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The percentages of unsatisfactory samples
of the designated milks during the last five
years are as follows
1937 1938. 1939. 1940. 1941.
5 8 3.3.3 11 18
For some time it has been felt that there
has been deterioration due to- war conditions, in
the condition of milk as supplied to the consumer.
The interval between the milking at the farm and
delivery of milk to the consumer together with
the care in the handling and processing of milk
at milking and up to the time of delivery are the
points upon which the condition of milk as
received by the consumer depends.
The recent White Paper (Cmd. 6362) gives the
Government policy with regard to milk. The
interval between milking at the farm and delivery
of the milk to the consumer is a matter concerning
which the new rationalisation scheme should give
help. The care in the handling and processing
of milk at milking and up to the time of delivery
is a matter in which the advisory assistance to be
made available should assist. The labour
difficulties of purveyors of milk, concerning
which representation has been made on various
occasions to the Public Health Committee is also
referred to in the Command Paper, which takes
note of the appreciable reduction in the number
of dairymen available throughout the country.
The Government policy is declared to be for as
much milk as is possible to be pasteurised,
either at a collection depot or by wholesalers
or retailers. Perhaps it is owing to war-time
conditions and limitations that the policy of
compulsory pasteurisation of all milk has not
been adopted. The protection necessary to
prevent milk being a vehicle for the spread of
38.