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(e) Food Handling Byelaws.
Byelaws made under Section 15 of the Food and Drugs Act,
1938, for securing the observance of hygienic practices in connection
with the sale of food came into operation on the 24th July, 1950,
and have been particularly helpful in improving the manner in
which food is displayed on shop counters and in promoting a
high standard for mobile canteens and other street traders. Contraventions
of the byelaws have been dealt with by informal notice
or letter and have, in every instance, been complied with.
(f) Clean Food Campaign.
During the year the Food Hygiene Guild has made steadyprogress.
Regular meetings have been held, at which problems
affecting food traders have been discussed, and the press publicity
arising from these meetings has undoubtedly been very valuable
in keeping the importance of this subject constantly in the public
eye.
In March, a public film show, arranged in conjunction with
the Central Office of Information, was held. The films, " Another
Case of Food Poisoning," " Fly About the House," and " The Good
Housewife in Her Kitchen," were shown, and although the response
from the public was not good, an attendance of more than 200
schoolchildren made the effort well worth while.
In July a public meeting, to which all food handlers in the
district were given personal invitations, was addressed by Dr. W.
Howard Hughes, of the Public Health Laboratory Service. The
large audience found the talk interesting and instructive and showed,
by their questions at the close of the address, that it had also been
thought provoking.
During the year food hygiene propaganda posters supplied by
the Central Council for Health Education, have been posted on
the Council's notice boards in all parts of the district and changed
at frequent intervals.
(g) Licensed Premises.
The general standard of hygiene in public houses in the district
is good. Special attention, during the year, has been directed to
methods of glass washing and to the use of overspilled beer. Although
it would be difficult to prove that overspill has been the cause
of food-borne disease, it is, nevertheless, considered that a practice
which involves the sale of beer almost certainly contaminated by
the server's hands and, in the case of a refilled glass, the hands and
saliva of the customer, should not be accepted. The matter is one
of considerable economic importance to the trade but negotiations
with brewers and licensees are being carried on to obtain a solution.
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