-Q ~~ BULLETIN 610,-U.-S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 
Fish meal and fish scrap, or “ pomace,” are similar in composition, 
the former, however, being prepared for use as a feeding stuff and the 
latter as a fertilizer. In the manufacture of fertilizer the object is” 
merely to produce a material that contains one or more of the follow- 
ing necessary constituents: Nitrogen, phosphate, or potash. In the 
case of fish meal, being a feed stuff, the material from which it is 
made must be fresh, wholesome, and nutritious, and greater care must 
be taken in the manufacture. 
The Norwegian Government in 1892 conducted a series of feeding 
experiments with fish meal and obtained very favorable results. 
Since then the merits of fish meal have been more and more appreci- 
ated in Germany, especially as a feeding stuff for pigs. For some 
years prior to the present war Germany not only used up all it could 
produce, but took all that England and Norway had to offer. In the 
United States fish meal as a feeding stuff has been nneeioteds in spite 
of the proof of its value. 
USE OF FISH MEAL IN THE UNITED STATES. 
The amount of fish meal used for feeding purposes in this country 
is so small compared with other materials used as feeding stuff 
that it is hardly worth mentioning. Although of great use as a 
fertilizer, the product is clearly of more value to the country as 
a feeding stuff. English experiments have shown that the oil, which 
in many samples of fish meal ranges from 7 to 10 per cent, is 
distinctly disadvantageous in preventing the manure from rotting 
in the soil and yielding up its nitrogen to the crop. The oil itself 
contributes nothing to the value of the manure and is simply wasted 
when applied to the Jand. There is every reason to favor the view 
that fish meal should not be spread on the land until it has been 
passed through the digestive apparatus of farm stock. 
Very little has been done to bring the value of fish meal before the 
agriculturist in this country. It is to be regretted that the American 
farmer has not been brought to appreciate the true value of fish meal. 
Probably one of the reasons for fish meal having been thus neg- 
lected is the impression that if it is used in the feeding of animals, 
their flesh will become tainted. This belief is entirely unwarranted, 
as shown by German, English, and American experiments, and will 
be pointed out later in connection with our own experiments. If, as 
reported, some farmers who have tried it have not found fish meal 
satisfactory as a feeding stuff, it is because they have not used it 
with understanding. Fish meal is very similar to packing-house 
tankage in composition and can be fed in exactly the same propor- 
tions. If moderate proportions are fed in combination with carbo- 
naceous feeds, its efficiency as a feeding stuff soon will become 
apparent. 
