10 U. S. BUREAU OF FISHERIES. 



Commerce on May 9 and 10, 1921, The following committees were 

 formed and have submitted reports: Transportation; education; 

 fresh and frozen fish production and distribution; salt and canned 

 fish trades; oyster, crab, and shrimp trades; fertilizer and feed 

 industries; and pollution and Federal and State Control of fisheries. 



Among the recommendations made that bear particularly on the 

 division's work were the following: Importance of insuring catches of 

 unquestioned freshness; avoidance of mutilation by the use of forks 

 or pews and otherwise; careful packing for shipment in the most 

 approved type of containers with adequate icing; importance of 

 prompt shipment after landing to the nearest central market; co- 

 operation with the bureau to secure improvements in freezing and 

 preparation for distribution, including a thorough investigation of 

 the possibilities of the new brine-freezing methods and the publica- 

 tion to the fishermen of the results of the investigations; education of 

 and cooperation with the wholesaler and retailer, including the exer- 

 cise of care in handling and storing of stock and its sale amid sanitary 

 conditions; employment of improved trade practices in order to 

 determine the essentials of a model fish market and to develop more 

 even distribution of sales throughout the week; education of the con- 

 suming public to remove prejudices, to promote more intelligent 

 buying, to secure a better understanding of the importance and place 

 of fish in its dietary and recognition of seasonal variation in abun- 

 dance; establishment and maintenance of standards of quality and 

 containers for preserved products; and development of foreign fish 

 trade. 



With respect to by-products of the fisheries, recommendations 

 included an investigation by experts of the various and contradictory 

 methods of manufacture in producing fish scrap, meal, and oil, with a 

 view to (a) standardization of those processes that insure the best 

 product at the lowest cost and (b) equipping the industry to with- 

 stand foreign competition; a market survey for the expansion and 

 development of new markets for the products of the industry, includ- 

 ing investigations to reveal the suitability of products to present uses, 

 development of improvements, new products, and increased use for 

 products now manufactured, such as the advantages of fish oil in the 

 manufacture of paints. 



During the year the problems of fish merchandising and refrigera- 

 tion, including brine freezing, have received special consideration 

 by the division. 



TECHNOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS. 



Under conditions obtaining during the past few years the need for 

 and importance of technological investigations have been felt by the 

 industry as never before in its history. By way of illustration as to 

 the necessity for such work, in 1915 the products of the fisheries of 

 California exceeded 93,000,000 pounds and in 1919 the catch is re- 

 ported to have approximated 260,000,000 pounds, about 90 per cent 

 of which is made up of species of importance in the canning industry. 

 Within a period of a decade more than 40 canneries have been built 

 and equipped in that State, and the annual pack of canned fish has 

 grown from a few thousand cases to more than 1,500,000 cases. 

 Under such conditions of expansion and growth it is not surprising to 



