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73
That this is the case every now and again naturally cannot be
denied. At the same time it is no uncommon thing to see dirty
milk cans and dirty milk churns due to imperfect cleansing and
sterilisation. The delivery of milk in bottles is, in my view, one
which should be extended, but it should always be subject to
conditions such as the following :—
(1) A guarantee should be given that the bottles have not
only been washed, but also sterilised.
(2) The stoppers for the bottles should be also sterilised,
and should be, if of the removable type, kept in a clean metal
or earthenware receptacle provided for this purpose alone.
(3) The filling of the bottles should be done under the
strictest supervision in a room specially devoted to this
purpose, by people who are clean in their clothing and person,
and the bottles should be invariably closed immediately after
they are filled.
It is a fact that a good deal of the milk sold at present as
"Pasteurised milk-" has not been Pasteurised in the whole of its
bulk. It is possible to detect this by means of chemical tests,
and I think samples should be taken for this purpose from time
to time. The Public Analyst has been asked to make an
examination of milks for dirt as well as for the ordinary chemical
adulteration (addition of water, removal of fat, and addition of
preservatives), but no cases have come to my knowledge where
official action was called for.
Three samples of condensed milk were submitted to
bacteriological examination, and one of them was passed as
harmless. In the case of one other, it was certified that " from
O.OI c.c. of this milk a rich growth of a streptococcus was
obtained, and in larger quantities in addition to the streptococcus,
the bacillus subtilis and a micrococcus was found." The
milk was certified to be quite unfit for human consumption.
The matter was immediately referred to the
wholesale dealers in this condensed milk, and it was suggested
that they take measures to prohibit the sale of any more of it
until the question could be more fully investigated. They consented
to take this action, and recalled the milk from the whole
of their branches. Some little dispute arose between their
Bacteriologist and the Council's Bacteriologist as to the significance
of the micrococcus, and as to the endeavour on the part of
this Council to establish a bacterial standard for condensed milk.
Condensed milk, of course, is not sold as sterilised, but at the same
time if properly prepared, and especially if properly canned immediately
after condensation, it ought to conform to a pretty high
standard of bacterial purity. Your Council is endeavouring to
have a standard of this description fixed by the Local Govern-