Show tz ta pl FOOD adulterations ADULTE RATIONS WATERFOWL 5 AY GUY v in these days of so much talk lalk eliout pure miro foods and with the protect protective ivo legislation by congress on the subject the bulletin of the bureau of chemistry department of agriculture on oil some forms of food Adulte adulterations rations and simple methods for their detection Is very timely since tho the middle of the last century the ho subject of food adulteration lias has attracted a constantly increasing amount of attention in this country however very little was dono done in this line until about in 1881 the division of chemistry began tile tho study of food adulteration anti and since silica then has given it a great deal of tinie time to tho the subject since 1898 1808 the origin and place of manufacture of tho the foods studied by tho have bave been carefully noted and sl special ecial attention also given to imported foods in tho the farat practicable food inspection law in tile tho united states was I 1 f J vi X f IR 4 wa 1 I 1 41 t I 1 Q 41 M IN IV baill 1 allt OF 01 DROWN alkin CHINESE lalim sl 11 WESE II 1 si 1 Z TOU I 1 ort wayne gallic lad iid lo dev 10 1095 gstohl OP OF DROWN chiemi Sll tit at st louis exposition enacted in massachusetts since that time other states have enacted and enforced food laws until at tho present time twenty live states aro are seriously attempting to regulate the character and quality of the foods sold in their markets in three additional states laws relating to tile the purity aurli ly of u f dairy products are enforced and in I 1 several others a beginning has baa been food rel ula tion abroad food logi legislation has rec elvea much attention abroad and tho the more advanced foreign countries coun tiles have haie effective food laws lind and enforce them rigidly the cine subject of the purity of foods is ii more widely studied in tho the united states now than at any previous pr clous time tho the people as a whole me are better informed on the subject than ever before and there la Is a constantly increasing demand for definite information in response to it very er large number of inquiries littries regarding tho the matter the bulletin of the bureau of chemistry has been prepared as a popular statement regarding the nature and extent elent of food adulteration and includes simple tests by which tho the housekeeper or re tall dealer may dete mine some of the more prevalent pre alent forms of adulteration practiced the demand for information on this subject Is now nov vei very general and ad is often the caso case han public interest Is deeply aroused there la is an unfortunate tendency toward exaggeration which frequently amounts to such an all attitude is of course to be deplored and unless it Is checked must sooner ol 01 later react unfavorably unfavorable it is 10 riot not unusual to speak of somo some of our typical foods na as poisoned ned anti and of the manufacturers as prisoners poison polso ners ers such characterizations ire are frequently exaggerations to tho the point of untruth deleterious substances are in many cases addel to foods at the same time tile the word poison has a very er strong and distinct significance and should not bo be applied to any ono one of the substances ordinarily added to foods except in the sense that they are harmful the word signifies a person who intentionally and deliberately libera tely administers an article intended to result fatally or at leas very disastrously to health the juggling Ju celine of words during recent years ears there has bee beet t a tendency to confuse the minds minda of 0 many by an incorrect uso use of certain words frequently used in the discussion of foods it is the policy of some manufacturers to limit tho he word adulterated to foods to which have been added substances nuh dub stances of lower value than the foods themselves with the intention of increasing the weight or volume divine this limitation is certainly certain cei tain not justified by b the ea elieh ilch language nor by the facts and such a restriction of the term Is entirely unwarranted the word adulterated properly prop eily describes dasi albea ta food to which any non condi mental foreign substance subs not properly constituting sti a portion of the food has been added the fact that the th added substance Bub stance may be at times cis 0 a greiter commercial value alua than the food itself has no bearing on the question conversely ver sely the he word pure ib properly applicable 0 to foods that are unmixed with any an foreign substance it may bo wholesome or unwholesome un but this property Is not indicated by the word pure or adulterated tills this definition Is 1 not of course complete the claim Is made mada by some manu NN facture rs that the addition of la a preservative serva tive to food loea doea not properly constitute adulteration because the preservatives serva tives ailt added leti aro are of greater commercial value than tho the foods themselves such ft a claim however seems to bo be not ing hut but a play upon words for instance benzoate beu of soda lias bas a greater value weight for weight than tomatoes and tile the claim lins has bevia made that for that reason its addition to tomatoes actually in breaf LI eases des tho expense of tho the preparation of tomato catsup As a matter of fact however it permits the tomato culp to be prepared in large quantities and preserved in barrels in a mum much less expensive wiy way than can bo be done without its use it Is evident therefore that even though the preservative employed Is 18 more 0 expensive than tho the sub substance stall 0 to abich it Is added tho the addition la Is really made for the purpose of cheap otillia diug tile the t it is not for this reason that such a 1 substance Is 18 properly called an adulterant however but because it Is 13 an all added foreign substance anti and la Is neither a food nor a condiment dini ent these definitions cannot bo be emphasized too strongly adulterated foods are arc not necessarily unwholesome I 1 foods the bulletin published by tho department part ment gives in detail the various kinds of adulterants adulte rants and additions to k W 11 T I 1 I 1 7 r ilk I 1 I 1 f TJ T 44 01 I 1 p Z IM kimii 3 tho the ordinary bove and foods used in ill ordinary consumption and ami also simply simple means meana of detecting defecting tile the presence of the foreign matter contained in them the pamphlet should occupy a prominent place in every household library and can call be obtained upon application to the division of publications department of agriculture |