Annual report / City of Calgary, Department of Public Health.

  • Calgary (Alta.). Health Department.
Date:
[1945]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Annual report / City of Calgary, Department of Public Health. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    21/80 (page 10)
    10 Milk and Dairy Inspection The work in connection with this most important Departmental control has been dischargedin a .very satisfactory manner. Lack of help and the necessity as the result for producers to reduce the size of their milk-herds, has made it most difficult to maintain an adequate milk supply for the needs of the City. Some one or two years ago an address was given at the Convention of the Union of Alberta Municipalities by the Medical Officer of Health stressing the need and showing the advantage of measures being enacted to bring about a total pasteurization of milk supplies. At that time Calgary’s milk supply was 98*8$ pasteurized, and the Department is pleased to report a 100$ pasteurization of the City’s milk supply at the present time. Usually a good deal of contrary argument (based on exactly nothing) makes compulsory enactment a very difficult matter, but this happy situation has been brought about in Calgary by education and close co-operation with the dairying activity in general. What seems to be a most appreciated departure by the Health Department was instituted this year. We now send to each producer annually, a copy of the Department’s yearly analysis of the individuals milk shipments, adding a word or two of thanks and congratulations where indicated. Our first effort in this regard encourages us to continue. Detailed report follows. Of the 44l4 sediment test of producers samples of milk, 3^10 or 86.3$ were good, 194 or 4.4$ were fair, and 4l0 or 9*3$ were bad. Of the 305 sediment tests of retailers samples of milk all were found to be good. Of the 44l4 methylene blue redu£ta§e tests of producers milk samples 3847 or 87.2$ were in grade 1, 333 or 7*5$ in grade 2 and 234 or 5*3$ in grade 3» The phosphatase test was applied to 3^5 samples of pasteurized milk and all proved satisfactory. Butter fat tests were made of 305 samples of milk taken from retail¬ ers and all were above the required standard of 3*25$ butter fat. The average butter fat content throughout the year was 3*6$ According to information supplied this department by the Board of Public Utility Commissioners for the Province of Alberta, under whose jurisdic¬ tion the economic phase of milk control is vested, the sales of milk and cream in Calgary in 1945 were as follows; Total sales of pasteurised milk ” ” uhpasteurized ” Total sales of milk Total sales of pasteurized cream ” ” unpasteurized ” Total sales of cream 14,226,704 quarts 36,994 « 14,263,698 ” 1,319,640 quarts 4,991 1,324,631 The per capita consumption of milk per day was 0.8 pints The per capita consumption of cream per day was 0.077 pints Since September 1945, all milk offered for sale in Calgary has been pasteurized voluntarily. At that time the one retailer of milk which had not been pasteurized sold out and has since shipped his product to a pasteurizing plant.