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contained only an insignificant quantity of oxtail.
Three different crispbread products all had labels showing various salads and sometimes cheese and butter
not inside the packs; two samples of sterilised cream showed illustrations of fruit salads with cream poured on
them, and a can of meat tuna bore an illustration of salad not in the pack.
There was an illustration of cakes w ithout the words "cooking suggestion" on the wrapper of a margarine;
an illustration of peaches with a topping, with the words "just add milk and whisk" on a carton of topping,
without any peaches in the pack, and another on a Sage and Onion Stuffing Mix with a large turkey with
tomatoes and various other vegetables, but showing very little stuffing.
The ingredients of some canned mixed vegetables were not declared on the label in the order in which they
were present, and a steak sauce and a grill sauce were incorrectly labelled both as regards the description of the
ingredients mentioned and because other ingredients were omitted from the list.
Three cream desserts contained cream but this was not declared among the ingredients. Various other lists
of ingredients on labels were incorrect, as for example:-
On the label of a beef stew the words "Beef Stew" were not in the same size print as "Seasoning Mix" and the
illustration showed a stew with a lot of beef in it, not present in the pack. A mushroom gravy mix was
misdescribed since the words "Mushroom gravy" stood out but the word "mix" was not obvious nor should it
have been described as gravy since the word "gravy" implies a liquid which derives most of its flavour from
meat, whereas this product contained neither meat extract nor animal fat.
Some canned artichokes contained 11.9% artichokes and 57.7% of potatoes, so that they should have been
described as "Potatoes with Artichokes", while some canned okra contained 1.09 per cent of salt and was
therefore in dilute brine, without being so labelled.
A wine v inegar was satisfactory, but the label bore no name and address of the manufacturer, importer, or
packer.
The description "Starch reduced slices made with wholemeal flour" was misleading because starch reduced
products cannot be made with wholemeal flour unless other ingredients are added to reduce the starch, and if
the starch is reduced by removal of starch from the wholemeal Hour then it is no longer wholemeal flour,
l ikewise a product described as "Popcorn" was not popcorn, but was corn for popping.
A jar of melon preserve contained 16 ozs. but the label claimed only 12 ozs. whilst a jar of marmalade
contained 11b. as stated on the lid, while the main label declared 15 ozs. only.
Various samples of drinks and the water taken from the tap of a dispenser were submitted following a
complaint. The water had not only been boiled causing a precipitate of calcium carbonate, but it was also
coloured brown due to contamination by traces of one of the substances used. Further samples of water from
the tap were submitted together with the drinkmaster, but in your analyst's opinion it was the design of the
drinkmaster that was at fault.
Food Legislation 1972.
This year has been a busy one for new and proposed legislation and also for various proposals regarding food
directives, which will result from our entry into the European Common Market. What these latter will mean
eventually is not yet known so it is unnecessary to comment on them at the present time.
The Trade Descriptions Act 1972 was passed to cover omissions from the Trade Descriptions Act 1968 and
requires goods to be marked with their country of origin, doing away with the mark "foreign produce" except
in the case of mixed goods including generally foods such as mixed fruit or tea which may be derived from
more than one country.
The Poisons Act 1972 results from the passing of the Medicines Act 1968 and arranges for the control of the
sale of poisons when the Medicines Act comes into full operation. Practically the whole of the Pharmacy and
Piosons Act will now be repealed in so far as it affects Local Authorities.
The Labelling of Food (Amendment) Regulations 1972 were issued largely because of weaknesses
discovered in the 1970 Regulations and both sets of regulations came into force at the same time, 1st or 3rd
January, 1973. Since the 1970 Regulations occupy 48 pages and the Amendment Regulations a further 14
pages it would have been an advantage to all concerned if revised regulations could have been issued
embodying the amendments. In your analyst's opinion the continued exemption of catering packs from
labelling control is a matter requiring urgent attention at the present time. More and more manufacturers are
beginning to realise the advantages of labelling their products as catering packs in order to avoid regulations,
but the products are being sold in the retail markets.
The Lead in Food (Amendment) Regulations.
This amendment has been issued in order to reduce the quantity of lead to 0.5 parts per million in food as
consumed by infants. It results from the discovery that the lead content of canned infants foods was excessive
and was helping to cause mild lead poisoning in infants.
The Bread and Flour Amendment Regulations 1972. These regulations were issued in September and came
into force in November. They permit the addition of azodicarbonamide and L-cysteine hydrochloride to flour
and allow iron to be added as citrate or sulphate to flour instead of reduced iron. They also permit Vitamin B1,
nicotinamide, and nicotinic acid to be used in any form complying with the requirements of the British
Pharmacopoeia.
Date Marking of Food. There has been considerable discussion in recent years about the necessity or
advisability of prepacked foods being marked with their date of manufacture, date of packing, date before
which they should be sold, or with other useful guidance for the purchaser. This is a matter of greatest
importance both to the public and to the manufacturer and the Foods Standards Committee's report points
out that the present laws are ineffective in preventing the sale of stale or otherwise unacceptable foods. The
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