32 



in bulk. In the case of cornmeal the difference is not nearly so wide, but 

 frequently the price of the meal sold in bulk is less than that given, some- 

 times as much as 10 pounds are given for 25 cents. The foods commonly 

 sold in the package may be cleaner and more conveniently handled, but if 

 they can be procured from a dealer who strives to keep them clean and 

 who is selling sufficiently large quantities to insure a comparatively fresh 

 supply, it is doubtful if very much is gained by purchasing them in this 

 more expensive form. 



In justice to the cooked and malted foods, it is only fair to point out 

 that these foods are ready to serve, and, therefore, no expense is incurred 

 in preparing them for the table. It is hardly possible to compute what it 

 would cost under ordinary circumstances to make porridge from the oat 

 or wheat meals ; for, in many cases, they are cooked over wood or coal 

 fires and along with the other cooking. Where a special fire is required, 

 the cost of preparing the food will, to some extent, compensate for the 

 difference in the original cost of the goods. 



The data presented in the above table seem to clearly show that corn- 

 meal is the most economical heat producer of the cereal foods. If the 

 meal were used unbolted and the germ retained, it would be of even 

 greater value. The oatmeals are nearly equal to the cornmeals in fuel 

 values and contain much more of the proteids, or muscle-forming ma- 

 terials, and more ash, which is so necessary for the formation of bone. 

 The oatmeals are also superior to the farinas, rolled wheat, and flaked 

 barley in protein and carbohydrates and in fuel value. Wheat germ, 

 when it is true to name, is a valuable food. In general, it is true that, 

 while all the breakfast foods are good nutritious materials and that each 

 of these foods have some quality which is specially prized by th? indi- 

 vidual using it, no breakfast food on the market will furnish so much 

 actual nourishment for so little money as oatmeal. Another point brought 

 out in the last table is that corn, oat, wheat, and barley meals, when sold 

 in bulk and thoroughly cooked, are cheaper sources of digestible nutrients 

 than bread. 



Summary. 



Although there is such a large number of breakfast foods on the^ 

 market, they are practically all made from five kinds of cereal grains. The 

 great majority of those used in this country are made from two, oats and 

 wheat, and nearly all of the ready-to-serve type are prepared from one — 

 wheat. The chemical composition of the various foods shows that the 

 method of preparation has not materially altered the proportion of the 

 different nutrients of which they are composed, and that they correspond 

 somewhat closely with the grain from which they were made. The excep- 

 tions to this are that in the oat products the amount of crude fibre has 

 been reduced by removing the hull, and that in preparing the finer grades 

 of cornmeal, the bolting process removes a portion of the fat. Whole 



