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
Wandsworth 1972
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Wandsworth, Metropolitan Borough]
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65
REPORT OF THE WORK OF THE
PUBLIC ANALYST FOR 1972
The analysis of samples of food and drugs purchased formally
and informally under the Food and Drugs Act, 1955, is carried out
by the Public Analyst, D.G.Forbes, Esq., B.Sc., F.R.I.C.
During the year 1,000 samples of food and drugs were submitted
foranalysis;100 samples of milk, 865 other foodstuffs and
35 drugs. Of these 2 were submitted as formal samples, while
998 were purchased informally. One of the formal samples and
103 of the informal samples were found to be adulterated or below
standard, representing 10.4 per cent, of the total samples submitted.
The samples submitted for analysis comprised the following substances:-
| Beers, wines and spirits | 13 |
| Beverages (cocoa, coffee, tea, etc.) | 16 |
| Cereal preparations | 8 |
| Cheese products | 27 |
| Confectionery | 130 |
| Cream | 8 |
| Fats (butter, margarine, etc.) | 14 |
| Fish (canned, etc.) | 57 |
| Fruit (canned and dried) | 71 |
| Ice-cream | 11 |
| Meat products (including sausages) | 145 |
| Milk | 100 |
| Milk products | 60 |
| Pickles and condiments (including spices) | 91 |
| Preserves | 32 |
| Soft drinks | 78 |
| Soups | 32 |
| Vegetables | 72 |
| Drugs | 35 |
TABLE 16
SAMPLES FOUND TO BE ADULTERATED OR BELOW STANDARD
| Sample No. | Nature of Sample | Report |
|---|---|---|
| Formal 229 | Ground Haldi | Contained excess lead |
| Informal 6490 | Almond marzipan | Slight deficiency of almond |