Day 079 - 27 Jan 95 - Page 27


     
     1   Q.   But you will not know how quick the reaction is until you
     2        actually send an Inspector there, will you?
     3        A.  We will know when the next load that hits the loading
     4        dock.
     5
     6   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  Yes, I think we have moved away from that now
     7        to inspections in the plants?
     8        A.  Inspections in the abattoirs, sir.
     9
    10   Q.   In the abattoir.  It is not difficult to imagine something
    11        which may not be up to your specification happening in the
    12        abattoir which may not be apparent from the inspection when
    13        it arrives at McKey.  For instance, 8.2.1.:  "Meat must be
    14        packed within one hour of boning"; an Inspector, I suppose,
    15        might see that he saw something being packed which would
    16        have been boned an hour and a half before, but that would
    17        not necessarily be detectable when it arrived at Milton
    18        Keynes?
    19        A.  Temperature-wise -- that is one of the monitors, yes,
    20        sir.
    21
    22   Q.   No doubt you can imagine things.  What you are being asked
    23        is what happens if you Inspector sees this happen; you did
    24        say something the other day about the Inspector pointing it
    25        out to the abattoir and then going back to make a check.
    26        But you are being asked now about what actually happens.
    27        The first thing to know is whether it is all done by
    28        numbers or whether people use their own judgment as to just
    29        whether they say something then or go away and write a
    30        letter about it or whatever?
    31        A.  An Inspector, my Lord, in an abattoir, if he saw
    32        anything wrong, would say it immediately to the management
    33        of the abattoir.  He would then go back and confirm it.  It
    34        would be the subject of conversations back at Milton Keynes
    35        in the plant between the buying department, the quality
    36        control department, etc. .
    37
    38   MR. MORRIS:  So if, for example, 8.2.1. was not being adhered
    39        to, "Meat must be packed within one hour of boning", and it
    40        had been brought to the attention of the supplier that they
    41        have to do what the specifications say or you would not
    42        carry on with the contract -- that is what you said --
    43        when, for example, for that kind of thing would that be
    44        checked up on?
    45        A.  It would be checked by the Inspector when he was there
    46        on a visit and it would be apparent if there was any
    47        temperature rise on the meat on arrival at Milton Keynes.
    48
    49   Q.   If it did not show a temperature rise on the meat, for
    50        whatever reason, does that mean you would not be bothered 
    51        about that specification? 
    52        A.  We bothered about everything.  I mean, in practical 
    53        terms, you cannot -- if you are trying to make me say that
    54        I have an Inspector in every boning room during the time
    55        when 1,600,000 pounds of beef is boned every week, it is
    56        not practical.
    57
    58   Q.   I was not suggesting that you did.  I was saying that when
    59        you have noticed, one of your inspectors has noticed, a
    60        guideline that is not adhered to, for example, that one as

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