When Figs Go Bad!

While trawling through the Willesden Chronicles of May 1945 for a wedding anniversary announcement, I came across an article with the intriguing title, “FIGS WENT BAD”.

The story is about a Willesden greengrocer fined for wasting food. It reads, “Mr K E Lauder prosecuting on behalf of Willesden Food Committee, said that when an enforcement inspector visited Mr Slapp’s shop he found a box of dried figs which had gone mouldy and another about half full in similar condition.”

The grocer’s crime was thinking it judicious to save the figs delivered in September 1944 until Christmas and, when they didn’t sell, dumping the 30lbs of bad fruit.

In his defence, Mr Slapp said he had never heard of the Food Office taking figs back. Mr Lauder’s retort was, “You put this food out every day and watched it go bad?”

Makes you wonder what Mr Lauder and his Food Committee would make of modern day practices…