216 U. S. BUREAU OF FISHERIES 
4. After the filled cans are delivered to the packing room they should not 
be permitted to accumulate on the packing table. The practice of 
dumping the meat out of the can and picking it over to remove cartilage 
and shells is not reeommended. Cans of crab meat should not be nested 
one on top of the other prior to packing in ice. If the meat is to be 
washed before icing, this should be done in the can by means of a sprin- 
kling device or spray over a perforated table top or screen. The water 
used for this purpose should be free from pollution. 
5. Crab meat should be iced promptly. The ice prior to crushing should be 
thoroughly washed on an elevated metal-covered platform. Barrels or 
ice chests should be thoroughly cleaned and sterilized before use and 
should be so perforated as to allow proper drainage. 
d. Disposal of waste. 
1. In front of each picker an opening should be provided in the table for the 
disposal of waste. A large meta] container should be placed under each 
opening. This method will prevent the scattering of waste over the 
floor. Pickers should not empty these containers; this should be done 
by a person assigned to this duty. Containers should be washed thor- 
oughly and sterilized each time they are emptied. In no instance 
should waste be allowed to remain in the containers overnight. 
2. In loeealities where the waste is dried for use in fertilizer, provisions should 
be made for storage of this waste at the plant. It should be stored in 
concrete or wooden metal-lined bins which are under cover outside the 
plant and which are adequately protected from flies and vermin. Waste 
should be removed at least once a day and should not be allowed to 
remain in the bin overnight. The bins should be thoroughly cleaned 
and disinfected after removal of the waste. 
3. If drying facilities are not available, waste should be stored as above and 
disposed of daily by dumping into deep water where there is sufficient 
current to scatter the waste, or perhaps a more satisfactory disposal 
should be made of the waste by its use as a fertilizer by local farmers, 
unless sufficient quantities of waste are available for mechanical reduc- 
tion. 
Norg.—It is suggested that a competent person be employed at each plant to 
see that these recommendations are carried out. He should supervise the washing 
of hands and equipment and be generally on the alert to correct any insanitary 
conditions that may occur. 
PREPARATION OF FRESH OYSTERS 
This study was continued during the past year through the use of 
additional funds obtained by the Division at the instance of members 
of the oyster-packing industry. A temporary field laboratory was 
established in the City Hall at Norfolk, Va., through the cooperation 
of the city health authorities. Technologists stationed at this labora- 
tory made an extended study of commercial practices in the local 
oyster-packing plants and aboard oyster-fishing boats, and of the con- 
dition of oysters as found on the growing beds in that vicinity. One 
of the primary purposes of this study has been to determine the type 
of organism responsible for pink discoloration of certain shipments of 
oysters, and its prevalence. It was found to be an organism commonly 
known as “pink yeast,”’ and that it was present in fairly large numbers 
in the mud on the oyster beds and on the equipment on the boats and 
in the packing plants. The best way to check the spread of this yeast. 
is to wash contaminated equipment thoroughly with fresh water and 
then spray with a 3 percent solution of formaldehyde. 
A survey of oyster-packing plants operating on the North Atlantic 
seaboard was made for the purpose of obtaining data on the commer- 
cial handling of oysters, and technique for maintaining the plants in a 
sanitary condition. As a result of this work a sanitary code for the 
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