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34
APPENDIX
Report of the Public Analyst (J. H. E. Marshall, M.A. (Cantab.),
F.R.I.C.) for the year ended 31st December, 1961.
To the Mayor, Aldermen and Councillors
of the Metropolitan Borough of Paddington.
Your Worship, Ladies and Gentlemen,
During the year under review the number of samples submitted
for examination under the Food and Drugs Act, 1955 was 500. Of
these twenty-two were irregular and were the subject of special
reports. Eleven of them were the results of complaints where the
food contained foreign substances. Most of the Food and Drug
samples examined were quite satisfactory, and again it may be
concluded that the wide variety of articles sampled by your Inspectors
and consequently available to the general public, were of good
quality.
One hundred and eighteen milk samples were examined. A few
approached near to the minimum standard below which milk is
presumed to be not genuine. One which did fall below this minimum
standard was found to be quite satisfactory when subjected to the
Hortvet freezing point determination, and it must be regarded as a
genuine but abnormal milk.
The samples which were unsatisfactory included seven milk
bottles which were either dirty themselves or contained dirt in the
milk. Bread continues to be an article of food which reveals some
surprising treasures, and three samples examined revealed a long
piece of string, a nail and a large piece of mauve cardboard.
Six samples did not satisfy the requirements of the Labelling of
Food Order. A sample of pan lubricant had a label bearing
extravagant claims but the labels were later modified and are now
satisfactory. A label on a packet of gravy powder was illegible, and
this Order requires the various descriptions to be printed legibly. A
sample of apple juice declared the presence of vitamin 'C' in a wrong
manner. A sample of cooking oil was packed in a vinegar bottle.
A sample of prepacked cereals and pulses did not contain a list of the
individual ingredients. A sample of chicken broth was also improperly
labelled.
Other samples which were not satisfactory were a Christmas
pudding on which moulds were growing, a can of apricot dumpling
which was corroded slightly inside and was under excess pressure, and
a canned meat product which was deficient in weight. It can be said
that the duties of a Public Analyst who is required to analyse foods,
do not include the checking of declared weights, but it is submitted
that one of the functions of a Public Analyst is to protect the
customer, and the checking of weights is a part of that protection.
The last sample which is not satisfactory is a sample of lemonade
which contained a trace of disfectant, and at the time of writing, this
matter is the subject of Court proceedings.