Textbook of meat inspection: By H. T hornton, B.V.SC., M.R.C.V.S., D.V.H., F.R.S.H. (Fourth Edition), (Pp. vi+567: Illustrations—Price £3 3s. 0d.). London: Bailliere, Tindall and Cox, 1962.

Abstract

Textbook of Meat Inspection-By Horace Thornton (2nd ed.). Chicago, Ill.: Alexander Eger (21 East Van Buren St.), 1952. 646 pp. Price, $10.50. chief veterinary officer, City and County of Newcastle-on-Tyne, England, has in a very comprehensive manner covered the entire field of meat inspection, including the inspection of rabbits, poultry, fish, and various methods of preserving meat and meat products by freezing, drying, salting, pickling, and heating. It is quite useful to have prepared and available in a single volume for reference purposes certain rather elementary items, such as determination of carcass yield, methods of stunning, methods of slaughter, sterilization of meat inspectors' knives, determination of age and sex of animals, and characteristics of various types of flesh, namely, beef, veal, pork, horse, etc. In this second edition the why of condemnations has been discussed to a greater extent than in previous textbooks, particularly from the standpoint of public health reasoning relative to diseased carcass condemnations and edibility. There is considerable discussion as to whether the diseases are transmissible to man; whether the disease processes have altered the normal characteristics of the meat as to cause it to be inedible or adulterated; or whether the conditions are so repugnant from an aesthetic standpoint as to require the carcass to be condemned in whole or in part. author's theory on meat inspection is: The more scientific the approach to the problems of meat inspection, the less will be the unnecessary condemning of carcass which could, with safety, be made available for consumption. One minor error noted appears on page 365 where the statement is made, At a lower temperature of 0° F. pork and pork products are rendered safe in 24 hours. There is no reference to the research on this particular point and authorities consulted elsewhere do not agree. complete absence of a bibliography is a weak point in the text and should be corrected in future editions. Notwithstanding the fact that this book refers constantly to procedures of meat inspection as practiced in the British Commonwealth, much can be learned by those involved in this particular phase of public health in the United States. This book is commended to those interested in meat inspection and it will prove helpful to students, beginners, experienced inspectors, and health officers, for it is thought-provoking and stimulating. OSCAR SUSSMAN