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115
SECTION E
Inspection of Food and Supervision of Food Premises
In last year's report I speculated upon the effect that Britain's
entry into the Common Market would have with regard to foods
imported from the member countries, its standards, inspection,
methods of production, packeting and marketing, etc. Our failure
to gain entry into the Common Market makes the problems of
standardisation of food hygiene and quality standards, etc., matters
of less urgency for the time being at least.
Nevertheless, it must be remembered that in food production
this nation is not self-supporting and depends to a very large
extent upon imports from abroad. In this connection it may be
surprising for some people to learn that approximately 50% of
all the food and some 60% of all meat imports to the United
Kingdom are received at the London wharves. When it is realised
that the million tons involved is valued at about £700 million,
then there can be no dispute about the prodigious responsibilities
resting not only upon the Port of London Health Authority but
also riparian authorities with regard to its inspection especially
when one considers the extensive and constantly varying nature
of the foods imported. Recent years have seen the importation
on a larger scale of unusual items such as egg albumen, frogs' legs,
shark soup, yam flour, to name a few of the exotic foods which
add to the complexities of the duties of public health staffs in
their efforts to maintain effective control.
Food examination in bygone days generally meant chemical
analysis, usually instituted to detect deliberate adulteration, but
the pattern is changing. As a direct result of legislation beginning
in 1860 and the compulsory appointment of Public Analysts in
1875, deliberate adulteration has been almost eliminated and
there is greater emphasis on bacteriological investigation of foods
since, in cases of outbreaks of food poisoning, the causes, when
established, are almost always due to bacterial contamination.
Whilst, under existing conditions, complete sterility is unobtainable
and indeed may not in fact be desirable, there are limits
beyond which, from the public health point of view, it would not
be wise nor safe to go.
To a riparian authority food inspection is complicated and
often arduous, for examination of food on wharves often requires
a quick decision in order that there should be no delay to the
importer or his distributors. A difficult position is often aggravated by (a) the time taken for results of chemical and bacteriological