Day 077 - 25 Jan 95 - Page 55
1 for E.coli. I am afraid this is another paper chase as it
2 is happens to be in a different file. The pink file VIII
3 which should be entitled "Food Poisoning"; you will find it
4 behind you. Just before you open that up, I hope it may be
5 that you have still got open page 47 of pink IX, have you?
6 I am sorry about this, I just want to ask you one question
7 by way of preparation, page 47 in tab 4.
8 A. Yes, sir.
9
10 Q. We stopped looking at this document at paragraph 6.1 where
11 we looked at the colonies. 6.2 says: "A minimum of 75 per
12 cent of the results per month from a particular supplier
13 must be below 5 times 10 to the 5 per gramme. A maximum
14 25 per cent is permissible in the passable range. No
15 result should exceed five million per gramme. Suppliers
16 will be informed of results from their deliveries." What,
17 in practice, is the system by which you would enforce that
18 provision?
19 A. All suppliers get a copy of each bacteriological result
20 and we publish a league table which is a very good way of
21 embarrassing them. In actual fact, the supplier can be
22 passable in all samples, but if he comes bottom of the
23 league table for two consecutive months, he is in very
24 serious trouble.
25
26 Q. In practice, how often -- again I am not asking for a
27 figure -- does it happen that anybody comes bottom, say,
28 two or even three months running?
29 A. It has happened once in the last four years and the
30 person was delisted. They no longer supply us.
31
32 Q. Can you kindly put away pink IX and turn to tab 3 at pink
33 VIII? I hope that is a document called "Microbiological
34 Guidelines"?
35 A. It is.
36
37 Q. It is a more detailed account than the one we saw in the
38 other document. Are you able to help us with the date for
39 this particular document? It does not have one on it.
40 A. I am not able to help you specifically with a date. It
41 has come out of the technical office. I recognise the work
42 of my Group Technical Manager but, by looking at the change
43 in the directorships, it gives me a clue that it was about
44 91.
45
46 Q. Do you think it is pre or post Preston?
47 A. I cannot honestly answer that, sir.
48
49 Q. That does not matter. You see the first bit is the same as
50 what we saw in the specification. I was going to ask you,
51 is this an internal document or is it sent to the
52 suppliers?
53 A. No, it would be sent to the suppliers because it is
54 part of the McKey boneless beef specification.
55
56 Q. It makes reference to EC Minced Meat Directive; do you see
57 that in the last of the text paragraphs?
58 A. Yes.
59
60 Q. It sets out, really, the criteria by which these tests for
