20 BULLETIN 350, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



On the whole, the properties of cherry oil compare very favorably 

 with the commercial oils, considering the many unfavorable factors 

 which unavoidably enter into the distillation on a laboratory scale, 

 and it may therefore be considered that for all practical purposes 

 this oil is equal to the oil of bitter almonds and the other kernel oils. 



AVAILABLE QUANTITY OF THE VOLATILE OIL. 



Approximating the total available quantity of kernels from the 

 domestic cherries at 448 tons and deducting 30 per cent, the quantity 

 of fixed oil capable of being extracted, there would remain about 

 314 tons of press cake. It has been shown that 0.95 per cent of vola- 

 tile oil can be obtained from the press cake, and there would result, 

 therefore, practically 3 tons of volatile oil, or 6,000 pounds. 



USES OF THE VOLATILE OIL. 



Bitter-almond oil, aside from its use for medicinal purposes, finds 

 a widespread use in the manufacture of perfumery and confectionery. 

 In the perfumery trade the demand is for the genuine oil rather than 

 for the synthetic article, as the odoriferous properties are much finer 

 and more agreeable. The importation of bitter-almond oil for the 

 year ended June 30, 1914, reached a total of 7,525 pounds, valued at 

 $21,954/ showing that the demand for this oil is keen. For some 

 time prior to August, 1914, the price of bitter-almond oil has shown 

 a gradual increase, the wholesale market quotations ranging from 

 $3.25 to $4.75 in 1910 2 to $3.50 to $6.50 during the first six months of 

 1914. 2 Since then the price has risen rapidly, due apparently to lack 

 of importations. At the present time (January, 1916) the oil is 

 quoted at $9.25 to $11 a pound. 3 



VALUE OF THE VOLATILE OIL. 



Assuming that 6,000 pounds of volatile oil can be produced annually, 

 the gross income from the total available output of kernels, calculated 

 at the minimum price quoted at the present time, would be $46,500. 

 Therefore it would seem reasonable to suppose that the production 

 of volatile oil from waste cherry pits should meet with favorable 

 attention as a means of converting the now useless waste into a 

 source of profit. 



CHERRY-KERNEL MEAL. 

 CHEMICAL CONSTITUENTS. 



After distilling the volatile oil from the press cake, the residue 

 which remained consisted of a mushy mass. The moisture was re- 



1 U. S. Department of Commerce. Foreign Commerce and Navigation of the United 

 States for the Year Ending June 30, 1914, p. 821. Washington, 1915. 



2 Oil, Paint, and Drug Reporter. 



3 Oil, Paint, and Drug Reporter, v. 89, no. 3, p. 40. 1916. 



