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61 [1936

NOTIFICATION OF FOOD POISONING.
During the year 10 -cases of food poisoning were notified, the alleged poisoning
foods being braised kidney, corned beef, fried fish, tinned salmon, winkles, fish
cake (made with tinned salmon, tinned peas and potatoes), fish, and sausages.
The case of fish poisoning attributed to the consumption of fish cake made with
tinned salmon, tinned peas and potatoes, caused some anxiety. Information was
received from the Medical Officer of St. Pancras that a number of women employed
at the offices of a large company were taken ill during the week-end, supposed to
have been caused by food consumed at the staff canteen on the previous Friday.
Enquiries revealed that four of these employees resided in Islington; these were
followed up, and two were subsequently notified to us to be suffering from food
poisoning, stated to be due to a meal of fish cakes as above mentioned.
Another case (not notified in Islington) which was the subject of enquiry, related
to alleged food poisoning which occurred in September. The patient was employed
in the Kent hop fields, and was admitted to a general hospital at Hastings, stated
to be suffering from " Paratyphoid Fever." An allegation was made that the
illness was due to eating sausage and meat pies which were " objectionable and
appeared to be unsound, and had to be thrown away." The County Medical Officer
was communicated with and very careful enquiries instituted, but no evidence was
found pointing to infection from poisoning by meat pies provided by a firm catering
in the particular district whence the patient was removed.
An alleged case of poisoning from ham was investigated. The sufferer had
eaten at the same time tinned peas and pineapple; when the ham was inspected
at the Public Health Department on the following day (Monday) it was certainly
" high." The patient was treated at one of the large London hospitals, but the
Pathologist found no organism of importance in the patient. The examination of
the ham produced a staphylococcal toxin. The condition of the ham when seen was
inconsistent with it being in such a state on the Saturday when it was bought, as
no one would have purchased such high smelling, offensive food. The ham had
been kept overnight, and a considerable part of Sunday, in a gas cooker on the
landing, so the inference was that it had got infected in some way and become
thoroughly bad.
An enquiry was also made into an alleged contamination of beer, but the
conditions under which the bottling was carried out at the establshment appeared
to be as far as possible perfect. As the beer was purchased in another district, our
investigations were limited to where it was alleged to have been bottled.