British Food Journal Volume 51 Issue 3 1949

Abstract

The Sale of Food (Weights and Measures) Act, 1926, and Defence Regulations. — Inspection under the last‐named Regulations has added very considerably to the duties of the officers conducting inspections. The inspection relates wholly to foodstuffs and mainly to pre‐packed foods of all kinds, increasingly large amounts of which are being put on the retail market. The amount of this extra work is suggested by the figures given. Over 1,300 visits of inspection were made and over 28,000 articles were inspected. Out of these, 485 were found to be deficient in either weight or measure, but in nearly every case—there were only six prosecutions—the deficiency was small and only merited a cautionary letter. Nevertheless, the activities of the Department in this respect should not be underrated, as the knowledge that such inspections are made serves to prevent offences that are for the most part due to want of care rather than to any desire to make an illegal profit. Under the Food and Drugs Act, 1938, 4,766 samples were taken: out of these, 624 were submitted to the Public Analyst, who reported against 54. In 15 cases proceedings were taken. Convictions and fines followed in each case. The greater number of cases, as usual, are concerned with milk. They call for no special comment. It may be mentioned that in one case the offence of obstructing an inspector by refusal to sell a sample of milk and attempting to pour the whole lot into the road resulted in a £10 fine.

Citation

(1949), "British Food Journal Volume 51 Issue 3 1949", British Food Journal, Vol. 51 No. 3, pp. 21-30. https://doi.org/10.1108/eb011445