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45
aimed only at satisfying the aesthetic taste of their particular
customers, who are of course ignorant of what goes on behind the
scenes. They assume, with a confidence that is sometimes misplaced,
that these things are looked after by the health authorities.
Except for dairies which come under the Milk and Dairies
Order, the conditions required in all premises where food or drink
is manufactured or sold, and this includes not only factories but
shops, public houses, hotels, clubs, restaurants and even theatres
and cinemas, are contained in Section 13 of the Food and Drugs
Act, 1938. This lays down a number of specific requirements,
not only for the sanitation, ventilation and cleanliness of the
premises, and the cleanliness of the apparatus and utensils used,
but for the provision of washing facilities for the staff, and the
cleanliness of the staff. Not only must strict cleanliness be observed,
but all steps must be taken as are reasonably necessary to prevent
the risk of contamination of the food made or sold. The attention
of local authorities was drawn to this Section in Pages 5 and 6 of
a Memorandum 225/Med. issued in 1939 on typhoid fever, and
again in 1946 in Circular 183/46 on ice-cream.
Although many local authorities had already begun to insist
on better conditions before the war, the war interrupted their
activities, and the increasing burdens placed on the already overworked
officials, combined with an acute shortage of inspectors,
made progress difficult. In many respects, these difficulties
still remain and to them are added shortages of labour, of appliances
and of building materials needed by the trade. The danger,
however, exists that while trying to cope with day-to-day difficulties
food manufacturers, traders and the public may tend to grow
accustomed to standards which belong to another age. Visitors
to this country often express surprise at seeing food exposed for
sale in a way which would not be tolerated in their own countries
either by the consuming public or by the health authorities. It is
true that the evidence of disease caused by such conditions is
difficult to obtain, though the great increase in the bacteriological
investigation of disease in recent years, partly due to the activities
of the Public Health Laboratory Service, points more and more
to the risks of the spread of infection through the careless handling
of food. An article and leader in the British Medical Journal of
January 25th on "Food Utensil Bacteriology" and "Hygiene
in the Kitchen" drew attention to the dangers of improperly
washed crockery and utensils and to the need of better washing
facilities for the persons employed in many of the establishments
from which samples were examined.
Under Section 14 only places where ice cream is made (which
includes such places as hotels, clubs and restaurants) and where