View report page

62
It will be noted that the Minister has introduced the custom of bringing in statutory regulations
for foods generally, and for milk separately. This is at times unfortunate as it implies, for
example, that substances declared not to be preservatives, emulsifiers, or stabilisers within the
meaning of the regulations may be added to milk. It remains to be seen how the courts will
interpret these Regulations, if called upon to do so.
Certain manufacturers have always resented the idea of Food Standards Orders on the grounds
that they restrict initiative and the Ministry has shown a tendency to reduce the number of such
orders to a minimum, so long as the public are adequately protected. With this end in view the
Food Standards (Table Jellies) (Amendment and Revocation) Regulations, 1962, revoke the
existing standards for table jellies and table jelly crystals, but require manufacturers to label
them in accordance with the provisions of the Labelling of Food Order.
During the year the Food Standards Committee of the Ministry issued four Reports dealing
with:-
(1) Canned Meat,
(2) Hard, Soft and Cream Cheeses,
(3) Dried Milk, and
(4) Mineral Oil in Food
The Report on Canned Meat endeavours to make all canned meat products fall into one of
ten different categories for meat contentand thus to prevent manufacturers lowering the recognised
meat contents of a product by giving ita slightly different name. The proposed groups are:- Canned
meat 95 per cent, Canned minced meat 90 per cent, Canned meat with jelly 80 per cent, Canned
meat with gravy 75 per cent, Canned meat with sauce 65 per cent, Canned meat with cereal 80 per
cent, Meat loaf 65 per cent, Meat loaf with stuffing 50 per cent, Canned meat with vegetables 35
per cent, Canned meat with pastry 45 per cent, Canned meat puddings 35 per cent, Canned meat
pies 25 per cent, Canned sausage 50 per cent, Canned pork sausage 65 per cent. Any other
canned meat product 35 per cent. In general this is a very satisfactory grouping, though it would
be difficult to bring products such as canned ravioli containing meat into the category of canned
meat with pastry. Similarly one already finds certain manufacturers flavouring stews with onion
and claiming, therefore that the product falls within the definition of canned meat with vegetables,
which is not the intention of the report. Probably the most contentious proposal in the report is
that of the proposed limitof 30per centfor fat in canned pork products, other than bacon, sausages,
and chops, which should be allowed to contain 50 per cent. Danish manufacturers suggested that
pork luncheon meats and similar products should be allowed to contain 50 per cent of their meat
content as fat. Your analyst has examined many hundreds of samples of pork luncheon meat and
finds that an average fat content is 38 per cent, a figure with which Danish manufacturers inform
him they would be content.
Another report, which is to be welcomed, is that on the composition of Hard, Soft, and
Cream Cheeses. One of the difficulties concerned with standards for cheese is that of reconciling
the water and fat contents. This has been very successfully dealt with in the report by suggesting
that the maximum moisture content of most hard cheese should be 40 per cent, but that 42 per cent
should be allowed in Derby, Leicester, or Blue Stilton, 44 per cent in Cheshire, Gloucester, or
Double Gloucester, 46 per cent in Caerphilly, Wensleydale or White Stilton, and 48 per cent in
Lancashire cheese. After allowing for this moisture the milk fat on the dry matter should be not
less than 48 per cent. It is further proposed that cheeses of foreign origin should conform to the
standards for the named cheese laid down in the country of origin of the particular variety. The
standards proposed for cream cheese are 45 per cent of milk fat and for double cream cheese, 65
per cent. The standard suggested for soft cheese is a minimum of 20 per cent milk fat and 60 per
cent water. Other proposals are put forward for medium fat soft cheese, skimmed milk soft cheese,
full fat curd cheese, and medium fat curd cheese. Most of the proposals are excellent, but one
would have liked to see some mention made of the so-called 'cottage cheese' of which a considerable
amount is sold, but presumably this would have to be described either as 'medium fat curd
cheese' or 'skimmed milk soft cheese*. It is not proposed to relate the fat content of cheeses to
the dry matter except in the case of hard cheese.