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52
and not in accordance with their agreement with the shopkeeper. Corned
beef submitted in an opened can had a sour odour and a soft consistency.
There was an extensive growth of Staphylococci throughout and the
contamination was thought to have occurred due to cooling water seeping
into the can after autoclaving and during cooling.
A large number of meat and fish spreads containing butter were
examined during the year and several of these were considered to be deficient
in butter fat, if the labels were to be justified.
A Real Crab Spread with Butter contained only 9.0 per cent of total
fat including 4.7 per cent butter fat, and a further sample of the same
brand contained 9.5 per cent total fat, and not more than 4.5 per cent
butter fat. A Salmon Spread with butter contained total fat 9.5 per cent.
and 4.2 per cent of butter fat whilst a Salmon and Shrimp spread with
butter contained total fat 8.9 per cent and 5.2 per cent of butter fat.
A Vitaminized Apple Juice was stated to contain not less than 35 mgs.
of vitamin C per 100 cc. but in fact contained only 20.44 mgs. It was
probable that the full quantity of vitamin C may have been present before
canning, and had decomposed during sterilisation. The Labelling of Food
Regulations, moreover, require the Vitamin content to be disclosed as the
quantity present in each fluid ounce and not in 100 cc.
Legislation issued or proposed during 1963.
The year has been a comparatively quiet one regarding the issue of
food regulations, but the following are of interestx-
The Bread and Flour Regulations. 1963. These Regulations largely
reinforce the provisions of the Flour (Composition) Order, 1956, with
improvements but with restrictions on the sale of bread for dietetic
purposes. It is now permissible to add iron to flour either as reduced
iron or as iron and ammonium citrate, a provision which has been found
necessary because the reduced iron has also been removed and has caused
trouble with the magnets, when flour is passed under a magnet for manufacturing
purposes in order to remove nails and other pieces of iron which may have
got into flour. It is no longer necessary to add chalk to self-raising
flours prepared with a calcium containing baking powder. Milk bread and
skimmed milk bread must contain not less than 6 per cent of milk powder or
skimmed milk powder, as the case may be, calculated on the dry weight of the
bread. Protein enriched bread must contain not less than 20 per cent of
protein, calculated on the dry weight, and starch-reduced bread, biscuits,
rusks, and breakfast foods must not contain more than 50 Per cent of starch
similarly calculated. No claims are permitted for slimming properties
unless these are accompanied by a statement to the effect that the food forms
part of a diet of which the calories intake is controlled.
The Liquid Egg (Pasteurisation) Regulations, 1963, have been issued as
a result of the number of food poisoning cases, which have been traced to the
use of raw liquid or frozen egg. The test relies on the faot that an enzyme,
amylase, present in fresh egg is destroyed by pasteurisation.