PROTECTING INFANT LIFE.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVII, Issue 211, 13 February 1915, Page 8

PROTECTING INFANT LIFE.

A CHEMIST PROSECUTED. FOR SELLING UNSUITABLE BABY FOODS. Timarti, .December 11. Arising out of the crusade by the Health Department to reduce infant mortality, a Timaru chemist was prosecuted to-day on three charges under "The Food and Drugs Act, BOS." and tin- regulations thereunder—first, under section 12, subdivision (1), of selling an article as infants'food, the label sti'.ting that it "contains all tlie elements of human milk, and is therefore capable of supplying the equivalent of natural nourishment," and also the statement malted food," the statements being false and misleading; the second, under regulation 4, sub-section (1) selling as Infants' food a substance containing woody fibre; the third under-regulation 4. sidi-seetieu (2), selling as infants' food a substance containing wheat (lour, the label not stating that it was not fit for infants under six months. The defendant stated that he had been importing and selling these foods for Ifi years, and labelled them according to the manufacturers' description, having no personal knowledge of the ingredients. He was convicted on each charge, fined 20s eacli on the first and third, and ordered to pay costs of the Court and solicitor's" fee (£1 10s) on each of the three charges. The fee for analysis (Ms fid) the Magistrate said should come out of the fines. The Bench further stated that these were the first cases of the kind in the Dominion, and the publicity given would be of more service than a heavy pen- ' altv. ]