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
City of London 1914
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for London, City of ]
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The percentage of adulteration of samples taken in England and Wales in 1877
was 16.2; this percentage has been continuously reduced, and in 1913 (the latest figures
obtainable) the percentage was 8.2.
The accompanying Table has been partly compiled from the Annual Reports of the Local Government Board, to which are added some figures for the City of London, and London as a whole:—
| Year. | Total Number of Samples Examined in England and Wales. | Number Examined in the City of London. | Percentage of Total Number Examined in City of London. | Number of Persons to each Sample examined. | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| England and Wales. | *City of London. | London. | ||||
| 1881 | 17,823 | 162 | •92 | 1,462 | 318 | 760 |
| 1891 | 29,028 | 169 | •42 | 999 | 227 | 580 |
| 1901 | 67,841 | 854 | 1.26 | 479 | 32 | 291 |
| 1909 | 97,985 | 1,190 | 1.31 | 330 | 15 | 202 |
| 1910 | 100,301 | 1,202 | 1.19 | 359 | 14 | 187 |
| 1911 | 103,221 | 1,209 | 1.18 | 349 | 16 | 181 |
| 1912 | 108,174 | 1,165 | 1.17 | 333 | 17 | 179 |
MILK.
The adulteration of milk during 1914 (as compared with 1913) is shown in the following Table:—
| Year. | No. of Samples Examined. | Found Adulterated. | Percentage of Adulterated Samples. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1901 | 392 | 83 | 21.2 |
| 1902 | 599 | 80 | 13.3 |
| 1903 | 517 | 60 | 11.6 |
| 1904 | 452 | 35 | 7.7 |
| 1905 | 481 | 36 | 7.5 |
| 1906 | 556 | 43 | 7.7 |
| 1907 | 472 | 40 | 8.4 |
| 1908 | 469 | 29 | 6.2 |
| 1909 | 520 | 25 | 4.8 |
| 1910 | 474 | 20 | 4.2 |
| 1911 | 453 | 15 | 3.3 |
| 1912 | 481 | 19 | 3.9 |
| 1913 | 398 | 13 | 3.2 |
| 1914 ........... | 346 | 30 | 8.6 |
At first sight this high percentage of milk adulteration (as compared with former
years) would appear to be serious. This is not so, however, as 9 of the adulterated
samples were informal samples, 5 of which were obtained from the same vendor with
the object of proving him to be guilty of systematically tampering with the milk sold by
him. In this particular case a formal sample was subsequently taken, prosecution
followed, and a fine of 30l. and 21. 2s. costs was imposed.
The extremes of sophistication in the case of milk were, in respect of added water,
3 to 35 per cent., and of fat abstraction 6 to 31 per cent. The fine imposed in the
case of the highest percentage of added water was one of 51. and 1l. 1s. costs; in the
case of the vendor of the highest percentage of fat abstracted (two showing 31
per cent. fat abstracted), one was fined 21. and 1l. 1s. costs, the other was able to prove
warranty.