London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
Lewisham 1961
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Lewisham Borough]
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51
FOOD GENERALLY
Adulteration of food
The number of samples taken during the year under the Food and
Drugs Act was 576 ; of these, 28 were formal and 548 informal. After
examination the public analyst reported that 1 of the formal samples
and 19 of the informal samples were adulterated or below standard ;
the percentage of adulteration amounted to 3.6 in the formal samples,
3.5 in the informal samples, and to 3.5 of all the samples submitted,
compared with 2.4 in the previous year.
Samples analysed Table 36
| Articles | Examined | Adulterated | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Formal | informal | Total | Formal | Informal | Total | |
| Beverages | 1 | 29 | 30 | - | 4 | 4 |
| Bread, biscuits, cake flour | 2 | 21 | 23 | - | - | - |
| Colouring matter | - | 2 | 2 | - | 1 | 1 |
| Drugs | - | 18 | 18 | - | - | - |
| Fats, cheese | 1 | 53 | 54 | - | 1 | 1 |
| Fish | 2 | 14 | 16 | - | 1 | 1 |
| Flavourings and condiments | 1 | 116 | 117 | - | 1 | 1 |
| Fruit, nuts | - | 30 | 30 | - | 1 | 1 |
| Icecream | 2 | 45 | 47 | - | - | - |
| Jams, pastes, etc. | - | 22 | 22 | - | - | - |
| Meats and preserved meats | 1 | 56 | 57 | - | 3 | 3 |
| Milk | 9 | 42 | 51 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Sausages | 5 | 10 | 15 | - | - | - |
| Vegetables and cereals. | - | 39 | 39 | - | 4 | 4 |
| Miscellaneous | 4 | 51 | 55 | - | 2 | 2 |
| TOTALS | 28 | 548 | 576 | 1 | 19 | 20 |
Non-genuine samples Table 37
| Article | Formal or informal | Adulteration or irregularity | Action taken or result of proceedings |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bubble gum | Informal | Contained non-permitted dyestuff | Under consideration |
| Candy beads | Informal | Contained non-permitted dyestuff | ditto |
| Lemon juice | Informal | Contained an excessive amount of lead | Inside soldered seam of can showed considerable signs of attack from juice which may indicate that sample was of considerable age or that lacquer of can was fractured. No further action. |