MAINE SAKDINE INDUSTRY. 



35 



have been too long in dry salt, it is customary to hold them in weak 

 pickle for a short time after they reach the factory, to remove the 

 excess of salt before they are started through the process. Part of 

 the salt also is removed when they are steamed (p. 47). 



According to the best practice, the fish are not allowed to remain 

 excessively long in pickle after they have reached the cannery, over- 

 night, for example. Held in Dickie for from 6 to 10 hours, they 

 become soft, the bellies often breaking away, and they acquire a 

 peculiar, dull, leached appearance. Held too long in dry salt the 

 fish, particularly those that are small and lean, become dry, hard, and 

 brittle, with a tendency to break transversely during the steaming 

 and drying processes, in which case they are said to-be " burned by 

 salt" (PL XIV, fig. 2). Fish treated in either way are very unde- 

 sirable for canning. 



Since it is impossible to make even a fair grade of sardines from 

 fish which have been excessively salted or pickled, it is essential that 

 the canner should constantly guard against excessive salting and 

 pickling of the fish. 



In order to obtain information which would be helpful in carrying 

 out this step of the canning process, an extensive investigation of the 

 pickling and salting of fish was undertaken. 



Composition of Salt Used. 



Salt used in pickling and salting fish is said to vary in effectiveness 

 with its calcium and magnesium content, one of a low content pene- 

 trating the tissues of the fish better than those high in these con- 

 stituents. Samples of three kinds of salt used in the Maine industry 

 during 1913 and 1914 were analyzed, with the results shown in 

 Table 12. 



Table 12. — Composition of salt used in salting and pickling the fish. 



Determination. 



American. 



Liverpool. 



Trapani. 



Moisture per cent . . 



Insoluble in water do 



Calcium chlorid (CaCl 2 ) do 



Magnesium chlorid (MgCl 2 ) do 



Sodium sulphate (NajSOi) do 



Potassium chlorid (KC1) do 



Sodium chlorid (NaCl) do 



Total do ... . 



Sodium chlorid (NaCl) on dry basis do 



1.57 



.12 



.94 



.09 



1.61 



2.22 



93.48 



4.16 

 .17 

 .46 

 .16 

 .76 



4.03 

 90.33 



3.44 



.14 



.87 



1.04 



1.42 



.40 



92.49 



100.03 

 94.97 



100.07 

 94.21 



99.80 

 95.78 



Each contained but a small amount of calcium and magnesium. 

 The Liverpool salt showed the highest water content and lowest cal- 

 cium and magnesium content, and the American salt the lowest water 

 content and highest salt (NaCl) content. It had but little over 1 

 per cent of calcium and magnesium calculated as the chlorids. The 

 Liverpool salt was used in the experimental work. 



