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of the fruit. Examination showed the deposit to consist of fine
particles of soil.
During the year several other samples were submitted as complaints
by members of the public, but were in fact satisfactory,,
Food Legislation,
The year brought little change in food legislation, although the
Food Standards Committee issued two long reports, of which mention will
be made later.
The Food Hygiene (General) Regulations, I960, No, 1601, consolidated
and amended the previous regulations. One amendment extends the regulations
to cover the cleaning of food utensils and equipment, but it is remarkable
that no regulations have yet been made to cover the material of which food
handling utensils and equipment are made. Over many years attention has
been drawn to the risk involved in using articles such as enamelware coated
with antimony enamels and toasting prongs coated with lead, but it is still
necessary to show that the food stored in or treated with this equipment
has been contaminated before any action can be taken.
The Milk (Special Designation) Regulations, I960, No. 1542, prescribe
modifications of the existing Methylene blue test, provide a fresh
Phosphatase test for pasteurised milk, and also provide a new test, the
Glot-on-Boiling Test for tuberculin tested milk.
The Skimmed Milk with Non.Milk Fat Regulations, 1960, No. 2331,
cover fresh ground in food law inasmuch as they provide for the sale of
milk, condensed milk, and dried milk, from which the original milk fat
has been removed and replaced by other fats or oils. Fats and oils
used for this exchange are generally of vegetable origin and are intended
primarily for persons suffering from coronary disease, and the reconstituted
milk products are not to be used for babies. The Regulations are
unfortunate in that they "do not apply to any food intended at the time
of sale for export from the United Kingdom", because certain foreign
governments accept foods, which comply with the requirements of the
British Food and Drugs Act to be admitted into their countries and accept
the certificates either of any public analyst or of certain recognised
public analysts to this effect. Any Regulations should, therefore, be so
worded that they apply only to countries where there are no restrictions.
Another unfortunate provision in these regulations is that the labelling
requirements do not apply to .sales to catering or manufacturing businesses
or to sales for immediate consumption. One would have thought that the
casual consumer or eater.out is as much entitled to know what he is consuming
as the purchaser buying a pre.packed food for use in the home.
The Arsenic in Food (Amendment) Regulations, I960, increase the amount
of arsenic in brewers' yeast to be used in manufacture from 2.0 to 5.0 parts
per million when calculated on the dry matter, but make no other alteration
to the existing regulations.
The Report of the Departmental Committee on "Milk Composition in the
United "Kingdom" occupies some 86 pages and makes 23 main recommendations,