PREPARATION" OP FROZEN" AND DRIED EGGS. 5 



public against decomposed eggs. These contending forces were fast making the 

 investment of money in the preparation of frozen and dried eggs a hazardous business 

 proposition. 



It was at this time that the Department of Agriculture began its study of the problem. 

 Science had not entered the door of the frozen-egg industry as it had done in allied 

 enterprises — for example, dairying. The investigators had before them the task of 

 laying the groundwork for the scientific preparation of an extremely perishable 

 product. 



EVOLUTION IN CONSTRUCTION, EQUIPMENT, AND OPERATIONS. 



When this investigation was begun the breaking room in D house was the most 

 modern, and that of E house the most old-fashioned. The former was the only one 

 of five houses under observation in 1911 to have refrigeration in this department. In 

 fact, to this house must be given the credit of being the first to build a model egg- 

 breaking room. It was built entirely of concrete, and the walls were white enameled. 

 The windows were insulated and always closed; therefore, they were fly and dust 

 proof, a condition not found in unchilled rooms. Persons entering the model room 

 were astonished at the whiteness and the abundance of light. In truth, the room had 

 been patterned after a hospital operating room. The practical success of this experi- 

 ment is shown by the fact that E house built a similar room, but with a capacity 

 about five times as great, for the season of 1912. The egg-breaking room of E house 

 before and after remodeling is shown in Plates IV, V, and VI. The appearance of 

 the breaking room of D and F houses is shown in Plates VII and VIII, figure 2. A 

 freezer with brine-pipe shelves to hold the eggs during freezing is illustrated in 

 Plate XIII, figure 1. 



The equipment and the methods followed in the breaking room were for the most 

 part crude. It was in this quarter that a large part of the efforts of the investigators 

 was first centered. 



The device used for cracking and holding the eggs during grading was one of the 

 first pieces of apparatus to be attacked. Laboratory studies showed that for the sake 

 of cleanliness the edge on which the eggs were broken should be adjustable and should 

 not be located directly over the cups into which the eggs were dropped; that these 

 containers should be supported by a wire screen or other device to prevent their 

 becoming soiled with drippings of egg; and, thirdly, that glass cups with a capacity 

 of two to three eggs should be used to prevent waste and to facilitate grading. A 

 discussion of these findings with the managements of D, E, and F houses resulted in 

 each perfecting an egg-breaking outfit conforming to the above specifications. F 

 house, however, used metal instead of glass cups. F house also developed a me- 

 chanical method for the separation of white and yolk. These changes were begun in 

 1911 and completed for the season of 1912. Illustrations of breaking outfits of the old 

 type are shown in figures 5 and 7 and also in Plate IX, figure 2. The newly devised 

 egg-breaking trays are shown in Plate IX, figure 3; Plate X, figures 1 and 2; and also 

 figure 6. 



The method of cleaning utensils was practically revolutionized as a result of the 

 experiments of the investigators. The washing departments, except in D house, were 

 generally located in a corner of the breaking room. The washing was done in a hit- 

 and-miss fashion. Bacteriological tests showed that even though the utensils were 

 apparently clean to the senses they were excellent seed beds for the bacterial con- 

 tamination of the product (see Plate I, figures 1 and 2; Plate II, figure 1; and Plate 

 III, figures 1, 2, and 3). That this was the case was shown also by the fact that the 

 bacteria in the product increased as it passed from one container to another in its 

 routine handling in the breaking and drying room. Experiments showed that the 

 only sure method of rendering the utensils bacterially clean was to steam them for 

 15 to 20 minutes at a temperature of 210° to 212° F. The efficiency of this operation 

 was proved by the fact that the product handled in sterilized utensils contained 

 markedly fewer organisms, oth~>r conditions being equal, than did that prepared 

 in containers cleansed by the usual commercial method. 



Since these experiments showed that the thorough cleansing and sterilization of 

 utensils afforded a direct means of lowering the numbers of bacteria in the product, 

 and thereby enhancing its stability, the cooperating members of the industry did not 

 require a second bidding to build sanitary well-equipped wash rooms outside of the 

 breaking rooms. In fact, the new wash rooms of E and F houses in 1912 were models 

 of efficiency (see Plates XI and XII). 



It was found, also, that the fingers of the breakers, especially after breaking 

 "sweaty," dirty, or bad eggs, were a fertile source of contamination. Actual contact 

 of eggshell and fingers could not be eliminated, neither could a slight wetting of the 

 tips of the thumbs and forefingers with egg be avoided. But both these objectionable 

 practices could be reduced to a minimum by care and skill. Shell contamination was 



