PURE AND IMPURE FOODS. 



" What a Man Eats He Zr." 



Edited by C. F. Langworthy, Ph.D. 



Author of " On Citraconic, Itaconic and Mesaconic Acids," " Fish as Food,'' etc. 



TOMATO CATSUP AND OTHER SAUCES. 



A. L. Winton and A. W. Ogden have 

 recently studied the catsup and other 

 similar sauces sold in Connecticut. They 

 discuss the manufacture of such goods in 

 effect as follows, calling attention especially 

 to the use of artificial coloring matter and 

 preservation which are so generally met 

 with and which should be discouraged : 



Tomato catsup, or ketchup, is the most 

 popular of the bottled table sauces on our 

 market. It is found on the tables of nearly 

 every hotel and restaurant, and is con- 

 sumed in large quantities in families. When 

 made in the household ripe tomatoes are 

 pared, cored, boiled down to the desired 

 consistency, and strained through a sieve 

 to remove seeds. The strained pulp is 

 cooked for a time with vinegar, spices, and 

 other flavoring matter. Chili sauce is pre- 

 pared in a similar manner from tomatoes, 

 peppers (chilies), vinegar, spices, etc., but, 

 unlike catsup, is not usually strained. 



Both of these sauces are bottled hot and 

 closed to exclude the germs; but while the 

 sterilization or the sealing is not always 

 perfect, the contents of the bottles are kept 

 from spoiling, during storage as well as 

 during use, by virtue of the spices and 

 vinegar. 



Commercial catsup, chili sauce, etc., are 

 at least theoretically similar to the home- 

 made products. Some of the catsups and 

 chili sauces on the market are made from 

 good materials, but others are said to be 

 made from the refuse of tomato canneries 

 or from other inferior pulp, and most of 

 them are colored with dyes and preserved 

 with chemicals. Among the colors used 

 are eosin, ponceau, tropeolin, magenta and 

 others of coal-tar origin. They impart to 

 the sauces a brilliant red color which those 

 who are unaware that the uncolored prod- 

 ucts have a dull red or brown color believe 

 is due to the natural color of the fruit. 

 The objections to the use of these dyes are: 

 First, they deceive the purchasers while 

 they in no way improve the quality of the 

 sauce ; second, they may serve to hide in- 

 ferior material used in their manufacture; 

 third, they are possibly injurious to health; 

 and, fourth, they put genuine uncolored 

 goods at a disadvantage in the market. 



The chemicals commonly employed as 

 preservatives are salicylic acid, salicylate of 

 soda, benzoic acid and benzoate of soda. 

 The preserving agent actually present in 

 the product is the same, whether one of 

 these acids or its soda salt is used, since 



the free acid of the tomato liberates the 

 acid of both the salicylate and the benzoate 

 of soda. The use of any of these preserva- 

 tives in catsups and sauces without inform- 

 ing the purchaser of its presence is a viola- 

 tion of the Connecticut and some other 

 State pure food laws. 



During the present year 106 samples of 

 catsup, chili sauce and other sauces sold in 

 Connecticut were tested for both dyes and 

 chemical preservatives, and in addition de- 

 terminations of total solids and acidity 

 were made. Of these only 21 contained no 

 added preservatives. Of the 95 samples 

 with added preservatives, 67 contained 

 benzoic acid, probably added in most cases 

 as sodium benzoate, and 18 contained sali- 

 cylic acid. The tests showed that only 20 

 brands were free from added dyes, and 

 that 85 brands contained them. Of these 

 latter goods 31 brands were colored with 

 eosin, the common dye of red ink; 47 with 

 ponceau, 3 with tropeolin, and 3 with other 

 coal-tar dyes. The percentage of total 

 solids, that is, food material, in the tomato 

 catsups ranged from 6.03 to 42.64. The 

 water ranged from 57.36 to 93.97 per cent. 

 The acidity of the samples, that is, one of 

 the most marked flavors, ranged from 0.60 

 to 2.20 per cent. Otherwise expressed, 

 some of the samples were 7 times as con- 

 centrated and nearly 4 times as sour as 

 others. 



In the chili sauces, the total solids 

 ranged from 12.02 to 37.36 per cent, and 

 the acidity from 0.80 to 1.60 per cent. 



MARKETING MUSKMELONS. 

 Western muskmelons are sold in large 

 numbers in the Eastern market. They 

 are well graded and uniform in quality, and 

 these points of excellence have greatly as- 

 sisted their popularity. Nearness to mar- 

 ket is an important factor in the case of a 

 tender-fleshed, delicately favored fruit like 

 the muskmelon, and for this reason within 

 a few years, a melon industry of consider- 

 able magnitude has been developed in Niag- 

 ara county, New York. As a rule, the 

 cultivation of the fruit has been restricted 

 to the market-gardening regions adjacent 

 to the large cities. The industry has de- 

 veloped naturally owing to favorable soil 

 and climatic conditions. The soil ranges 

 from light sandy loam on the "ridge" to 

 clay loam on the lower levels. The light 

 soil produces early melons of fine quality, 

 to secure which special means are em- 

 ployed. 



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