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of beef were described by means of a ticket in the window as "Scotch". The beef was
identified by an officer of the Department as of Yugoslav origin. The butcher was prosecuted
and was fined £10 on each of three summonses.
Safe Milk. From the 1st January, 1961 the County Council became the licensing
authority for the issue of licences to dealers with premises within its area and 44 such
licences were issued in respect of the sale of milk to which the special designations "pasteurised",
"sterilised" and "tuberculin tested" could be applied. The period for which
these licences were granted has been extended from one year to five years. Fifty-eight
samples of milk were obtained to test that heat treatment and subsequent storage were
properly carried out. One was not satisfactory, in that it failed the methylene blue test.
This was found to be due to unsatisfactory storage at the retail shop. The prescribed
notice of warning was sent to the shopkeeper. Forty-four inspections of premises were
made to ensure proper compliance with the Milk (Special Designation) Regulations, 1960.
Eight samples of raw milk were procured in Southall and tested for the presence of
tubercle bacilli. None was found to be infected.
Labelling of Food Order, 1953. The Labelling of Food Order requires prepacked food
to be marked with the name and address of the packer or labeller or to bear a registered
trade mark; to be marked with its common or usual name and to bear a statement of ingredients
if the food consists of more than one ingredient. It also controls the manner in
which the presence of vitamins and minerals is disclosed.
In the Borough of Southall a total of 69 premises were visited and 226 items of food
were examined for compliance with the Order. One infringement was disclosed.
In this case ice lolly crystals were on sale without a statement of ingredients. The
manufacturer was sent a letter of caution.
Labelling and Advertising Infringements. In addition to the detail given above, a
considerable volume of work was done in the period under review, which did not arise from
samples procured in the Borough of Southall, but which had the effect of protecting the
residents in each county district. The matters dealt with were in respect of nationally
retailed articles of food.
Several manufacturers were required to designate the ingredients on labels of Instant
Coffee. As a result of a complaint of the taste of a soft drink, investigations made in the
Department showed that there was phenolic contamination which arose from a chemical
reaction between chlorinated water and the phenol formaldehyde stopper. The manufacturer
has modified the ingredients of this product to prevent the chemical reaction.
The manufacturer of a non-alcoholic wine was challenged on the ground that the
description was a contradiction in terms, and the label was amended to 'non-alcoholic
beverage'.
The importer of a slimming food was challenged on claims made in advertising literature
as to the Vitamin concentration, and the literature was corrected.
A manufacturer's claim of slimming properties for "reducing perles" was challenged
and the product withdrawn. The claim relied on the presence of purgatives and bladderwrack.
The slimming claims made for a lemon juice in a television advertisement were modified
after the manufacturer had been challenged as to the efficiency of the product as a slimming
agent.
Modifications to the labels of several brands of canned chicken were secured, where
it was not apparent from the label that the contents of the cans were not solely chicken, but
chicken in jelly or broth.
Meat Inspections
No slaughtering of meat is carried on in Southall.
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