Tot. XVIII, No. 44«. 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



77 



THE PRESERVATION OF FOODSTUFFS 

 IN ST, VINCENT. 



The following interesting information has been receifcd 

 from Mr. W. N. Sands, Agricultural Superintendent, 

 St Vincent. The example set may well be followed in the 

 other islands- 



In the years 1917 and 1918 the St. Vincent GoTernment 

 foand it desirable to provide facilities at the Government 

 Ginnery and Granary for the preservation of certain imported 

 And locally produced articles of food. The reasons for this 

 •were: — 



(1) The exportation of corn, corn meal, beans, peas and 

 farine was prohibited so as to conserve local food supplies. 



(2) The exportation of cured cacao^, was., restricted. 



(3) The opporiuhities for the importation of cereal foods 

 were few, and the <)uaniities limited. 



In regard to the first reason, it was considered, unwise to 

 prohibit the e.xportaiion of these valuable food products 

 without giving owners »n opportunity of preserving their 

 stocks from insect attack. Therefore, when the prohibition 

 order came into effect on May 7, 1917, the Agricaltaral 

 Superintendent immediately made arrangements to take them 

 over, if so desirud, and store them in kxins attached to the 

 Granary free of charge until they could be disposed of. From 

 May 5, to August 30, 1917, 26,817 tt». of peas and 909 ft. 

 of corn were placed in the bins. These quantities were in 

 addition to 71,804 11». of corn, kiln -dried, stored, and con- 

 verted into meal in connexion with the Granary's co operative 

 purchase schema. 



With reference to the second rea9O0,ut- was found that 

 certain quantities of cured cacao, for which licences to export 

 could not be obtained, were being rapidly destroyed by the 

 Angonmois grain moth (Sitoiroga cerealklla), and would 

 kave to be fmnigared and stored in bins if they were to be 

 -■saTed- 



In view of the third position it was a matter of deep 

 conpern to prevent the rfeierioralion of the limited supplies 

 of cereal f' ods, more particularly rice. 



• Early in 1918 the Granary's bins were filled with corn 

 ,so that it was necessary to recommend the erection of a special 

 ■tore-house in which dry foo.l prod'icts genera!ly could be 

 fumigated, and stored without damage. The Colonial En- 

 gineer, in consultation with the Agricultural Superintendenf, 

 designed aud erected such a buildiug in the grounds of the 

 Ginnery. It was originally intended that the building 

 should be made of reinforced concrete, but it was subse- 

 quently decided to u.^e wood with a water-proof concrete 

 base, because the .structure was immediately required 

 and miuht possibly be only of temporaryiise. Tue measure- 

 ment of the building was 28 feet bj- 13 feetby 10 feet, 

 and it was divided into five sep^irate compartments two 

 measuring 12 feet by .S feet by 10 feet, two 6 feet by "J 

 feet by 10 feet, and one 13 feet by 4 feet by 10 feet. ICich 

 section was self-contained, with its own door, window, ,and 

 ventillator, so that if necessary, the diderent pro lucts could 

 be kept apart and fuiuigated separately. The estinnted 

 storage oipacity was i.^O bags of 1 cwt. each 



The buildinjr «h5 completed on April 31, 1918, at a cost 

 of £16',:. From -May 15 to Ktbruary 15, the following 

 quantities of produce have been dealt with in it : cacao, 

 17,071 &).; nee, :il,910; com. l<',007 lb. It iray be 

 mentioned that when the products were received, all were 

 found tf bt attached -y grain eating insects, which wo>-. Id 

 hav« Qui-kly {■f'ndered '^benj tiiifittVr b ■" an • -lOiJFinin.t" nr . 



The charge for storage, including fumigation with 

 carbon bisulphide, was at the rate of \d. per cwt. pet week 

 or any part thereof ^ and at this rate the receipts have so far 

 amounted to j£25. 



Besides the above-named quantities of foodstufis dealt 

 with for private owners, there were also stored during the 

 1917-18 seaeon in the Granary's bins, 131,228fc. of purchased 

 corn, most of which was converted into corn meal for local use. 



The quantities of food.staffs stored for different periods 

 from May 1917 to February 15, 1919, were as follows : 

 peas, 26,817 ft.; rice, 31.910 ft.; corn, 219,948 ft.; cacao, 

 17,071 ft. Total, 29.'"j,746 ft. 



This storage undoubtedily benefited the community, tor 

 besides preserving and conaetving-liirge' and valuable supplies 

 of food in the colony, aod rendering them available' at 

 opportune times, it has also prevented serious monetary losses. 



PLANTS AFFECTING THE SENSE OF 

 TASTE. 



In the Agricultural _ -Nnvs, Vol. XVII, No. 423, atten- \ 

 tion was drawn to the extraordinary sweet effect produced 

 on the palate by the leaves of Stevia rebaudiana, a plant 

 native of Paraguay. In referring to this article the Kcv 

 Bullelin^os- 8 and 9, 1918, remarks that 'as a nutrient of • 

 course the leaves could not replace sugar.' 



The article referred to then' goes on to noticiS'sorae other 

 plants which affect the sense of taste in curious ways. Tni-i 

 interesting information is reproduced below: — 



Several plants are known which have uncommon proper- 

 ties in relation to the sen^e of taste in human beings. 

 - Sideroxylon dukijiatm, A. D.C, an African plant, bears 

 oblong or oval berries about two-third< the size of an olive, at 

 first dull green, but changing to a dusky red as they ripen. 

 The seeds are clothed esterndly by a thin, softish pulp, only 

 slightly saccharine, yet imparting to the palate an extra- 

 ordinary impression by which- the most sour and acidulous 

 substances become intensely sweet, so that citric or tartaric 

 acid.s, lime juice, v 'negar, and all immature fruit of a sourish 

 character lose their unpleasant qualities, and taste as if they 

 had been solely composed of saccharine matter. To a certain 

 extent the duration of the.se effects depends upon the amount 

 of berries chewed, and the degree of maturity they have 

 attained. They tind to loje their pei'ulia,r principle if 

 suffered to remain in a ripe cindition'^fCTt any consider-ible 

 time. The natives of the G ild Coast use the.berries to render 

 their stale and acidulated "kankies' more paiAtabie, and in 

 bestowing a sweelnees on sonr . palm-wioe. 



\ plant with opposite prc:perties is the Indian 

 Gynmema silvestre, R. Br., a member of the Asclepiadaceae. 

 It has a greenish tio^cr and thick fleshy le.ives, and lite 

 most of the plants of this nriler, it produee.s a milky j^iioe. 

 ■When the leaves arech'Mve.l, sweet and acidt>.>;tes caeih 

 • be perceived for some hours afterw.irJs. Chemical analy.-is 

 of the leaves and fruits ^hows thit tyranamic acid is the 

 substance which atfVcis rlit- .sen.se of taste. This is not a 

 gluooside, bat has very weak acidic properties, and acts upon 

 the nerves I ir nerve- "idini;< of the tongue. The plan: aas 

 no tn.vic properties and n^^ cyanogenctij compounds hive 

 seen discovered in it. ,\. r> -inous subst-jnce, also of an i-^ldic 

 nature, which ha* bee.n ••W'aified^'ro.nD it, was devoid of noy 

 ivnti-sav-'l-Mrine prnppr'ifv. 



