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applicant was invited, under Section 2 (l) of the Milk and Dairies
(Amendment) Act, 1922, to attend before the Public Health Committee
and shew cause why the Committee should not refuse to
register him, etc. The attitude of the Council is that no person
need apply for such registration unless his premises, methods, etc.,
can successfully withstand the severest scrutiny and cross-examination.
During the year one purveyor was removed from the Register at
his own request; he appeared to have doubts as to his ability to
conform to the Milk Order, 1926.
Licences were granted in January, 1926 to Messrs. Edwards &
Sons, Ltd. (United Dairies), to sell (a) Pasteurised Milk, (b) Certified
Milk, (c) Grade A (Tuberculin Tested) Milk, (d) Grade A Pasteurised
Milk, (e) Grade A Milk, at their premises at 84 Endwell Road, 95 High
Street and 295 New Cross Road. Licences were also granted to
Messrs. R. Higgs & Sons Dairies, Ltd. (United Dairies) to sell at their
premises at 389a Queens Road (a) Pasteurised Milk, (b) Grade A
(Tuberculin Tested) Milk, (c) Grade A Milk, and (d) Certified Milk.
No bottling for these firms is done in the Borough. Sterilized, bottled
milk is sold by five firms ; in one case the premises are situated within
the Borough.
The methods of handling and distribution of milk in the Borough
show a marked and steady improvement. The can is rapidly disappearing,
giving way to the glass bottle; some retailers have entirely
dispensed with the can, whilst others are not renewing the cans as they
become unfit for further use, but are replacing with bottles. The
improvement cannot be questioned when one compares the glass
bottles, filled and capped at the retailer's premises, to the can, filled in
the street under varying climatic conditions. It would be a great step
forward if we could abolish the practice of filling jugs in the street and
in shops, and only allow milk to be sold in bottles, thus protecting it
from the menace of dirt and dust. Retailers have commented upon
the extra work involved in the cleansing and drying of the bottles, and
this is a very important point, for a badly cleansed bottle or a bottle
insufficiently dried is a potential source of danger. Some retailers
realize that new and more hygienic methods of milk distribution are
firmly established, and that the more hygienic their methods for storing
and handling, the longer and better the milk will keep. Bottle-filling
machines are being used on several retailers' premises; these are
excellent appliances, but they must be kept scrupulously clean.