23« ANNUAL REPORT OF THE Off. Doc. 



make corn meal at a price which will enable them to compete success- 

 fully in the market against other millers or dealers. 



This is also an adulteration which is an imposition upon the con- 

 sumers. Corn bran is sold for much less than corn meal at the pres- 

 ent time, and has undoubtedly a lower feeding value. It is easy to 

 see that the kind of adulteration practiced will be determined by the 

 relative prices of feeding stuifs. When two materials similar in ap- 

 pearance have quite different selling prices there is always a tempta- 

 tion for dishonest dealers or millers to mix the one with the other. 



PRECAUTIONS AND PREVENTIONS. 



At the present time the people of this country are much inclined 

 to resort to legislation as a means of curing various evils. Such 

 legislation is wise. As applied to feeding stuff control it is of un- 

 doubted value. First of all, feeding stuff inspection laws have an 

 educational value. When the terms of such a law become known, 

 buyers are inclined to give a great deal more attention to the compo- 

 sition of feeding stuffs than before. This is true, because laws of this 

 nature now on our statute books in several States require that manu- 

 facturers or dealers shall file with some State department the guar- 

 anteed composition of the goods. Through these means and the pub- 

 lications which are occasionally issued as a result of the inspection, 

 consumers become more familiar with the composition of the various 

 feeding stuffs than would otherwise be the case. 



Moreover, through the guarantees and the proper marking of the 

 various brands of feeding stuffs the purchaser is protected against 

 buying inferior materials. To illustrate, cottonseed meal should carry 

 not less than 42 per cent, of protein. Linseed meal should carry at 

 least 35 per cent., gluten meal about the same, gluten feed from 23 per 

 cent, upwards, malt sprouts and brewer's grains about 25 per cent., 

 wheat bran and wheat middlings over 15 per cent., pure mixed corn 

 and oats over 10 per cent., and so on. Unless the protein is kept to ap- 

 proximately these figures the material is not pure. Hulls cannot be in- 

 troduced into cottonseed meal without lowering the percentage of 

 protein and the same thing is true of the admixture of ground corn 

 cobs with wheat bran or any other material. Oat hull mixtures, es- 

 pecially those where their components are corn meal or hominy feed 

 and oat hulls, necessarily carry less than 10 per cent, of protein. 

 When, therefore, the guarantee of a proprietary feed, whatever may 

 be its name, ranges from (5 to 8 per cent, of protein, the purchaser 

 may be pretty sure that he has under observation an oat hull mixture 

 and the purchaser should always remember that an oat hull mixture 

 is only worth what it contains outside of the oat hulls. The oat 

 hulls are not worth purchasing. 



