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Section 29 defines a Public Analyst as one appointed
under the Food and Drugs (Adulteration) Act, 1928.
This Act repeals, wholly or in part, the Arsenic Act of
1851; the Pharmacy Acts of 1852, 1868, 1869 and 1898;
the Poisons and Pharmacy Act of 1908; and the Dangerous
Drugs and Poisons (Amendment) Act of 1923.
In July of 1933 the Minister of Health and the Secretary
of State for Scotland directed that the work of the Departmental
Committee on Food Law, suspended in September,
1931, be resumed, with the following altered terms of
reference :—
" To consider whether it is desirable that the law
relating to the composition and description of articles of
food should be altered so as to enable definitions or standards
to be prescribed, or declarations of composition to be
required, for articles of food other than liquid milk; and if
so to recommend what alterations of the law are required."
A Memorandum dealing with antimony poisoning due
to the use of enamelled vessels was issued by the Ministry
of Health in February of last year. The Memorandum
draws attention to the dangers to health arising from the
use of low-grade enamelled vessels for the preparation or
storage of food or drink and refers to the ready solution of
antimony from the enamel by citric, tartaric, acetic and
other acids present in foods. Three outbreaks of antimony
poisoning at Newcastle-on-Tyne in 1928, Folkestone in
1929, and London in 1932, are mentioned and the cause of
these referred to the use of enamelled pails and jugs used
for preparing lemonade.
In addition to the articles taken under the Food and
Drags (Adulteration) Act I have analysed nine samples
of swimming-bath water submitted by the Medical Officer
of Health.