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Further maintenance treatment, in respect of rat disinfestation,
to sewers, was undertaken during the year on two occasions, when
a total of 266 manholes were test baited, and 440 manholes were
poison baited.
(vi) Infestation.
The facilities for disinfestation, and the destruction of clothing
and bedding, are the same.
(vii) Pet Animals Act, 1951.
Thirteen persons are licensed to keep Pet Shops. Frequent
inspections are carried out.
3.—INSPECTION AND SUPERVISION OF FOOD
(i) Milk Supply.
Samples of milk have again been taken by the Sanitary
Inspectors as part of their routine duties.
At the end of the year, 41 persons were registered as Retailers
or Distributors. Of these 11 were licensed to retail TuberculinTested
Milk, 1 was licensed to retail Accredited Milk, 15 were
licensed to retail Pasteurised Milk, and 29 were licensed to retail
Sterilised Milk.
As from 2nd December, the Milk (Special Designations)
(Specified Areas) No. 2) Order, 1953, came into operation. This
specifies certain areas, including the Borough of Romford, where all
milk sold for retail must be special designated milk, i.e. Sterilised
Milk, Pasteurised Milk, Tuberculin Tested Milk, or Accredited Milk
from a single herd.
Taking into account the areas that have been specified in a previous
Order, the milk supplies of 41% of the population of England
and Wales now consist wholly of specially designated milk.
(ii) Ice Cream.
All Traders and Manufacturers have to be registered. There
were at the end of the year 4 manufacturers, and 186 vendors on the
register.
Here, also, regular sampling has been carried out.
(iii) Meat.
The Sanitary Inspectors have again regularly attended at the
Regional Slaughterhouse, and, in addition, have paid the usual
visits to Meat Depots, Butchers' Shops, Stalls, etc.
Altogether, 739 visits have been paid, and, at the Ministry of
Food Slaughterhouse alone 25,088 carcases were examined. No
Ante-Mortem inspections are made, but all animals are examined
after slaughter. The carcases of 675 horses were also examined
at a private slaughterhouse, which is used solely for the slaughter
of horses.
During the course of the year, the Council made application to
the Minister of Food for authority to employ a system of meat
marking at the regional slaughterhouse, in accordance with Article
15 of the Public Health (Meat) Regulations, 1924, and this was
duly approved.
Table 12 sets out the particulars of the carcases inspected and
condemned,