A Survey of Milk Distribution

Abstract

THIS survey of milk distribution was undertaken in part of Battersea which appeared typical of many urban areas over the country. It is a working class area, and does not contain representatives of those professional, higher executive and higher administrative positions so characteristic of London. The whole area divides fairly naturally, but not quite abruptly into two sections. One, called the Western Section, is classified by the New Survey of London as containing skilled workers. The other, the Eastern Section, contains unskilled labourers, mostly above the poverty line, though sections of some of the streets have a substantial number living below Charles Booth's poverty line. The method of procedure was to obtain the milk consumption for each family in the area instead of the more usual method of sampling. The method used here gives more information about the problems of milk distribution. The area chosen contained nearly 2,000 houses and considerably more families in eighteen roads with a total length of about four-and-a-quarter miles. Information of milk consumption was given by eleven and refused by one of the chief distributors. Only two of the dairies knew the names of their customers, and the supplier had to be checked in those houses which contained two or more families. After consideration it was decided to take the milk distributed in the week ending 2Ist November, I936, as being a normal week, undisturbed by holidays or festivities, or by the influenza epidemic of the following spring. Ninetyfour per cent. of the milk recorded in the area was distributed by the eleven retailers who gave information. The remainder had to be obtained by personal enquiry, most of the visits for which were made in April and May of I937, and the time gap will introduce minor inaccuracies. In addition it