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In a borough like West Ham, the most heavily bombed in England, many food traders
are faced with the problem of carrying on their business in premises which do not comply
with all the statutory requirements and which cannot, because of building restrictions,
be made to dc so. Much less is it possible at the present time, to alter these premises
to conform with the higher standards advised in the Codes of Practice which the Association
has prepared for the guidance of its members.
Membership does, however, give the food trader the right to display the emblem of
the Association and this implies a guarantee to the public that his practices are such
that food passing through his hands is not likely to become contaminated. This problem
has been tackled realistically. In considering the eligibility of each prospective member
the Executive Committee require that two questions only shall be answereds:-
"Is he doing his best, with the facilities at his command, to produce, distribute
and sell food which is clean and wholesome?"
and if the answer to this is in the affirmative -
"Are the facilities at his disposal such as will enable him, in fact, to prevent
the contamination of food passing through his hands?"
During the early months the Committee were kept busy making preparations for a clean
food drive, scheduled to open in the Spring of 1951. Rules for membership and Codes of
Practice had to be worked out and approved. An emblem for display by traders and a badge
to be worn by employee members had to be designed and ordered. Arrangements had to be
completed for publicity and for functions designed to educate the public and to attract
members.
The campaign opened in May, 1951. with a Clean Pood Exhibition intended to appeal
equally to the housewife and the food trader. This was extremely successful and it Is
estimated that 5,000 visitors passed through the Exhibition during the week it was open.
An interesting feature was the presentation to each female visitor of a nail brush bearing
the slogan "Clean Hands - Clean Food".
In September a decorated lorry was entered in a procession in connection with the
Festival Celebrations and was extremely successful as Indicated by the favourable comments
subsequently received and the fact that it was awarded a prize. This was followed in
October by two ceremonies, which subsequently received wide press publicity. The Mayor of
West Ham presented the emblem of the Association to the first two applicants for membership
- a grocer and a butcher.
This attracted considerable local Interest and was instrumental in bringing to the
notice of a large section of the public the work which the Association is doing and the
appearance of the emblem which is being displayed by traders who have earned the right to
become members. A Press advertising campaign followed with the object of publicising the
emblem even more widely. It is now becoming generally recognised as the hallmark of food
hygiene.
It may be said that during the year this Association has been In existence it has
already done much to combat food poisoning In the Borough and in the near future as
membership grows, the effect of its activities is likely to be even greater.
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