London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
Shoreditch 1938
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Shoreditch]
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141
The samples taken during 1938 included:—297 milk (2 informal); 3 cream;
12 chopped suet (10 informal); 27 canned fish (24 informal); 8 butter; 4 beer;
4 rum; 2 ground almonds; 4 whisky; 4 gin; 6 candied peel (4 informal); 7 curry
powder (4 informal); 5 chopped meat (4 informal); 5 sweets (4 informal).
Informal samples were also taken as follows:—4 corned beef; 11 black pudding;
8 castor oil; 4 cod liver oil and malt; 4 tinned cream; 6 flour; 8 canned fruit;
5 table jelly; 8 fresh meat; 15 condensed milk; 4 liquid paraffin; 4 tinned peas;
4 dried pears; 4 sauce; 7 tinned soup; 4 zinc ointment; 4 meat pies; 4 sulphur
ointment; 4 rice; 4 ground rice; 4 cod liver oil; 12 dripping; 4 Easter egg;
4 fish paste; 4 self-raising flour; 4 honey; 4 lard; 7 meat pie; 4 breakfast
sausage; 4 liver sausage; 4 soup powder; 4 mineral water; 4 lemonade powder;
4 boiled ham; 4 brawn; 4 saveloys; 4 ground ginger; 4 olive oil; 4 cake; 4 epsom
salts; 5 aspirin tablets; 4 sultanas; 4 tincture of iodine; 2 dried milk; 4 currants;
3 jam; 3 marmalade; 4 pickles; 5 cocoa; 4 ammoniated tincture of quinine;
6 mustard; 4 raisins; 2 cordial; 4 foot sugar; 4 mincemeat; 1 wine; 3 nonalcoholic
wine; 3 dried parsley.
The subjoined table gives a comparison of the results of the work under the
Sale of Food and Drugs acts for the years 1933-1938 inclusive:—
Table No. 129
| Year | Number of samples | Number of persons in the borough to each sample | Number of samples adulterated | Percentage of samples adulterated | Number of prosecutions instituted | Summonses withdrawn on account of warranties | Prosecution proceeded with | Number of successful prosecutions | Fines and costs | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| £ | s. | d. | |||||||||
| 1933 | 677 | 138 | 21 | 3.1 | 6 | 1 | 5 | 4 | 12 | 1 | 6 |
| 1934 | 660 | 137 | 22 | 3.3 | 8 | 1 | 7 | 1 | 19 | 4 | 6 |
| 1935 | 640 | 138 | 34 | 5.3 | 7 | — | 7 | 5 | 14 | 0 | 6 |
| 1936 | 614 | 139 | 39 | 6.3 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 10 | 10 | 0 |
| 1937 | 700 | 117 | 77 | 11.0 | 11 | — | 11 | 11 | 32 | 17 | 0 |
| 1938 | 659 | 122 | 35 | 5.0 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 11 | 8 | 0 |
A sample of canned sardines was found to contain lead, 13 parts per million,
equivalent to one-eleventh grain per pound. The vendor was warned and the
remainder of the stock was surrendered and destroyed.
Another sample of canned sardines was found to contain lead, 29 parts per
million, equivalent to one-fifth of a grain per pound. Legal proceedings were
instituted and the defendant was ordered to pay £5 5s. Od. costs. The remainder of
the stock was surrendered and destroyed.