PURE FOOD.

Waikato Times, Volume 102, Issue 17224, 6 October 1927, Page 4

PURE FOOD.

BORIC ACID. « USE m BUTTER. On and after January 1 next the importation of butter containing boric acid into Great Britain is prohibited. As most of the New Zealand butter is already free from this preservative, the prohibition of its use will not matcroaily afreet the Dominion dairy industry. The law in England was passed in "the interest of the public health. The health authorities in the Dominion are of opinion that it would be a wise thing to bring our pure-food regulations into line with those of Great Britain and America so far as butter ,s concerned. The Dairy Division of the Department of Agriculture has been consulted on the question, and favours the change—the bulk of New Zealanl butter, of course, being manufactured for export. The Minister of Health (Hon. J. A. Young) has under consideration a proposal to prohibit the sale of butter in New Zealand containing boric acid. The Minister says that although the use of a small quantity of this preservative in butter may not do much, if any, harm, there is a general consensuof opinion among public health medical authorities in Great Britain, America and other countries that the cumulative effect of the use of preservatives in a number of foods is decidedly injurious. There is aiso this to be considered: that the use of certain chemical preservatives in foods in which deterioration has already set in helps to conceal the fact, and thus may enable unwholesome foodstuffs to be sold. If the Government decided that the British pure-food law so far as butter is concerned shall come into force in Nov/ Zealand, it will simply mean that all butter consumed locally will be free (as it mostly is now) from boric, acid and as is the exported article. On January 1 next the new purefood regulation in England so far as they affect butter and cream will come into force. This means that Neew Zealand and other butter imported into England must be free from boric acid.

British Stringent LogisJation.

The report of the Committee on the Use of Preservatives and Colouring Matters in Food, which led to the recent stringent legislation in England, said in part:—"We have given a great deal of consideration to the question whether preservatives are necessary in the case of butter, which is sent to this country from Australia, New Zealand, and the Argentine. It is clear that some butter comes from all these countries without preservative. In 1922-23 samples representing 9095 boxes of New Zealand butter were free from boric acid, these being 27 per cent, of the total amount sampled. Confirmation of the New Zealand figures was obtained from the New Zealand Department of Agriculture, which informed us that out of 60,000 tons of butter exported in 1923, 12,730 tons came from factories using no preservatives. In additioin, creameries using preservatives sometimes sent out butter without preservatives in response to specific orders for such butter. The representative from the High Commissioner's Office stated that of the 350 butter factories in New Zealand' 35, or JO per cent., used no preservative" whatever, and he gave it as his opinion as a dairy expert, that the addition of preservative to New Zealand butter was not necessary. Butter sent to the United States from New Zealand is required by the American law lo be free from preservatives. From these facts it would seem reasonable to infer that it would be possible to dispense with preservatives in all consignments j of butter from New Zealand. i

"On the other 'hand, the witnesses engaged in the Australian and New Zealand butter trade were in the main strongly opposed to any prohibiiton of preservatives in butter, and no doubt there is a considerable feeling in these countries in favour of the use of preservatives. Certain witnesses urged that a maximum limit of 0.5 per cent. of boric acid should be permissible, on the ground that this quantity was necessary for preservative purposes, whilst others stated that they would be content with 0.25 per-cent. The result of the analysis showed that the amount of boric acid present, in such samples as contained the acid, was usually below 0.25 per cent., and frequently below 0.1 per cent."

yory Littio Adulteration

Inquiries made from the Department of Health go to show that New Zealand compares very favourably with any other country in so far as the inspection and the prevention of adulteration ef foodstuffs is concerned, and in general activities towards safeguarding tin; whoiesomeness and freedom from contamination of foods in everyday use. All regulations are heing enforced as far as is reasonably possible, and the actual position reached in these years of continuing effort is that there is practically no adulteration of moment of foodstuffs in New Zealand.

According to the report of Sir Geo. Newman, Chief Medical Officer of the British Ministry of Health, the New Zealand Government recently "had carried out a rigidly controlled and searching experiment on , the relative qualities of butter treated with 0.5 per cent, of horic acid and butter without preservative. In some instances the preserved butter kept slightly better than the unpreserved, in other cases the advantage rested with the unpreserved butter; but in all cases the differences were so small as to lead to the conclusion that the presence or absence of preservative made very little practical difference one way or the oilier to the keeping quality of the butter.

UDder the amended regulations issued in New Zealand in 1924, the amount of horacic allowed was reduced from 35 grains to 20 grains per pound—that is, lo about .3 per cent.