358 POULTRY BREEDING AND MANAGEMENT 



storage product, the business must be recognized as one 

 of great importance not only as it affects the cost of living 

 or the food supply but as it affects the business and the 

 profits of the poultry producer. Investigations have shown 

 that there was put into cold storage during the year end- 

 ing April 1, 1911, the enormous total of about 10,000,000 

 cases of eggs of an estimated value of over $64,000,000. 

 Of this, practically 80% is handled in the three months of 

 April, May and June, the percentage of the total being 

 42% for April, 25% for May and 12.5% for June. The 

 cold storage of butter in the same period amounted to 

 $40,000,000. It was reported that there were 500 cold 

 storage plants in different sections of the United States 

 storing eggs in that year. 



It cannot be definitely stated just how much the poultry 

 producer is the gainer or loser by the invention and de- 

 velopment of the modern system of cold storage. There 

 are those who claim that the business is an injury to the 

 poultry industry, but the public has come to accept it as 

 necessary for the proper distribution of food stuffs. In the 

 early days of cold storage of eggs, and even in later days to 

 a small extent, there was abundant excuse, for the violent 

 antagonism that the business frequently encountered. It 

 is true that cold storage eggs have been frequently sold as 

 fresh, and even to this day in certain states unscrupulous 

 dealers practice this fraud upon both the poultryman and 

 the consumer in the absence of a law that would send them to 

 jail for the act. But there is little excuse now for antagonism 

 to the business of cold storage, though unscrupulous dealers 

 and vendors of eggs may occasionally take advantage of it 

 to enrich themselves at the expense of the public. The 

 business of refrigeration has been more perfected and the 

 quality of the product improved. Again laws have been 

 enacted making it a criminal offense to sell storage eggs as 

 fresh eggs. 



