z6i 



PARLIAMENTARY PUBLICATIONS. 



Board of Agriculture. — Annual Repor of Proceedings under 



the Sale of Food and Drugs Acts, Merchandise Marks Acts, 

 etc. \Cd. 654]. Price $d. 



This is the first occasion on which a report has been made 

 on the proceedings of the Board under the enactments named 

 above, and opportunity has been taken to describe in some 

 detail the extent of the powers of the Board under these 

 statutes. 



With regard to the Sale of Food and Drugs Acts, in is 

 observed that during the year 1900. in pursuance of 

 arrangements made after consultation between the Board 

 of Agriculture and the Board of Customs, 1,590 samples of 

 imported articles of food were taken at the ports of entry, 

 under Section 1 of the Act of 1899, anc ^ analysed at the 

 Government Laboratory. In 26 instances the commodities 

 thus sampled were reported adulterated, and fines were 

 recovered from the importers in seven cases in which the 

 circumstances, in the opinion of the Commissioners of 

 Customs, warranted action of this nature. 



The Board have made use of the inspectors on their 

 regular staff to confer where necessary with the local 

 authorities with the view of obtaining the widest possible 

 acquaintance with the existing methods whereby the law on 

 the subject of adulteration is being locally administered, and, 

 at the same time, of supplying the responsible authorities 

 engaged in the w r ork with such advice and assistance as to 

 the methods found most effective and satisfactory in the execu- 

 tion of the law as the Department was in a position to 

 afford. During the year 1900 interviews and enquiries of 

 this nature were held in 396 separate cases. 



The registration of all premises of wholesale dealers in 



