The Corvallis gazette. [volume] (Corvallis, Or.) 1862-1899, 1880-11-19
Value of Evaporated Fruits.

| In no one department of farm economy
has been SO much interest manifested
within the last few years, as in the re-
cent application of better methods and
appliances for this special purpose The
old traditional dry house had so long
been turning out an insipid and low
priced article upon our markets, that it
is even yet difficult to dispel the notions
entertained by many in regard to the
product of the modern evaporation. Be-
tween the old driers, ovens and the sun,
our markets have been overstocked with
unsavory dried fruits, the price of which
is becoming more and more de pressed,
making it an Improbable business for
the producer, and unsatisfactory to the
consumer.
The demand for evaporated fruits of
all kinds has more than kept pace with
the production, and prices have steadily
advanced as the supply has opened up
new markets, gaining in general favor,
and entering into consumption as q
wholesome article of food, instead of
luxury. Consumers have learned that it
is cheap even at current prices, compared
with fruit put up in cans. Any one can
make the experiment by buying pack
age OF canned fruit, and its equivalent in
cost in evaporated fruits, and then at
tempt to put the latter-after soaking in
water eight or ten hours-into the empty
can. The saving of cost in cans, jars
and freight will then also be apparent.
In properly evaporated fruits there is no
loss except water; in fact, the pneumatic
evaporating process is q ripening pro-
cess, and improves the quality of the
product.
The manufacture of evaporated fruit,
at the prices realized throughout the
past year and up to this time, invites the
closest investigation at the hands of or
chardists. The business is now recog-
nized as a legitimate industry. The
farmer and fruit-grower cannot only
compete with the large stock companies
in the quality of their product, Tut they
can proftably undersell their more pre-
tentious rivals. While comparatively
few are engaged in the manufacture of |
the best article, many are still making
the common dried fruit for which there
is no profitable market.
There are great quantities of apples
and peaches, too, that are specked only
'sskin Deep" but yet enough to damage
their sale in barrels fresh, that after the
skin is taken off are equal to the best,
and too, if wormy or bruised some, yet
enough to hurt their sale as fresh fruit,
by o little trimming out the
bruised and wormy parts-are as good as
the best, and thus used are saved to the
grower. Pears, cherries, plums, rasp-
berries, blackberries. and in fact, hun
dreds of thousands of bushels of DIFF
ferent kinds of fruit that are now going
to waste OF bring but little in certain To-
calities, can be saved by evaporation.
This evaporated fruit when used is as
fine as fresh green fruit, and no person
can tell the difference in pies or sauce
made from it and fresh apples. And as
to the saving to the consumer, few
figures will show. Suppose person in
Kansas or idaho wishes to order apples
for use in his family. He pays (includ-
ing freight) from 81 to $5 per barrel laid
down at his door. A barrel of the fruit
will make about Is to 20 pounds Of evap-
GRATED fruit-say 16 pounds laid
down at his door costs him from 50 30 to
So rs, saying nothing of the risk of the
fresh fruit rotting or being badly bruised
or damaged by carriage, and the neces-
sity of using up fresh fruit at once,
while the evaporated fruit can be kept
for long time Fruit Recorder.