MILK AS A MARKET COMMODITY 15 



a small amount of infection will contaminate a large 

 quantity of milk; and third, because milk is very largely 

 consumed raw, whereas meat is almost invariably cooked 

 before it is used. Even the sanitation of the meat supply, 

 however, is considered of such importance that the fed- 

 eral government inspects all animals slaughtered at the 

 larger slaughterhouses, particularly those which do an 

 interstate and international business. It has been esti- 

 mated that this inspection covers approximately one-half 

 the animals slaughtered in the United States. 1 



As regards bread and similar foods, the need for rigid con- 

 trol is again less urgent than in the case of milk. Though 

 such foods as a group are probably about as vital as milk, 

 yet any one of them may be replaced with a substitute. 

 Again, most of these foods can be stored for a longer time 

 and hence are not produced or consumed with the same 

 degree of regularity. Bread, for example, can be obtained 

 from the bakery or it may be made in the home as 

 needed. Hence the public is not so dependent upon the 

 existence of a constant supply stream. 



It would seem fair to conclude then that milk distribu- 

 tion is affected with a public interest to a greater degree 

 than is the distribution of most other food products and 

 is justly subject to such regulations as the public interest 

 may dictate. 



Leaving until a later chapter the discussion of regula- 

 tions having to do with the economic aspects of the milk 

 business, let us consider further those regulations which 

 relate more particularly to the health problems of milk 

 distribution. 



1 Hemenway, H. B., American Health Protection, p. 70. 



