UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 



\ BULLETIN No. 928 



Contribution from the Bureau of Animal Industry 

 JOHN R. MOHLER, Chief 



±\&* < $Zru 



Washington, D. C. 



PROFESSIONAL PAPER 



January 7, 1921 



SUBSTITUTES FOR SUCROSE IN CURING MEATS. 



By Ralph Hoagland, Senior Biochemist, Biochemic Division. 



CONTENTS. 



Quantity of sugar used in curing 



meats 1 



Function of sugar in curing meat 2 



Substitutes for sugar 2 



Refiners' sirup 2 



Corn sugars 3 



Experimental work 4 



General plan 4 



Experiments with, pork hams 4 



Page. 



Experimental work — Continued. 



Experiments with sweet-pickle 



bacon ,_ 12 



Experiments with box-cured 



bacon 19 



Experiments with beef hams 23 



General summary 28 



QUANTITY OF SUGAR USED IN CURING MEATS. 



Sugar is used extensively in the curing of meats in this country. 

 In 1917, 15,924,009 pounds of sugar as such and 1,712,008 pounds in 

 the form of sirup, or a total of 17,636,017 pounds, was used in curing 

 meats in pickle in Government- inspected establishments. In addi- 

 tion, a considerable quantity of sugar was used in curing meats in 

 the dry way, so that the total quantity of sugar used in curing meats 

 probably amounted to about 20,000,000 pounds. This estimate does 

 not include the amount of sugar used in curing meats on the farm, for 

 which there are no data available. 



At the time the sugar shortage developed in this country during 

 the war, an investigation was started to ascertain how the greatest 

 economy in the use of sugar in curing meats could be effected. Sev- 

 eral methods appeared feasible but the use of certain sugar substi- 

 stutes appeared to be the most practicable one. A series of carefully 

 controlled experiments in the curing of several classes of meats 

 with a number of sugar substitutes and with cane sugar was carried 

 on in three large and one small meat-packing establishment. This 

 investigation was completed a short time before the signing of the 

 armistice, and while the war-time need for the information has 

 passed, yet it is believed that the results of these experiments may be 

 of present value. 



18121°— 21 1 1 



