a le i 8 
PREPARATION OF FROZEN AND DRIED EGGS. 5 
ublic against decomposed eggs. These contending forces were fast making the 
investment of money in the preparation of frozen and dried eggs a hazardous business 
proposition. : 
It was at this time that the Department of Agriculture began its study of the problem. 
Science had not entered the door of the frozen-egg industry as it had done in allied 
enterprises—for example, dairying. The investigators had before them the task of 
laying the groundwork for the scientific preparation of an extremely perishable 
product. 
EVOLUTION IN CONSTRUCTION, EQUIPMENT, AND OPERATIONS. 
When this investigation was begun the breaking room in D house was the most 
modern, and that of E house the most old-fashioned. The former was the only one 
of five houses under observation in 1911 to have refrigeration in this department. In 
fact, to this house must be given the credit of being the first to build a model ege- 
breaking room. It was built entirely of concrete, and the walls were white enameled. 
The windows were insulated and always closed; therefore, they were fly and dust 
proof, a condition not found in unchilled rooms. Persons entering the model room 
were astonished at the whiteness and the abundance of light. In truth, the room had 
been patterned after a hospital operating room. The practical success of this experi- 
ment is shown by the fact that E house built a similar room, but with a capacity 
about five times as great, for the season of 1912. The ege-breaking room of E house 
before and after remodeling is shown in Plates IV, V, and VI. The appearance of 
the breaking room of D and F houses is shown in Plates VII and VIII, figure2. A 
freezer with brine-pipe shelves to hold the eggs during freezing is illustrated in 
Plate XIII, figure 1. . 
The equipment and the methods followed in the breaking room were for the most 
part crude. It was in this quarter that a large part of the efforts of the investigators 
was first centered. 
The device used for cracking and holding the eggs during grading was one of the 
first pieces of apparatus to be attacked. Laboratory studies showed that for the sake 
of cleanliness the edge on which the eggs were broken should be adjustable and should 
not be located directly over the cups into which the eggs were dropped; that these 
containers should be supported by a wire screen or other device to prevent their 
becoming soiled with drippings of egg; and, thirdly, that glass cups with a capacity 
of two to three eggs should be used to prevent waste and to facilitate grading. A 
discussion of these findings with the managements of D, E, and F houses resulted in 
each perfecting an egg-breaking outfit conforming to the above specifications. F 
house, however, used metal instead of glass cups. F house also developed a me- 
chanical method for the separation of white and yolk. These changes were begun in 
1911 and completed for the season of 1912. Illustrations of breaking outfits of the old 
type are shown in figures 5 and 7 and also in Plate IX, figure 2. The newly devised 
ege-breaking trays are shown in Plate IX, figure 3; Plate X, figures 1 and 2; and also 
re 6. 
The method of cleaning utensils was practically revolutionized as a result of the 
experiments of the investigators. The washing departments, except in D house, were 
generally located in 9, corner of the breaking room. The washing was done in a hit- 
and-miss fashion. Bacteriological tests showed that even though the utensils were 
apparently clean to the senses they were excellent seed beds for the bacterial con- 
tamination of the product (see Plate I, figures 1 and 2; Plate II, figure 1; and Plate 
III, figures 1,2,and 3). That this was the case was shown also by the fact that the 
bacteria in the product increased as it passed from one container to another in its 
routine handling in the breaking and drying room. Experiments showed that the 
only sure method of rendering the utensils bacterially clean was to steam them for 
15 to 20 minutes at a temperature of 210° to 212° F. The efficiency of this operation 
was proved by the fact that the product handled in sterilized utensils contained 
markedly fewer organisms, othr conditions being equal, than did that prepared 
in containers cleansed by the usual commercial method. 
Since these experiments showed that the thorough cleansing and sterilization of 
utensils afforded a direct means of lowering the numbers of bacteria in the product, 
and thereby enhancing its stability, the cooperating members of the industry did not 
require a second bidding to build sanitary well-equipped wash rooms outside of the 
breaking rooms. In fact, the new wash rooms of E and F houses in 1912 were models 
of efficiency (see Plates XI and XII). 
It was found, also, that the fingers of the breakers, especially after breaking 
“sweaty,” dirty, or bad eggs, were a fertile source of contamination. Actual contact 
of eggshell and fingers could not be eliminated, neither could a slight wetting of the 
tips of the thumbs and forefingers with egg be avoided. But both these objectionable 
practices could be reduced to a minimum by care and skill. Shell contamination was 
