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
Marylebone 1938
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for St. Marylebone, Metropolitan Borough]
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58
MEAT AND OTHER FOODS.
Food Inspection.
The work of food protection receives year by year the closest attention. As
for some years past, the main duties have been carried out by Inspector Smith,
who made inspections of premises in which food is sold, stored or prepared, and
acted as sampling officer under the Food and Drugs (Adulteration) Act, 1928.
During 1938, as formerly, the special Saturday night and Sunday inspections in
market streets, etc., were made, and in carrying them out Inspector Smith received
the assistance of other members of the staff having the necessary qualifications and
experience.
Unsound Food.
On a great many occasions the inspector was called by vendors to examine
articles of food under section 180 (8) of the Public Health (London) Act, 1936, and
to accept surrender of such as were unsound or unwholesome or unfit for food.
Table 36 contains a list of the articles dealt with in this way.
TABLE 36.
Unsound Food Condemned and Destroyed.
| Meat— | Tinned Goods— | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Beef | 160 lbs. | Corned Beef | 97 tins |
| Lamb | 80 „ | Hams | 31 „ |
| Pork | 30 „ | Veal | 4 „ |
| Brawn | 30 „ | ||
| Herring Roe | 191 „ | ||
| Kipper Snacks | 72 „ | ||
| Cod | 3 stone | Dressed Crab | 48 „ |
| Cod Fillets | 8 „ | Lunch Tongue | 1 „ |
| Cod Roe | 8 „ | Ox Tongue | 1 „ |
| Kippers | 2 boxes | ||
| Haddock | 2 stone | ||
| Whiting | 1½ „ | Bacon | 2½ cwt. |
| Cheddar Cheese | 196 lbs. | ||
| Warwick Cheese | 140 „ | ||
| Turkeys | 8 | ||
| Oranges | 23 cases | Partridges | 5 |
| Apples | 16 boxes | Beef Extract | 480 jars |
| Mayonnaise | 516 „ | ||
| Salad Cream | 648 „ | ||
Public Health (Meat) Regulations, 1924.
These regulations continue to work smoothly so far as the provisions relating
to butchers' shops and to stalls are concerned, the butchers endeavouring to comply
as completely as possible with the requirements. On the whole it may be claimed
that as a result of the operation of the regulations there has been real improvement
so far as regards exposure of meat, and that in the matter of protection from contamination,
conditions are very much better than they were when the regulations
came into operation.
Slaughterhouses.
At the moment the only slaughter house in the Borough is that at the Zoological
Society's premises in Regent's Park. The slaughtering done is for the food of the
animals in the gardens and humane killers are used. Ten inspections were made in
1938.