395 



The experiments were repeated many times and show slight varia- 

 tions, but the results as shown in the tables given are fairly representative. 



BENZOIC ACID IN CRANBERRIES. 



The occurrence of benzoic acid in cranberries has been cited so often, 

 and in a manner that is often misleading, figures obtained by Lafar 1 on 

 the low-bush cranberry, Vaccinium Vitis Idaea, being given for the common 

 cranberries, Vaccinium macrocarpcm and Vaccinium O my coccus. Vac. Vitis 

 Idaea is a common form in Europe, growing wild, and also in this country 

 in Nova Scotia, and though it is imported into the United States, it is not 

 the form which is used to any extent as compared with Vac. macrocarpon, 

 the large cranberry and Vac. Oxycoccus, the small cranberry. The amount 

 of benzoic acid in V. Vitis-Idaea, as quoted by Lafar, varies from .G4-.S6 

 grams per liter. 



Testimony 2 given before the committee on interstate and foreign com- 

 merce of the House of Representatives on the pure food bills in February, 

 1906, gave the amount occurring in raw cranberries as i%, and that half 

 of this was volatilized in the cooking. It was not stated which of the two 

 American species was used for the determination. These figures have not 

 been verified, so far as known to the writer, though diligent search has 

 been made in many chemical and food journals. 



There is undoubtedly an antiseptic present in cranberries, a fact known 

 to any one who has made either cranberry jelly or sauce, as these can be 

 kept without spoiling for a long time, even when exposed to the germs in 

 the air. 



Experiments were made to determine the effect of growth in cran- 

 berry juice on the development of the organism used in the previous ex- 

 periments. 



The cranberries selected were the small oval ones, said to contain 

 the largest amount of the antiseptic and were tested in three ways: 



1. 200 grams were crushed in a mortar, then covered with 200 cc. 

 water, and allowed to stand for 12 hours, after which the juice was 

 filtered. 



2. 200 grams placed in an open vessel in the sterilizer and steamed 

 until the cranberries were soft, after which they were crushed in a mortar. 



1 Lafar, P., Technical Mycology, Vol. I, p. 117, 1898. 

 - The Canner and Dried Fruit Packer, Vol. XXVI, No. 8. 



