34° IN THE CHILL ROOM 

 Where meat is cooled before cuffing and sfeaics nnay be aged to get that special flavor. 



Cold Storage 

 Lockers 



By R. W. BALDERSTON 



y^T IS less than six years since the 



[Jl first cold storage locker plant was 



y / installed in this country. Since 



then the idea has had a tremendous 

 growth; today there are more than l^'iOO 

 cold storage locker plants operating in 

 the United States, and several hundred 

 more are under construction. Plants now 

 in operation are serving half a million 

 families, and if the present rate of growth 

 continues, it will be only a few years 

 until locker plants will be the most im- 

 portant factor in handling meats (also 

 fruits and vegetables) in farm commu- 

 nities. 



A movement which has groun like 

 this IS one worthy of .study. Why do 

 locker plants fit into rural ttonomy.-" 

 What basic principles of value to farm- 

 ers have they developed.' Is the growth 

 sound and normal, or is it unhealthy 

 mushrooming.' Are the plants of real 

 benefit to American farmers.' 



Locker plants are an outgrowth of 

 the practice of bringing fresh meat in 

 (quarters to a cold storage plant tor freez- 

 ing until ready for use. From this point 

 it was quite logical to have cold storage 

 rooms where the patron had a locker, to 

 which no one else had acce.ss, in which he 



could store meat which was cut into 

 steaks and chops before freezing. 



The locker plant of today's design 

 differs as much from the first installa- 

 tions as a modern automobile from the 

 primitive one-lungers that arc on exhibi- 

 tion in museums. It has a locker room 

 where the temperature is held exactly at 

 ten degrcxs above zero - the fluctuation 

 IS never more than three degrees. It has 

 a slurp freeze room where a sub-zero 

 temperature freezes products so rapidly 

 that there is no deterioration in flavor 

 or texture. It has a chill rixim held 

 steadily at thirty-four degrees where meat 

 is cooled before cutting and w here some 

 patrons age beef until it has the special 

 flavor char.icteristic of the steaks served 

 in high priced hotels and restaurants. 

 It is, in short, a plant designed and built 

 by expert engineers who ha\e digested 

 and put into practice the thc-oretical ma- 

 terial on frozen foods that has been 

 developed by dozens of scientific re- 

 searchers in the past few years. 



Locker plants ha\e been successful 

 primarily because of their dol'ar and cent 

 value to farmers. Until they came into 

 use most farmers had only from one to 

 three months a year in which they could 



butcher; during the rest of the year they 

 ate canned or cured meat or bought fresh 

 meat at retail. Canned meat, nine months 

 of the year, is a tiresome diet for anyone, 

 and the farmer who has to buy his fresh 

 meat is put in the p>osition of buying at 

 retail but selling at wholesale. Figures 

 collected by the Bureau of Agricultural 

 Economics in the U. S. Department of 

 Agriculture show just how unfortunate 

 this position is for the farmer. 



In the .summer of 19.^6 beef prices on 

 the farm ranged from AV^c to 7' jC per 

 pound, live weight. Using the highest 

 figure, this works out at about \2\'^c per 

 pound, dre.s.sed weight. At the same 

 time tile general average retail price for 

 beef was 261 ^c p^r pound. Now, a 

 farmer patronizing a locker plant will 

 pay an aver.ige of about 2c per pound, 

 dressed weight, for processing, freezing 

 and storage, raising the cost of his fresh 

 meat to 1 H i*-' P^f pound. The average 

 farm family uses about 1,000 pounds of 

 meat a year — his saving by a locker 

 plant is approximately SI 20 each year, 

 and he has the advant,ige of having the 

 finest of tenderized meat all the year 

 around. 



He makes other savings, too. I'eed, 

 especially in years like this, is expensive; 

 and a pen of steers may be ready in luly. 

 To feed one head until winter butchering 

 season will cost far more than locker 

 rental. Thus the farmer who kills in 

 mid-summer for winter use is saving his 

 locker rent in feed bills alone. Then, 

 there is always the question of spoilage. 

 A day or two of warm weather may ruin 

 "iOO pounds of meat during farm butcher- 

 ing. With a locker plant this risk is 



HOW ABOUT A NICE RIB ROAST 

 and a can of peas for supper tonight. 



I. A. A. RECORD 



