The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1884-03-22
"ADULTERATED FOOD.
The Alarming Revelations Made by the New
York Health Committee.

ALBANY, March 21.-The Senate committee
on public health, which has been investigating
authorizations of food, reported to day. The
members say they have discovered wholesale
alarming authorizations, dangerous to consumer
and depreciating the value of property in rural
districts. The adulteration of butter by tallow
oil, bone oil and lard oil is found in almost every
town and city in the State, and in amount equal
to half the production of natural butter. The
imitation has been so disguised, often, that it was
only discoverable by chemical analysis. Out of
thirty samples of butter purchased by the COM
mittee in New York only ten were genuine.
No labels to distinguish the pure from bogus
butter are displayed, as required by the existing
law. Bogus butter is largely purchased by sa-
looms, clearinghouse and second-class hotels.
Poorer qualities of bogus butter sell for from 20
to 30 cents to laboring men, the better grades at
from 40 to As cents. The cost of manufacture
ranges from II to Is cents-average, a. Sew
eral New York and Brooklyn concerns manufac-
ture over 5000, 900 pounds each out of. fats
brought from the West, from France and Italy.
The bulk of bogus butter is manufactured in the
West and sold in New York to the detriment of
the States dairy interests. Many dairy farmers
have been driven out of business. The conse-
quent loss to the State is estimated at from So
900, 900 to $40, 900, 900 yearly. The committee
estimated shat 40, 900, 900 pounds of the product
are sold annually in the State. and the illegiti-
mate business is breaking our export butter trade.
The effect of the deception in trade is deleterious
to business morals. Butterine can be sold at
eighteen cents less than natural butter. The
committee quotes extensively from the evidence
to show the evil moral, commercial and sanitary
effects of deliberations. The use of nitric and
sulphuric acids in deodorizing adulterated butter
is particularly condemned The committee rec
ommends the total prohibition, after a given
time, of the manufacture and sale of butter adul-
terations. A living COW, assert the committee,
cannot compete with a dead hog. The commit
tee also find that 200, 900 out of 800, 900 quarts of
milk furnished New York daily in 1882 were
water or skim milk. They recommend the APP
pointment of State milk inspectors, and that the
officials chosen to enforce the anti adulteration
laws be selected from and represent the dairy
interests.
Accompanying the report was a bill prohibit
ing, under a penalty of 5000 or six months i'm
prisonment, the sale of adulterated milk, keep
ing cows for the production of milk in an un-
healthy condition, or diluting milk with water.
1t provides that every manufacturer of butter
shall brand his name and the weight of the but
ter on the package. Cans for the sale of milk
shall be stamped with the name of the county
where the milk is produced, unless sold exclus-
lively in the county. A penalty of $500 to 81, 900
and Imprisonment for one year is imposed on the
sale or manufacture of bogus butter or cheese.
The State Dairymens Association is appointed a
commission to enforce the provisions of the bill,
and $50, 900 is appropriated for the purpose.