HC Deb 11 March 1968 vol 760 cc233-5W
Mr. Hooson

asked the Minister of Health (1) what steps his Department took to safeguard the public as a result of the queries raised by the Wrexham public health authorities on the state of the 770 frozen lamb carcases from the Argentine at Wrexham Abattoir on 29th August, 1967;

(2) why his Department instructed or advised the Public Health Laboratories, Chester, not to test specimens from the consignment of 770 frozen lambs at Wrexham in August, 1967;

(3) how many carcases of the meat consignment which included the 770 frozen Argentinian lambs which were eventually dispatched from Wrexham Abattoir were examined by health authorities in the Port of London; and how many of the samples were found to be infected with any kind of disease;

(4) what reports he received from the Public Health Laboratory Services regarding the state of contamination of a batch of Argentinian lamb in the Port of London in August, 1967.

Mr. K. Robinson

The reply given by by right hon. Friend the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food to Questions on this matter on 8th March indicated some of the action which was taken to safeguard the public health in relation to meat coming from Establishment 1408, which was the place of origin of the 770 lamb carcases. On the information before me I do not consider that the public health would have benefited from any further specific measures in relation to these carcases and there have been no reports of disease in humans arising from their distribution.

My Department did not instruct or advise the Chester Laboratory not to make tests of the Wrexham carcases, though advice to this effect was given by the Director of the specialist laboratory of the Public Health Laboratory Service.

The normal visual examination was carried out of the consignment of which the 770 carcases formed a part and as an additional precaution samples from 30 carcases from the consignment were sent by the Port of London for bacterial examination. No sample was found to be infected with food poisoning organisms. The laboratory reports were sent as usual to the authority which asked for the work to be done and not to me.

Reference is being made in connection with these carcases to laboratory reports indicating the presence of salmonellae (food poisoning organisms) and for the avoidance of doubt I must underline what my right hon. Friend said on 8th March, that these reports of salmonellae related to offal in an earlier cargo (which arrived in July) and not to the cargo of lamb carcases which arrived towards the end of August.—[Vol. 760, c. 192–4.]