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17
A Milk Diet Supplementary Food powder failed to comply with the Labelling of Food Order
inasmuch as the ingredients were not properly disclosed.
A Sauce contained 700 parts per million of benzoic acid, whereas the maximum quantity permitted
in a pickle or sauce is 250 parts per million.
A Cake called 'Coffee Jap Pastry' contained no caffeine. It was coloured essentially to resemble
a coffee colour, but contained insufficient flavouring to warrant the description.
A Loaf contained large holes lined with brownish matter from which it appeared that the yeast
had been mixed with wholemeal flour and then not kneaded properly into the dough.
Some Honey was incorrectly labelled. On one label it was described as 'Jamaican Honey' and
on another as 'Product of England.'
Two samples of Rice possessed an objectionable odour and flavour and were considered unsuitable
for sale, but no mould mycelium could be detected by microbiological examination. It was thought
that the rice might have been stowed on board ship with some highly flavoured material, or that
it might have become slightly moulded before being processed, when the visible signs would
disappear.
Some Majoram Powder contained 22 per cent. of ash and 7.3 per cent. of sandy matter, indicating
that the percentage of adherent earth was far too great. The total ash should not be more than
10 per cent.
A sample of Coarse Oatmeal was labelled as 'Hoobergritz,' one of Buckwheat as 'Kasha,' and
a fish cake as 'Gefilte fish.' All three samples therefore contravened the Labelling of Food Order
which requires food to be labelled with its common or usual name.
Some Apples contained 3.5 parts per million of arsenic and 12.5 parts per million of lead, both
of which quantities are excessive.
Some canned Apricots were examined because of a complaint that they contained black material
at the base of the can. The syrup and the apricots had been overheated in contact with the tinned
iron of the can, and in burning some of the tin from the tinplate had been taken up into the charred
sugar.
A sample of Peaches was stated to be canned in Rich Syrup, but the sugar in the syrup was 12.4
per cent w/w only, and the description 'Rich Syrup' was therefore incorrect.
A Blackcurrant Syrup contained only 4 milligrams of vitamin C per 100 grams of syrup, and was
therefore 90 per cent. deficient in vitamin C. Another sample of Blackcurrant Syrup was labelled
'Dilute 1 part syrup with 4/5 parts soda water or water. Diluted with hot water makes a delicious
winter drink or a sleep inducing nightcap.' As these samples were labelled 'Blackcurrant Syrup'
without any qualification your analyst feels that they must comply with the requirements of
Blackcurrant Syrups of the British Pharmaceutical Codex and contain about 40 per cent. of
blackcurrent juice and not less than 55 milligrams of vitamin C per 100 grams of syrup instead
of complying merely with the Soft Drinks Order.
A portion of Meat Pie contained a dark area which was due to the use of meat probably derived
from the muscle tissue at the entrance to the mouth of the animal. It is not illegal to use any part
of the head of an animal in open meat products, nor does the Prohibited Offals Order apply to
cooked meat products, but it is felt that this discoloured meat was not of the quality expected.
A pork pie contained a greenish discoloured area which was thought to be due to some coloured
material picked up during manufacture. A foreign object stated to have been found in a mushroom
pie consisted of a piece of chalk.
According to the Preservatives in Food Regulations minced beef must not contain a preservative,
but five samples examined contained respectively 140, 200, 930, 1,060 and 4,420 parts per million
of sulphur dioxide.
The description 'Steaklets' for a Vienna steak type of product was considered to be
unsatisfactory.
Some canned 'American Hamburgers' with Gravy contained 7 per cent. of filler, as packed, but
without the gravy, or between 10 and 12 per cent. as calculated on the weight of meat present
American law and Canadian law are much the same, the Canadian definition of a hamburger is that
it shall consist of comminuted beef with flavouring, and it is illegal in the States to add to a
hamburger more cereal than will produce 4 per cent. of reducing sugars.
The contents of a can of luncheon meat, which was bulging at the sides before opening, were
unfit for consumption and contained 100,000,000 bacteria per gramme. Another luncheon meat
contained only 56 per cent. of total meat. In your analyst's opinion luncheon meats must contain
not less than 80 per cent. of meat.