Day 077 - 25 Jan 95 - Page 41


     
     1
     2   Q.   This is your spec.?
     3        A.  Yes.
     4
     5   Q.   I see there is a space at the bottom where it says
     6        "supplier acceptance", does that mean there has to be a
     7        signature there?
     8        A.  There has to be a signature and it has to come back to
     9        us.
    10
    11   Q.   Back to you.  When did this addendum come into force or
    12        when was it introduced?
    13        A.  In 19 -- at the end of 1993 when E.coli became a major
    14        issue McKey Food Service had a seminar.
    15
    16   Q.   A seminar?
    17        A.  Yes.
    18
    19   Q.   Can you remember to bellow, please?
    20        A.  I am sorry, I beg your pardon.  McKey Food Service had
    21        a seminar where we brought into Milton Keynes the senior
    22        man on E.coli -- the world authority on it -- from Camden
    23        Food Research, and we called in all our meat suppliers.
    24
    25   Q.   What is his name, that expert?
    26        A.  I knew you would ask me that, sir!
    27
    28   Q.   Can I ask suggest he might be Dr. Banks?
    29        A.  You are quite right, sir, Dr. Banks, I am sorry -- Jeff
    30        Banks.
    31
    32   Q.   Jeff Banks?
    33        A.  Jeff Banks is the world authority on E.coli.  He
    34        actually went over to the United States of America on the
    35        jack in the box problem, and we explained to them, all our
    36        meat suppliers, what was required, positive checking and
    37        positive reporting, if they ever identified it, and they
    38        all signed this addendum to our meat buying specification.
    39
    40   Q.   Paragraph 1 says:  "The supplier agrees to carry out all
    41        necessary steps and control procedures to prevent E.coli
    42        0157 : H7 contamination of meat destined for McKey Food
    43        Service Limited".  Were you or any of your suppliers
    44        carrying out tests, whether systematically or at random, to
    45        sample for E.coli 0157 : H7 prior to this date?
    46        A.  Yes, we were at McKey.
    47
    48   Q.   Why were you doing it before this date?
    49        A.  We had working under our Group Technical Officer a
    50        young lady working in our bacteriology laboratories, and 
    51        I am very proud to say that she was very forward looking 
    52        and thinking, and a new test came out for E.coli.  Now, 
    53        those of us in the industry knew about E.coli.
    54
    55   Q.   Can you give us a rough date for this?
    56        A.  1992, I think.
    57
    58   Q.   Was it before or after the outbreak of food poisoning at
    59        Preston in Lancashire?
    60        A.  Oh, before.

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