BUREAU OF CHEMISTRY. 601 



Experiments in the shipping of food products will be carried out 

 to get definite information as to changes caused by temperature, 

 altitude, and humidit}-. 



It is planned to continue the study of the coloring and facing mato- 

 rials in teas, the work on the identification and separation of coal- 

 tar dyes which are used in foods, and the detection and identifica- 

 tion as well as the separation of vegetable colors, especially attempt- 

 ing to apply spectroscopic methods for identification both on the 

 vegetable and coal-tar dyes. 



An attempt will be made to bring together all of the analytical 

 data and experimental records in connection with the study of the 

 manufacture of cider vinegar into the form of a completed bulletin, 

 so that tliis data will be available. 



Branch laboratories have submitted the following subjects to be 

 considered for special attention during the coming year: Composi- 

 tion of standard and commercial vanilla extracts, a method for the 

 determination of oil of peppermint and of oil of nutmeg in alco- 

 holic solutions, rice and sake vinegar, estimation of glycerol in 

 wines and vinegars, natural barrel fermentation of apple cider into 

 vinegar, coal-tar colors, determination of saponin in food products, 

 California fruits, sanitary conditions of the oyster-canning indus- 

 try', corn meal in its relation to pellagra, determinjition of heavy 

 metals in foods, composition of soy-bean food products, and the 

 salmon-canning industry, 



ENOLOGICAL STUDIES, 



Studies on normal and sophisticated wines from native American 

 grapes,* on changes in composition of gi'apes during ripening, on 

 metiiods of analysis of fruits, fermented and unfermented fruit 

 juices, and on the fermenting power of yeasts at dilferent tempera- 

 tures, will be continued, and the study of commercial wines made 

 from the Vitis vinifera grapes (California wines), and the manu- 

 facture of pure samples of wine from the Vitis vinifera grapes for 

 the purpose of determining normal composition will be undertaken. 



FOOD RESEARCH WORK. 



An extra effort will be made during the coming year to push that 

 ])art of the work dealing with the transportation of perishable prod- 

 ucts, including the comparative merits of shipping poultry, hard, 

 frozen, and chilled. It is planned, also, to continue the present 

 lines of work on prccooling eggs and dry cooling dressed poultry, 

 carrying the demonstrations to isolated packers by means of the 

 perambulating refrigerator. This portable refrigerating plant can 

 1)0 made a forceful educational factor for inculcating progressive 

 ideas in the countryside at large, showing shippers what it means to 

 have good handling and refrigeration. 



The investigation of the handling of frozen and dried eggs will 

 be again pursued during tlie eg£r-l»reaking season in the ]iroducing 

 section, using the Omalia laboratory as the center for laboratory 

 work, and three commercial establishments, which have been 

 equipped to handle eggs with bacteriological cleanliness, for a source 

 of samples and locations in which experimental Avork on a commer- 



