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 1936
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for London, City of ]
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40
One ton in every 564 tons of meat paying toll in the Central Markets, Smithfield, was
condemned last year, as compared with one ton in 511 in 1935.
*Table showing the average deliveries at the Central Meat Market, and other details for successive quinquennial periods during the past 60 years:—
| Quinquennium. | Annual Average General Supply. | % of Unsound | Meat | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tons. | cwts. | qrs. | Tons. | cwts. | qrs. | ||
| 1874-1878 | 178,373 | 10 | 0 | 192 | 18 | 2 | .108 |
| 1879-1883 | 218,200 | 12 | 3 | 282 | 11 | 2 | .129 |
| 1884-1888 | 249,580 | 19 | 2 | 248 | 1 | 2 | .099 |
| 1889-1893 | 304,986 | 5 | 1 | 461 | 15 | 1 | .151 |
| 1894-1898 | 372,440 | 12 | 2 | 749 | 3 | 3 | .201 |
| 1899-1903 | 410,456 | 18 | 1 | 1,082 | 13 | 2 | .263 |
| 1904-1908 | 414,906 | 11 | 1 | 1,584 | 19 | 3 | .382 |
| 1909-1913 | 427,146 | 0 | 0 | 1,520 | 2 | 3 | .356 |
| 1914-1918 | 324,715 | 0 | 0 | 1,370 | 11 | 2 | .422 |
| 1919-1923 | 403,364 | 10 | 0 | 1,849 | 19 | 0 | .459 |
| 1924-1928 | 477,405 | 0 | 0 | 1,210 | 2 | 0 | .253 |
| 1929-1933 | 464,847 | 0 | 0 | 946 | 6 | 0 | .203 |
| 1934-1936 | 470,266 | 0 | 0 | 899 | 2 | 1 | .191 |
*The sources of origin of the Central Markets Supplies during the past five years are here expressed in terms per cent, of the total annual deliveries.
| Year. | British Country Killed. | Town Killed. | Canadian. | Australian and New Zealand. | South African and South Rhodesian. | U.S.A. | Argentine, etc. | Continental. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1932 | 22.9 | 3.6 | 0.3 | 25.4 | 01 | 0.5 | 42.8 | 4.4 |
| 1933 | 22.3 | 3.5 | 0.7 | 26.5 | 0.8 | 0.6 | 41.8 | 3.8 |
| 1934 | 22.3 | 3.0 | 1.0 | 29.4 | 0.5 | 0.9 | 40.0 | 2.9 |
| 1935 | 24.5 | 3.4 | 0.5 | 28.8 | 0.8 | 0.6 | 38.9 | 2.5 |
| 1936 | 24.4 | 3.9 | 0.8 | 28.1 | 0.6 | 0.4 | 39.5 | 2.3 |
The following figures supplied by the Superintendent of the Market are of interest:—
| 1932. | 1933. | 1934. | 1935. | 1936. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tons. | Tons. | Tons. | Tons. | Tons. | |
| Average daily delivery into the Markets | 1,511 | 1,491 | 1,514 | 1,558 | 1,528 |
| **Minimum delivery on any one day | 368 | 627 | 544 | 191 | 84 |
| Maximum delivery on any one day | 3,877 | 4,061 | 3,704 | 3,386 | 4,554 |
| The heaviest weight previously recorded on any one day (20th December, 1926) was— 5,259 tons. | |||||
FISH SUPPLIES.
204,746 tons of fish, of which 201,770 were land-borne and 2,976 water-borne, were
received at or near Billingsgate Market during the year.
This was a decrease of 1,314 tons in the land deliveries and a decrease of 9,365 tons in
deliveries by water.
MONTHLY FISH RETURNS. Table showing Weight of Fish Delivered, Fish seized as Unsound, and Percentage of Fish Condemned to thai delivered, at or near Billingsgate Market, and on board boats lying off that place, during each month of the year 1936
| Month. | Weight of Fish Delivered. | Total. | Weight of Fish Condemned. | Ratio of Fish Condemned to that Delivered. | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| By Land. | By Water. | ||||||||||||
| Tons. | wts | qrs. | Tons. | cwts. | qrs. | Tons. | cwts. | qrs. | Tons. | cwts. | qrs. | .2717% or 1 ton in 370.714 | |
| January | 17,431 | 4 | 0 | 651 | 1 | 0 | 18,082 | 5 | 0 | 47 | 19 | 3 | |
| February | 17,189 | 10 | 0 | 643 | 13 | 2 | 17,833 | 3 | 2 | 47 | 19 | 1 | .2689% „ „ 371.814 |
| March | 18,961 | 7 | 2 | 322 | 6 | 3 | 19,283 | 14 | 1 | 76 | 6 | 1 | .395% „ „ 252.694 |
| April | 17,046 | 14 | 0 | 111 | 6 | 0 | 17,158 | 0 | 0 | 61 | 11 | 0 | .358% „ „ 278.765 |
| May | 17,474 | 7 | 1 | 68 | 6 | 0 | 17,542 | 13 | 1 | 102 | 13 | 2 | .585% „ „ 170.856 |
| June | 15,991 | 18 | 0 | 177 | 2 | 0 | 16,169 | 0 | e | 107 | 7 | 2 | .664% „ 150.584 |
| July | 16,879 | 2 | 3 | 19 | 18 | 2 | 16,899 | 1 | l | 98 | 14 | 3 | .584% ,, ,, 171.151 |
| August | 15 669 | 3 | 0 | 69 | 18 | 3 | 15.739 | 1 | 3 | 157 | 16 | 2 | 1. 002% „ „ 99.724 |
| September | 17,232 | 4 | 0 | 39 | 13 | 0 | 17,271 | 17 | 0 | 133 | 7 | 3 | .772% „ ,, 129.486 |
| October | 17,246 | 14 | 3 | 452 | 15 | 2 | 17,699 | 10 | 1 | 76 | 0 | 0 | .429% „ „ 232.888 |
| November | 15,627 | 15 | 3 | 286 | 18 | 0 | 15,914 | 13 | 3 | 77 | 6 | 3 | .485% „ ,, 205.782 |
| December | 15,019 | 16 | 3 | 133 | 8 | 2 | 15,153 | 5 | 1 | 40 | 3 | 1 | .265% „ ,, 377.298 |
| Totals | 201,769 | 17 | 3 | 2,976 | 7 | 2 | 204,746 | 5 | 1 | 1,027 | 6 | 1 | .501% „ 199.363 |
•I am indebted to the Clerk and Superintendent of the Central Markets for the figures relating to the market
supplies, sources of origin, &c.
•* The minimum deliveries relate to Saturdays when practically no wholesale business at the Market is carried out.
* Includes " General Foreign Meat and Produce." t Includes South American Imports.