MisccUancous Paper-<. 121) 



A CONVENIENT CARD-CATALOGUE OF FOOD 

 ADULTERANTS. 



By E. H. S. Uailey. 



THE federal and state laws which have been enacted during 

 the past eight or nine years against the adulteration and 

 misbranding of foods make it necessary that standards for 

 pure foods should be in the hands of chemists and others who 

 have to do with the enforcement of these laws. Since these 

 laws have been in operation chemists in food laboratories have 

 been busily employed studying the individual foods and detect- 

 ing the common adulterants found in them, while at the same 

 time it is unfortunately true that some food manufacturers 

 have used much ingenuity to evade as nearly as possible the 

 ruhngs of the departments. 



After several years of experience, however, with a given 

 food product, the common adulterants to which it is subject 

 become quite well known, so that it is only occasionally that a 

 new fraud upon the consuming public is discovered. 



Food may be injured or decreased in value in various ways. 

 It does not often contain substances that are actually and ac- 

 tively poisonous, but it may contain ingredients which decrease 

 its food values. It may have been treated by some process 

 which has decreased its value, as when rice is "polished" and 

 coated to make it have a better appearance, notwithstanding 

 considerable valuable nutritive material is by this process re- 

 moved. The food may have been subjected to some adultera- 

 tion which makes it "appear better than it really is," as when 

 distilled vinegar, which is inexpensive, is colored with caramel 

 and sold as cider vinegar, a variety which costs more money ; 

 or when Hamburger steak, that has been allowed to stand so 

 long in the shop that it begins to show its age, is treated with 

 sodium sulphite to give it again the color and odor of fresh 

 meat. 



Foods are also injured and rendered unfit for consumption 

 by improper methods of preparation or handling, as when 

 oranges are picked while still immature, and sweated to bring 

 out the color and give them the appearance of ripeness; or 

 when eggs which have been kept for many months in cold 



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