London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972

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West Ham 1954

[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for West Ham]

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MEAT INSPECTION IN SLAUGHTERHOUSES.
(by H.E.Bywater, M.R.C.V.S., P.R. San.I., Veterinary Officer).
The Ministry of Food ceased to monopolise the slaughtering of cattle, sheep and
pigs in July 1954, and, with the end of meat rationing, the obligation was placed upon
local authorities to ensure that sufficient facilities were made available to the trade
to enable private slaughtering to provide again a sufficiency of home killed meat.
This necessitated the reopening of many private slaughtering establishments which had
been closed during the period of meat rationing. Many slaughterhouses which had operated
prior to the late war, had passed into other ownership or had been converted to other
uses or their owners no longer desired to revert to slaughtering but, after necessary
repairs and adaptations had been effected, seven slaughterhouses were relicensed within
the Borough.
A sudden rush to enter the slaughtering business was in evidence but, within a
relatively short period, a few establishments settled down to a regular steady trade and
others merely operated intermittently - killing only on one or two days during each week.
As was envisaged in last years report, the number of horses dealt with in our
slaughterhouses continued to decline but it was evident that horse slaughtering for human
food had become an established business and still continues, though at a somewhat slower
tempo-governed by the diminished number of horses now available. The lower prices at which
horse flesh is retailed appears to be an important factor in the continued use of this type
of meat.
Although a relatively small number of slaughterhouses were in operation, as compared
with pre-war, those which were opened worked to greater capacity than in former times and
the total number of animals of all kinds, slaughtered in the Borough during the year exceeded
that of pre-war years, despite the fact that private slaughtering of cattle, sheep and pigs
was permissible during only the latter half of the year. There are signs that the trade will
expand even further as time passes.
It is to be regretted that the Government saw fit to allow slaughtering in numerous
private establishments, instead of consolidating the position-created by meat rationing and
Ministerial control of slaughtering - to limit the centres where slaughtering could take
place. it has been the well established opinion of all public health workers, that the best
interests of the public can only be served where slaughtering is concentrated in large
slaughtering establishments operated by Municipalities or other bodies who are prepared to
co-operate with local authorities to ensure a high standard of meat inspection and hygienic
production of our home killed meat supplies. This is only practicable where slaughtering
is so concentrated as to allow the whole time employment of the inspectorate, who can be
present during the whole of the working day to supervise the operations from the public health
and animal welfare aspects. With limited staff and a multiplicity of premises such continuous
supervision is impracticable.
During the year under review some 18,696 animals were inspected both ante and postmortem
to ensure their fitness for human food and care was taken to see that the animals were
treated with due consideration and fed and watered whilst awaiting slaughter in conformity with
the conditions covered by legislation.
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