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Catering Establishments.—Since 1947, when the National
Conference on Food Infections was held in London, campaigns have
been conducted at various times throughout the country to draw
the public's attention to the need for cleaner food handling. Shortages
of labour and materials have been a great drawback to progress
in this field but, despite the handicap, some fair measure of success
has been achieved in the Borough with the help of the Greenwich
Guild cf Hygiene.
Owing to pressing public demand for communal catering the
number of these establishments has risen sharply and the task of
their supervision has risen proportionately. The modern practice
of providing "works canteens" and the introduction of "school
meals "have only served to increase the Health Department's
responsibilities.
The Catering Establishment plays a great part in the business
and industrial life of the Borough and hotels, cafes, restaurants
and public houses provide meals and refreshments not only for
residents but for the numerous visitors who come by road, rail and
river to the National Maritime Museum, the famous Greenwich
Park and its equally famous Observatory.
In addition to the normal summer visitors, the Festival of
Britain, 1951, brought an inundation of foreign tourists into the
Borough, all anxious to make their acquaintance with its buildings,
monuments and relics, etc., of historical interest.
It was, therefore, of paramount importance that the hygiene
practised in our catering establishments should be of a high standard
in order that our visitors could carry away with them only the best,
of impressions. In the main this has been accomplished due to the
untiring efforts of the Food Inspectors who were always 'on hand'
for any advice or action which became necessary.
As a result of 406 visits of inspection to the catering establishments,
insanitary conditions at 40 premises were remedied and the
following summary indicates the type of improvements carried
out :—
Type of Improvement Ef fected
Total No.
Cleansed and painted
28
New Shop front
1
New Sinks fitted
11
Hot and/or Cold Water installed
4
Stoves and Water Heaters installed
3
New Flooring
3
Miscellaneous improvements (new sanitary equipment
etc.)
6
Total
56