§ MR. STRACHEY (Somersetshire, S.)I beg to ask the President of the Board of Agriculture whether he intends to adopt any of the recommendations of the Departmental Committee besides those referring to a milk standard, and especially whether he intends to take any steps for ensuring that the addition of separated milk to whole milk can be detected.
§ *MR. HANBURYWe are preparing circular letters to the local authorities calling their attention to the recommendations of the Committee with regard to the adulteration of cream with gelatine or other substances, and to the administration of the Food and Drugs Acts "generally, with the object of pro- 920 tecting the vendor whose milk is proved to be genuine though below the regulation limit, and of preventing milk being reduced to that limit if naturally above it. The suggestion of the hon. Member for earmarking separated milk by the addition of some innocuous substance is one which could not be carried into effect without further legislation. We also propose to direct the attention of local authorities to the desirability of a uniform procedure as to sampling and analysing the milk taken for examination, and to indicate what such procedure should be. The labelling of condensed milk would require further legislation. We have already made arrangements by which the vessels used in the testing of milk can be officially standardised at the National Physical Laboratory.