DEFICIENT MILK.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 16570, 1 November 1921, Page 7

DEFICIENT MILK.

CHARGES AGAINST VENDORS. Charges of sellirlfc milk below the standard prescribed by th© regulations under the Sale of Food and Drugs Act were preferred against three vendors at the Magistrate’s Court this morning before Mr Wyvern "Wilson, S.M. Francis S. Alexander. Marshlands Road (Mr H. J. Raphael), was charged with selling milk below standard and Further with having sold milk containing too great a percentage of water. Defendant pleaded guilty to both charges. Mr Raphael said ho could not dispute the analyst’s report but there were certain extenuating circumstances in th© case. Inspector M’Kenzie said he had known defendant since 1908, and had taken tests of his milk previously, AH those tests were quite satisfactory. Inspector Kershaw said that during th© last eight or ten yearn he had taken tests of defendant’s milk and all with the exception of the last test had been quite satisfactory. The defendant said he had been a milk vendor for about twenty years, six years of that time on his own account. Numerous tests had been taken previously and he had been told that they were amongst the best tests. Ho had not added any water to the milk and had not skimmed any cream from it. The Magistrate said the case was not a bad one. The milk contained the equivalent of about 5 per oent of added water and the milk was poor in quality. He thought th© explanation was that the milk had become agitated while on the cart and the thicker milk had been sold first leaving the thinner milk in the bottom of the can when the inspector came along and took the sample. It was not his intention to inflict a heavy penalty. Defendant would be fined £3 on one charge only and ordered to pay the costs on both charges. Robert Crozier, Hawkln’s Road, Wairnairi (Mr W. F. Tracy), pleaded guilty to a charge of having unlawfully sold to Richard James M'Kenzie milk deficient in milk fat.

Mr Tracy said that Crozier had been in tho milk business all his life and this was the first occasion on which he had been before the Court.

The Magistrate said he would take into consideration the fact that the greater quantity of the milk wold b> defendant was good milk, but that did not excuse him for selling milk below standard. Defendant would be fined £3 and costs.

Andrew M’Ewan pleaded not guilty to a charge of selling milk which was not fresh.

Inspector M'Kenzie said the defendant. had a retail shop «nd bought th© milk from a vendor at Papanui. Witness had purchased the milk in the shop.

Defendant said his wife, who usually looked after the shop, was ill on the morning the inspector called and he was looking after the shop himself. He had had two gallons of milk left over from the previous dav and was selling this in his shop. The milk had been obtained the previous morning and, in liis opinion, tasted quite fresh when ho sold it.

The inspector said that the milk might- become stale from various causes such as the presence of dirt in the can. The Magistrate said it was the duty of vendors to sell onlv fresh milk. He was satisfied from the analyst’s report that the milk was unfit for consumption at the time of Bale. Defendant would be fined £3 and costs.