View report page

30
Protection of Food Supply.
(A)—INSPECTION OF FOOD PREMISES.
Regular inspection of all premises where food for human consumption
is prepared, stored, or sold has always been carried out as a
routine measure, for it is evident that constant inspection and supervision
is the only really satisfactory way of securing and maintaining satisfactory
hygienic conditions in such premises. Abundant evidence of
this is provided by the immense improvement in the conditions at
catering establishments which, in the past three years, have had
special attention paid to them.
In all these inspections, emphasis is on advice and education rather
than upon formal enforcement of statutory provisions, the latter being
invoked only when peaceful persuasion fails to achieve the desired
improvement.
For many years it had been the practice in Battersea to allocate the
responsibility for the inspection of all food premises to specialist
inspectors. The increasing recognition of the importance to public
health of those premises, and the increase in legislation affecting them,
however, has made it evident that an increase in the volume of inspection
had become a matter of urgent necessity. The Council, therefore,
decided that as from 1st November, 1953, the District Sanitary
Inspectors should be given responsibilities in this field, and accordingly
they are now undertaking the routine inspection of certain food premises
in their various districts.
By-laws for the Protection of Food.
These By-laws, made by the London County Council under
Section 15 of the Food and Drugs Act, 1938, came into operation on
the 3rd November, 1952. They are designed to secure the observance
of sanitary and cleanly conditions and practices in connection with the
handling, wrapping and delivery of food sold or intended for sale for
human consumption, and in connection with the sale or exposure for
sale in the open air of food intended for human consumption. They
are, of course, in addition to and not in substitution for, other statutory
requirements on the same subjects (e.g., Section 13 of the Food and
Drugs Act, 1938).
A copy of the By-laws was sent to each food trader in the Borough,
and they were all subsequently visited by one of the Sanitary Inspectors,
who, in addition to ascertaining whether the By-laws were being complied
with, offered advice to the trader on any aspect of them on which
he was in doubt.
During the year one case occurred of an offence against the By-laws.
This concerned the serving of customers with fish wrapped in newspaper
without any other covering, so that the newspaper came into direct
contact with the fish. The matter was dealt with by a cautionary letter.
Talks to School Children.
By arrangement with the London County Council as Education
Authority, two of the Sanitary Inspectors visited a number of local
schools at various times during the year and gave talks to the pupils