View report page

less there is an urgent necessity to prevent a food business being started in inherently unsatisfactory
conditions.
While the idea of effective legislation has been put forward it is in no way required for its
own sake. On the contrary, the problem of the Medical Officer of Health and the Authority he
represents is the extent to which persuasion and co-operation can be used when some people —
no doubt a minority — prefer punitive measures.
Premises and Types of Business
In areas where there is a large movement of population each day from dormitory suburbs to
extensive office and shop accommodation there is the problem of feeding many people in a comparatively
short lunch period. This inevitably leads to the establishment of catering establishments
of all types — from small sandwich bars to large canteens - which in itself creates
problems for the health department of any Corporation. First a decision has to be made as to
whether or not staff should specialize in taking care of catering in general, and the standards
which can be achieved under these specialized conditions. There appears to be no royal road to
success and it is suggested that each Medical Officer must consider his area on its merits.
The feeding of large numbers of people in a short period always raised the problem of the
reheating of certain items of food, as this practice is common especially in staff catering establishments.
Most of the outbreaks of food poisoning which we have been called upon to investigate
are directly attributable to this practice and to the lack of personal hygiene. When called
upon to advise about ways and means of overcoming this problem there remains the difficulty of
differentiating between what we know to be perfection and what is feasible from a practical
point of view. We know that this is a problem of education, but this difficult subject is being
discussed by other speakers.
Staff Problems
Probably the biggest problem facing a Medical Officer of Health today in his efforts to
improve and maintain standards of hygiene in food premises is the persistent staff shortage,
coupled with the fact that the only labour available in many cases is low grade. The mobility of
this low grade labour furthermore accentuates the difficulty.
Whilst most responsible traders appreciate the importance of hygiene and cleanliness,
standards cannot be maintained without the co-operation of their workers. In the catering industry
particularly, discipline must be either accepted or imposed if meals, safe to eat, are to be
provided for customers. In the present state of the labour market where the ultimate sanction of
dismissal means nothing, it verges upon the impossible for management to exercise that measure
of control over their staff which is so essential if a satisfactory standard of cleanliness is to be
maintained. Unfortunately, management today is often actuated by the reasoning that any pair of
hands is better than none and few firms can afford to be selective in their choice of personnel.
The more menial tasks in the catering business have tended to be offered to the lowest grade
workers especially in an economy of practically full employment. If there were any severe competition
for work many of these would not obtain employment. Nevertheless, the use of this low
grade labour adds to the difficulty of the caterer who, in any case, cannot escape from his constant
day to day struggle to prepare food in quantity, palatable and acceptable to his customers,
at prices which are keenly competitive and, at the same time, ensure that proper safeguards are
maintained in the handling and serving of food.
Unless the catering trade is able to attract labour of a better quality for certain of the less
attractive occupations, any further progress in the raising of standards of hygiene must, inevitably,
be a slow and laborious struggle.
Public Houses
For a number of years, now, the brewers and their tenants have been turning their attention
to providing food —snacks to elaborate meals — in their public houses. They have in common with
other caterers shown their artistry in the amount and arrangement of food which they display, and
perhaps to tempt their client have, literally, put their wares under his nose. The protection of
food from the risk of contamination under these conditions is still a problem as it is in many
retail shops. There is still ample scope in this direction for both the industry and individual
caterers to exercise their ingenuity but it cannot be pretended that we have the final answer to
this problem.
Unfortunately, there is still widespread ignorance about the proper use of refrigerators and
and refrigerated show counters. No doubt all of you have seen pies, sausages, cooked chicken
and the like, stacked layers thick on a refrigerated window shelf and it is remarkable the blind
faith the proprietors put into these misused pieces of equipment. The effort required to convince
some sections of the retail trade that this practice nullifies the usefulness of the equipment
is a constant problem and this is one which can only be resolved by constant "nagging".
46