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made under Section 15 of the Food and Drugs Act, 1938, for
securing the observance of sanitary and cleanly condition 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.
Whilst these byelaws have given additional powers of control,
their provisions are in the main of a general character.
Among these, however, some new and necessary features have
been introduced, for instance, the hygienic control of premises
is now extended to embrace food stalls generally; also the power
to require suitable and sufficient means of lighting in all food
premises and stalls, and the prohibition of unsuitable wrapping
materials. The Authority here has been particularly active in
the enforcement of this latter provision.
The byelaws provided that food other than uncooked vegetables
should not be wrapped in such a manner as to come in
direct contact with newsprint.
A detailed investigation showed that a number of traders
were using newsprint only for wrapping some foods. Fish is
most commonly ill-wrapped. Warning letters were sent which
in some cases produced satisfactory results. It was found,
however, in some instances that only a token covering in the
form of a small piece of plain paper of insufficient size was being
used, allowing the food to come into direct contact with an
outer covering of newsprint. Further warnings have been given
in these cases, but I am not altogether hopeful that part of the
trade is taking the matter as seriously as statute and the public
require.
Another useful requirement is that a notice shall be affixed
near every sanitary convenience in food premises requesting
employees to wash their hands. In order to assist traders to
comply with this provision, a number of suitable notices have
been designed and produced and have been made available at
cost price.
Throughout the years, routine inspections of premises, shops,
stalls and vehicles where food is prepared, stored and sold has
been carried out. During 1953, 5,652 visits were made and at
90 of these, unsatisfactory conditions constituting contraventions
under Section 13 of the Food and Drugs Act, 1938, and byelaws
made thereunder were present. In each of these cases the
unsatisfactory conditions were remedied following the issue of
warning letters.
During the year no seizures were made of unsound food
under Section 10 of the Food and Drugs Act, 1938.