OFFICIAI, INSPE^CTION 21. 43 



PORK SAUSAGE. 



The gist of the regulations as regards the sale of pure and 

 adulterated sausage is summed up in the following: — Pork 

 sausage should be composed of minced, fresh pork to which 

 salt, spices, and nothing else has been added. It should con- 

 tain no larger amount of water than the meat from which it is 

 made. Pork sausage true to name can be lawfully sold without 

 labels. Pork sausage to which cereal, water, or anything else 

 has been added needs to be labeled to show exactly what it is. 



In the case of the manufacture of sausage it seems to be a 

 fairly common practice to add more or less water. Some man- 

 ufacturers state that they only add as much water as is neces- 

 sary in order to make the sausage in such condition that they 

 can be worked and put in the cases. While the addition of 

 water softens the sausage, it is perfectly possible to make sau- 

 sage from pure meat, salt and spices without the addition of 

 water. Cereals, such as flour, are frequently added to pork 

 sausage. Some of the spice mixtures sold for sausage flavor- 

 ing are adulterated with cereal. It seems that cereal is added 

 chiefly so that the sausage may hold more water. Thus it i- 

 possible to take 50 pounds of meat and 5 pounds of flour and 

 add water enough to make 100 pounds of sausage. While it 

 is doubtful if such an extreme adulteration is actually prac- 

 ticed, many cases have been found where large amounts of 

 water are added. Most manufacturers who are using both 

 cereal and water are labeling their sausage "cereal added." 

 That, however, is not enough. Correct labeling of pork sau- 

 sage to which cereal has been added and which contains more 

 water than the meat from which the sausage is made is "Pork 

 sausage, cereal and water added." 



The food value of sausage depends upon the protein and 

 fat. Both of these constitiients have a direct relation to the 

 water, and because of this mutual relation between fat. protein. 

 and water it is easy to tell with considerable degree of accu- 

 racy whether or not sausage has been adulterated by the addi- 

 tion of water. Adulteration by the addition of cereal can be 

 directly learned by the presence of starch which all cereals 

 carry and which meat does not contain. Quite a large nuiuber 

 of cases are now being investigated in which a pork sausage 

 to which both water and cereal had been added was sold to the 



