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29. MEAT INSPECTION AND ANIMAL PROTECTION
This Division is responsible for the administration of the Meat Inspection Regulations,
1963, and for the Diseases of Animals Act, 1950, and other legislation which controls
slaughterhouse operations, together with inspection and licensing of pet animals
shops, riding establishments and animal boarding establishments.
The legislation covering control of operations at a slaughterhouse governs
licensing, hygiene, prevention of cruelty, anaesthesia, inspection, administration,
slaughtering and notifiable disease.
The object of meat inspection is to ensure that no diseased or unsound meat
reaches the consumer. Any failing on the part of the inspectorate could result in
the transmission of disease to man.
Other aspects of the work of the meat inspection division referred to in this report
relate to duties under the Diseases of Animals Act and to various minor pieces of
legislation which are designed to improve the handling of animals.
MEAT INSPECTION REGULATIONS
The factory slaughterhouse of T. Wall & Sons, Ltd., Atlas Road, Acton, is engaged
in the slaughtering and processing of pigs and is the largest of its kind in the country.
In order to carry out the provisions of the Meat Inspection Regulations, 1963, a staff
of eight authorized meat inspectors and three assistants, together with a Supervisory
Inspector in charge, was employed daily throughout the year from Monday to Friday
with occasional Saturday morning duty.
The moving line method of carcase dressing is in operation and, with a speed of
approximately 327 carcases an hour, staff have found this type of meat inspection
exacting and tiring, and difficulty has been experienced in the past in attracting public
health inspectors to this particular type of work. In order to overcome this difficulty
the former Acton Council started a training scheme for authorized meat inspectors
to release its public health inspectors for other duties. On the 1st April, 1965, four
authorized meat inspectors were transferred to the staff of the London Borough
together with four students under training. The staff necessary to complete the
meat inspection team was drawn from the Public Health Inspectorate on a rota
system, working an early and late shift. In May, the student meat inspectors were
successful in their qualifying examination and were appointed authorized meat
inspectors, and a staff of eight authorized meat inspectors became operative.
Public health inspectors since then have only been required for duty when authorized
meat inspectors were absent on holiday or through sickness. There were four
further student meat inspectors under training at the end of the year, and when they
are qualified it is hoped that this will enable the amount of overtime being worked by
the meat inspectorate to be reduced. This I consider important as I am sure that a high
standard of inspection cannot be maintained if the shifts worked are excessively long.
The need for constant vigilance in meat inspection was illustrated during July and
August when batches of pigs from two farms were received and on post-mortem
examination showed signs of a toxic condition in certain organs. The carcases were
detained and bacteriological and chemical examinations were carried out by the
Council's Analyst and the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food. Their
reports indicated that the animals were affected by mercurial poisoning and were
unfit for human food. The source of the mercury was found to be due to the
inclusion of washed seed barley in the feed meal supplied to the two farms. The
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