CARMODY — FOOD ADULTERATION. 
205 
reduced. We have found as much as 27 per cent, of salt, and 20 
per cent, of water in some samples ; and it therefore became 
necessary to draw the line somewhere. We have drawn it at 
15% of butter fat, which we consider a fair commercial standard 
for ordinary butter sold in firkins. Ghee is melted butter to all 
intents and purposes. It is consumed only by East Indians, and 
contains neither water nor salt. The amount imported last year 
(4,0001bs.) was much below the average. This points to piobably 
adulteration. In 1891, the importation amounted to 160,000 lbs. 
The £7,000 worth of cheese imported here is, so far as we 
have examined it, genuine. In some places it is much adulter- 
ated by being made from skimmed milk or from skimmed milk 
and lard or oleomargarine and sold under the name of filled 
cheese. 
Lard is imported here in very large quantities. In 1896 
we consumed 1,340,000 lbs. which cost us £21,500. The most 
serious adulteration in connection with this article occurred a 
year or so ago, wheu a mixture containing one-third of its weight 
of water was imported. Genuine lard contains only a fraction 
of a per cent, of water. If this mixture had not been detected, 
the adulterator would have made £7,000 a year from this island 
alone. 
Olive oil is with us an important article. Here again 
is evidence of a large French population. 50,000 gallons of a 
Talue of £14,000 is our annual consumption. No article ol 
commerce is more largely adulterated than olive oil. T le pure 
oil sells at a high price ; and the addition of many cheaper ods 
irhich admit of being used as adulterants, — is difficult to detect. 
Of these, cotton seed oil Is most commonly used— the price ot 
TYhich is about 2/- a gallon as compared with 6/- a gallon lor 
olhe oil. There is here a large margin of profit for the unscru- 
pulous adulterator who does not hesitate to sell cotton seed oil 
38 11 sublime ” olive oil. 
To oleomargarine, when sold as such, there can be no objec 
hon either from a commercial or health point of view. 00 os ® y 
does it resemble butter in its appearance that it has frequent y 
Wn sold as butter. Indeed it is said that at a recent Exhibition 
3 sample of oleomargarine obtained the first prize in the butter 
«iou. If the judges W ere experts, as they should 
ttis seems impossible ; for the two can be readily distin^uis 
. A great many unfair statements have been made about 
oleomargarine. It has been said, for instance, that it \ s mi *de 
river mud; but it is usually manufactured [with the 
greatest care and attention, from beef fat which is firs m 
