236 | 12 | 3 | 1 „ 195 „ .511,, |
| 1909 | 179,157 | 68,918 | 248,075 | 946 | 15 | 1 | I „ 262 „ .383 „ |
| 1910 | 169,968 | 69,307 | 239,275 | 1,288 | 15 | 0 | 1 „ 184 „ .538,, |
| 1911 | 163,377 | 71,091 | 234,468 | 1,835 | 12 | 0 | 1 „ 127 „ .782,, |
| Average (5 years) | 170,501 | 68,848 | 239,349 | 1,218 | 6 | 1 | 1 ton in 197 tons, or .509 % |
| 1912 | 155,286 | 68,640 | 223,926 | 1,336 | 8 | 0 | 1 ton in 168 tons, or .596% |
INSPECTION OF FOOD AT RIVERSIDE WHARVES, &c.
As a result of the daily inspection of the City Wharves, 174 loads of Unsound Food
were removed from these places during the year by the Cleansing Department.
The material so disposed of comprised :—
| Tons. | Cwts. | Qrs. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tinned fruit and vegetables | 26 | 17 | 0 |
| Condensed milk | 121 | 19 | 3 |
| Miscellaneous tinned food | 34 | 15 | 3 |
| Fruit pulp | 22 | 4 | 3 |
| Fruit and vegetables | 11 | 13 | 1 |
| Miscellaneous food | 1 | 13 | 1 |
| Total | 219 | 3 | 3 |
The greater portion of the above was removed at the written request of the owners.
Section 47 (8) of the Public Health (London) Act, 1891, provides that—
" Where a person has in his possession any article which is unsound or
" unwholesome or unfit for the food of man, he may, by written notice to the
" Sanitary Authority, specifying such article, and containing a sufficient
" identification of it, request its removal, and the Sanitary Authority shall cause it
" to be removed as if it were trade refuse."
This provision takes away the ground of a common defence in prosecutions for being
in possession of unsound food. It has often been suggested that the food was set aside
with the intention of destroying it before it was discovered by the Inspector. This power
to notify to Sanitary Authorities under this section affords a test where this line of
defence is adopted.
Additional powers with regard to dealing with imported food have now been
conferred upon your Officers by the Regulations made by the Local Government Board
under the provisions of the Public Health (Regulations as to Food) Act, 1907.