London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
View report page
Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
Willesden 1952
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Willesden]
This page requires JavaScript
31
The Middlesex County Council continues to take samples and supervise the control of food
adulteration.
Samples Taken
| Article. | No. of samples | Unsatisfactory |
|---|---|---|
| Milk | 232 | 1 |
| Bovril | 2 | 1 |
| Bread | 2 | — |
| Brynite (preservative) | 1 | — |
| Butter | 3 | — |
| Cakes (various) | 10 | — |
| Camphorated oil | 6 | — |
| Cheese | 1 | — |
| Coffee | 1 | — |
| Condensed milk | 1 | — |
| Drugs | 10 | 2 |
| Figs | 2 | 1 |
| Fish | 32 | 1 |
| Fish cake | 2 | — |
| Fish paste | 3 | — |
| Flavouring powder | 1 | — |
| Flour | 2 | — |
| Fruit sauce | 1 | — |
| Halva sweetmeat | 1 | — |
| Horseradish | 1 | — |
| Ice cream | 1 | — |
| Jardox | 1 | — |
| Jelly, from ham | 4 | 4 |
| Telly (various) | 3 | — |
| Lobster (tinned) | 1 | — |
| Lemon squash | 1 | — |
| Meats cooked | 35 | — |
| Meat pie | 10 | — |
| Meat paste | 2 | — |
| Meringue powder | 1 | — |
| Mint sauce | 1 | — |
| Mincemeat | 1 | — |
| Nutmeg ground | 1 | — |
| Omelette mixture | 1 | — |
| Onion Powder | 1 | — |
| Orange cordial | 1 | — |
| Pineapple squash | 2 | — |
| Plums (tinned) | 3 | — |
| Rice | 1 | — |
| Saccharin tablets | 1 | — |
| Salad cream | 1 | — |
| Salted almonds | 1 | — |
| Sausages (various) | 57 | 2 |
| Sausage meat | 6 | — |
| Sausage roll | 8 | — |
| Stewed steak | 1 | — |
| Synthetic cream | 1 | — |
| Sweets | 4 | 1 |
| Tomato ketchup | 1 | — |
| Tripe | 3 | — |
| Vinegar | 13 | 3 |
| Wines and spirits | 18 | — |
| White pepper | 2 | — |
| Yoghourt | 4 | — |
| Yorkshire pudding powder | 1 | — |
| Total | 508 | 16 |
It has been suggested that this service should be delegated to the Borough Council. The sanitary
inspectors who are experienced food inspectors and have an intimate knowledge of local conditions could
probably do this work more conveniently and more economically, particularly as the public are accustomed to
make their complaints to the Public Health Department. On the other hand, it is suggested that the
County's centralised service is more capable of organising uniform action in all districts and co-ordinating
the work generally at a cost of less than £10,000 a year. While there might undoubtedly be a loss in central
direction and co-ordination in the event of the transfer of these functions to the local authorities, there
would be distinct advantages in fewer officials visiting traders, and what is probably the most important, in
providing a service which is closer to the needs and influence of the public.