London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972

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Greenwich 1961

[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Greenwich Borough]

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124
Compared with the previous year, the amount of meat rejected
rose by 5,628 lbs. during 1961, and the total of all food rejected
increased by 39,911 lbs.
Public Health (Meat) Regulations, 1924/52.—These regulations
provide for the supervision of slaughterhouses, butcher's
shops, stalls and the protection of meat against contamination by
dirt and flies, etc., in transport and handling.
Butchers' Shops and Stalls.—These are under the constant
supervision of the Food Inspectors who made 115 visits of inspection
and arranged for the correction of insanitary defects at 8 premises.
As with other premises, legal proceedings are instituted only
after disregard of the Officer's warning and in no instance was it
necessary to resort to this procedure.
Slaughterhouses—Two premises in the Borough originally
licensed as slaughterhouses have not been used as such since the
introduction of the Livestock (Restriction of Slaughtering) Order
1940. In both instances the premises are no longer used
as slaughterhouses and the issue of the appropriate licences has
therefore been discontinued.
Public Health (Imported Food) Regulations, 1937 and
1948.—The Metropolitan Borough of Greenwich with a river
frontage of five miles with more than 30 wharves and two of
London's largest and most modern cold stores receives a considerable
percentage of London's imported meat stored on behalf of
various importers. In addition, considerable quantities of fresh
fruit, tinned foods and miscellaneous provisions are dealt with.
Visits to wharves and cold stores are made by the Food Inspectors
and imported food generally is carefully supervised.
Inevitably meat is the commodity to which Food Inspectors
must devote most of their time and it is their responsibility to see
that each consignment landed is accompanied by an " official "
certificate. This may be in the form of a certificate, label, mark,
stamp or voucher which is recognised by the Ministry of Agriculture,
Fisheries and Food as a guarantee that the accompanying
product was inspected ante and post mortem and passed as fit in
accordance with criteria satisfactory to the Minister and that any
necessary packing or preparation had been executed under hygienic
conditions.
Imported Food Rejected.—The following unsound or diseased
imported foods were surrendered, the meat being passed for nonedible
and refining purposes, and other unsound food, with the
exception of fruit pulp and juice, being processed for stock feeding.