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
City of London 1938
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Port of London]
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| Date. 1938. | Sample. | Result of Analysis. | Action taken. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aug. 4 | Drained cherries | Contained 4.6 parts of copper per million of dry sample. Free from presence of preservatives and prohibited colouring matter. | None. |
| ,, 11 | Canned salmon | Free from metallic contamination, prohibited colouring matter and preservatives. | None. |
| „ 13 | Cheese | Contained 3.54 grains of tin per pound | Consignment destroyed. |
| „ 13 | Canned fish (6) | The samples on examination gave the following results:- | None. |
| Tin, grains Sample per pound | |||
| Sild 0.1 | |||
| Sild None | |||
| Brisling 0.4 | |||
| Kipper snacks None | |||
| Sild 0.1 | |||
| Sild None | |||
| „ 17 | Rice (2) | These samples on examination were found to contain sodium chloride (salt) to the extent of 0.05 per cent and 0.81 per cent respectively. | None. |
| „ 17 | Apricot pulp | Contained 1,960 parts of sulphur dioxide per million. | None. |
| „ 17 | Tomato puree | Contained 27 parts of copper per million of dry sample. | None. |
| „ 17 | Tomato preserve | Contained 28 parts of copper per million of dry sample. | None. |
| „ 18 | Sild | Contained 3 grains of tin per pound ...... | Consignment re-exported. |
| „ 18 | Beans | Contained 6 parts of copper per million of dry sample. | None. |
| „ 29 | Canned spinach (see * below) | Contained 16 parts of copper per million of dry sample and 285 parts of zinc per million of sample. | Still under investigation. |
| „ 31 | Sardines | Contained 3 parts of lead per million. | None. |
| „ 31 | Li chees (Litchi) | Contained 0.1 grain of tin per pound. | None. |
| „ 31 | Canned fish (4) | These samples on examination gave the following results:— | None. |
| Sample Tin,Grains per pound | |||
| Sild in oil 0.2 | |||
| Cods' roe caviare 0.15 | |||
| Sild in tomato 0.3 | |||
| Brisling in oil 0.2 | |||
| „ 31 | Canned vegetables (4) 2 peas, 2 celery. | These samples were found to be free from the presence of metallic contamination, with the exception of one sample of celery, which contained 80 parts of copper per million of dried sample. | Importers' attention called to the presence of copper in celery. |
| Sept. 2 | Sugar sweepings (2) | These samples contained 758 and 500 parts of copper per million respectively. | Consignment destroyed. |
| „2 | Lettuce hearts | Contained 16 parts of copper per million. | None. |
| „ 7 | Sardines | Contained 7 parts of lead per million. | Besult passed to Medical Officer of Health, City of London. |
| „ 8 | Grapes (10) (fruit only) | Nine samples were found to be free from the presence of arsenic and one sample to contain less than 0.0035 grain per pound. | Consignment released and result passed to Ministry of Health. |
| „ 9 | Grapes (2 bunches) | This sample on examination gave the following results :— | Reported to Ministry of Health. |
| Part of Sample Aresenic parts mill.on | |||
| 1st bunch, grapes only None. | |||
| ,, stalks only 10 | |||
| 2nd bunch, lower portion grapes and stalks 0.3 | |||
| „ upper portion, grapes only None. | |||
| In addition the grapes only from the upper portion of the 2nd bunch were found to contain 6 parts of copper per million. | |||
| ,, 9 | Sardines (see † below) | Contained 15 parts of lead per million. | Consignment re-exported. |