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
Chelsea 1964
Annual report of the Medical Officer of Health for the year 1964
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Pre-packing of goods for display is still gaining in popularity
and calls for considerable checking of food preparation rooms.
Open food is still displayed in retail premises and a great
deal of the Inspectors' time was occupied in ensuring the protection of
such foods from contamination. During the year five premises retailing
bread, cakes and other confectionery ceased trading.
INSPECTION AND SUPERVISION OF FOOD.
A register is maintained of all premises connected with the
manufacture, storage and sale of food. The number of premises within
the Borough remained reasonably static, and the only variations during
the year worthy of mention were the increase in the number of clubs,
restaurants, canteens and miscellaneous catering establishments, etc.,
from 252 to 273 and the reduction in the number of miscellaneous
premises (bread and cakes, confectionery, etc.) from 48 to 43.
The following table classifies the types of food premises, all of which are subject to regular routine inspections:-
| Bakehouses | 7 |
| Butchers | 25 |
| Food factories (flour mills, bottling stores) | 3 |
| Milk retailers (including dairies) | 67 |
| General provision merchants (not selling milk) | 14 |
| Fruit and vegetable retailers | 23 |
| Hotels and Public Houses, Clubs, Restaurants, Dining Rooms, Canteens and miscellaneous catering establishments | 273 |
| Fried fish premises | 2 |
| Wet fish retailers | 7 |
| Miscellaneous premises (Bread and cake shops, sweets and confectionery shops, meat pie store) | 43 |
Ice-Cream Premises
Section l6(l)(a) of the Food and Drugs Act, 1955, provides for
the registration of premises used for the sale, manufacture, and storage
for sale of ice-cream. At the end of the year the premises so
registered numbered 94.
There are no manufacturers of ice-cream in the Borough, and
apart from restaurants there are only two retailers selling loose icecream.
It is the policy of the Public Health Inspectors to encourage
as far as possible the sale of pre-packed ice-cream, but machines for
the sale of soft ice-cream appear on the vehicles of a number of
itinerant traders, and these were kept under constant supervision by the
Public Health Inspectors.