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
Hillingdon 1972
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Hillingdon]
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Unfit Food Surrendered
| Class of Food | Weight (lbs) | |
|---|---|---|
| Fresh Meat | 5,882 | |
| Fresh fish | 99 | |
| Fresh fruit | 165 | |
| Fresh vegetables | 4,943 | |
| Frozen meat | 5,300 | |
| Frozen fish | 4,448 | |
| Frozen vegetables | 7,991 | |
| Frozen fruit | 154 | |
| Canned meat | 2,038 | |
| Canned fish | 167 | |
| Canned fruit | 4,802 | |
| Canned vegetables | 3,584 | |
| Canned soup | 541 | |
| Canned dairy produce (milk, cream and evaporated) | 619 | |
| Canned meals | 73 | |
| Poultry | 1,367 | |
| Cereals | 271 | |
| Flour confectionery | 967 | |
| Sugar confectionery | 904 | |
| Fruit juice | 1,678 | |
| Cheese | 57 | |
| Other foods | 2,716 | |
| Total | 48,766 lbs | |
| Totals | ||
| 1968 | 53,264 lbs | |
| 1969 | 39,494 lbs | |
| 1970 | 57,941 lbs | |
| 1971 | 30,869 lbs | |
Food Complaints
The number of food complaints has again risen which has been the regular pattern except for 970. The comparative figures are:
| 1967 | 1968 | 1969 | 1970 | 1971 | 1972 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 114 | 155 | 181 | 175 | 192 | 202 |
The investigation of food complaints is a time consuming operation involving the careful
collection of all the evidence in order that proper action may be taken. A proportion of the complaints
are found to be "false alarms" the food itself being quite sound, while in other cases the delay in
bringing the matter to the attention of the department makes it impossible to determine who is
responsible. From time to time instances occur where the complainant is unwilling to give evidence
in a court of law and in such cases the matter has to be dealt with informally. Twelve prosecutions
were taken as a result of food complaints and details are set out in the table on page 71. A further
12 prosecutions are due for hearing in 1973.
Legal proceedings were instituted against the company which supplied catering packs of
sponge pudding mixture to the Borough's schools. Bags of mixture delivered to eight schools
69