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It is extremely difficult to impress on stallholders in the
Market the real need for protecting foodstuffs from contamination
in the open air, but there has been a marked improvement
especially with regard to the stalls used for the sale of meat and
fish. Some concern is still felt, however, regarding the stalls used
for the retail trade of biscuits, cakes and sugar confectionery.
It is considered that the only way to ensure that the Food Hygiene
Regulations are complied with is to request these stallholders to
provide their own mobile stalls constructed on a caravan basis, so
that they are properly enclosed and service is only made from behind
a screened counter.
As regards smoking, the main difficulty is that this habit is so
widespread and ingrained and some food handlers, especially the
stallholders, do not appreciate that they should be subjected to this
prohibition whilst the customer is not. Few people appear to appreciate
that the reason for prohibiting the use of tobacco, including
snuff, whilst handling open food is that the habit brings fingers into
close contact with the nose and mouth both possible reservoirs of
food poisoning germs, the hands thus become contaminated and
the contamination is then transferred to the foodstuffs.
During the past year it was necessary to prosecute six persons
for smoking whilst handling open food, these were market
stallholders.
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