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71
During the year, a special investigation was made of contamination
of fruit and vegetables by metals. Sixty samples were submitted for
analysis for the presence of copper, lead and arsenic. All the samples
tested were well within the accepted limits for each of these metals.
Samples are examined not only by the Public Analyst but by members
of the staff of the Department. Of the 1,201 samples examined in this way,
205 were not up to standard. This examination is primarily aimed at
checking the passing-off one kind of food for another. There were fiftyfive
such offences; ten were the passing-off of one fish for another; seven
the passing-off of one kind of liver for another, and eleven were the
passing-off of other plums as Victorias. The greatest number of such
offences though was the passing-off of one variety of apple for another.
In addition to these examinations were the 6,433 made by the officers
of the Department as part of the system of selective sampling for articles
to be sent to the Public Analyst.
In only one of the 332 samples of milk submitted to test for the
presence of the tubercle bacillus was the organism discovered. In spite of
examinations of the herds, no animals were found to be infected.
Five hundred and nineteen visits of inspection were paid to the
twenty-four premises licensed for the pasteurisation of milk and three for
the sterilising of milk to ensure that the premises, plants and records were
all satisfactory. The Milk (Special Designations) Regulations, 1960 came
into operation on the 1st January, 1961. These require retailers selling
designated milk in the county to be licensed by the County Council
instead of by the District Councils, and require them to use the designations
"pasteurised," "sterilised" or "tuberculin-tested" in relation to
milk sold in the county. Only three of the 1,128 samples of milk submitted
for tests for keeping quality and for the adequacy of heat treatment did
not come up to standard.
The Labelling of Food Order 1953 requires that pre-packed food with
certain exceptions must be marked with the correct name of the food, a
statement of the ingredients and either the name and address or registered
trade mark of the packer or labeller. 3,314 premises were visited, and 1,615
packets examined to see that these provisions were being observed. Only
minor infringements were detected.
Radioactivity in Diet.
Although the radioactive isotopes of iodine and strontium form only
a small part of the total radioactivity produced by atomic fusion, from the
Point of view of contamination of human diet, they are the most important
because those that fall on agricultural land pass much more rapidly
than other radioactive substances in to human food. Moreover, they accumate
and are retained in the thyroid gland and in bone respectively.
The isotopes of iodine all decay relatively rapidly. The half life of
iodine 131, the most persistent, is eight days. Because of the large amount