Day 077 - 25 Jan 95 - Page 59


     
     1
     2   Q.   Must it?
     3        A.  Yes, because I bought out McDonald's.
     4
     5   Q.   Right.  My Lord, we will get some more of those.  Do you
     6        still have open, Mr. Walker, page 47 of tab 5 of pink VIII?
     7        A.  Yes.
     8
     9   Q.   The first of the two sheets, as I said, are pro forma.
    10        Page 49 has one that is filled in dated 13th September
    11        1993, top left-hand side, recommencing 13th September
    12        1993.  In fact I think all those samples come from that
    13        same same period, September 1993?
    14        A.  Yes.
    15
    16   Q.   Was there anything similar in existence before that date?
    17        A.  Yes, I mean we have always carried out a -----
    18
    19   Q.   Have they always been recorded in some form?
    20        A.  They have always been recorded, but not necessarily in
    21        this format.  We have always gone through a full cooking
    22        test.
    23
    24   Q.   We see, as it happens, from the later ones that I think all
    25        the samples have got a satisfactory marking?
    26        A.  Yes.
    27
    28   Q.   There were no passables or unsatisfactory, but they are
    29        only samples.  May I ask you this, the sources of
    30        contamination in meat are, as we have seen, first of all,
    31        possible sources, the slaughterhouse itself which may
    32        involve what has come in or with the animal from the market
    33        or the farm.  What are the possible sources of
    34        contamination within your own plant?
    35        A.  Are you thinking, sir, about bacterialogical
    36        contamination?
    37
    38   Q.   Yes, I am talking about bacterialogical contamination.
    39        A.  Very little because of the temperature control, you
    40        see.  The meat would be rejected if it was over 4 degrees C
    41        when it arrived.  It is kept immediately in a chiller.  The
    42        loading dock is chilled.  The meat is stored in the
    43        chiller.  It is handled so quickly in the grind; frozen
    44        meat is added for a technical reason to stop any heat gain
    45        during the grinding.  It is blended for a maximum of 12 and
    46        a half minutes and then it passes immediately down forming
    47        freezing lines.  The temperature in those tunnels is minus
    48        200 and it is down to minus 20 in one and a half minutes.
    49        So, from a bacterialogical point of view, it is very
    50        unlikely there could be any contamination unless, and I am 
    51        blue sky thinking now, we had a salmonella carrier. 
    52 
    53   Q.   A salmonella carrier in what form, human or animal?
    54        A.  Human.
    55
    56   Q.   I was going to ask about that. To what extent do the humans
    57        actually touch the meat which is eventually going to be
    58        eaten in McDonald's restaurants?
    59        A.  They do not.  I mean, the meat is in combo's because it
    60        is mechanically handled.  It is mechanically handled in to

Prev Next Index