Evening bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1895-1912, 1904-12-14
Smith TALKS CASSAVA
HAWAII SHOULD BE
ABLE TO MAKE IT PAY
PRICE OF AMERICAN CORN CROP
OPENS OPPORTUNITY FOR
STARCH MANUFACTURE
IN HAWAII.

Superintendent Of the United States
Agricultural Experiment station Jar.
ed Smith had the following to say in
his paper on Cassava read before the
Farmers Institute Monday evening:
. The prediction has been made by
those interested in the business that
II corn continues to rise in price dur
ing the next ten years as 1t mas in
the past decade, the time Is surely
coming when starch and glucose can
no longer be prohtably manufactured
from this cereal
The chief commercial value of starch
arises from It's use in the textile in.
dustries.
i Aside from the utilization of cassava
roots for the manufacture of starch
the Importance OF this crop as a source
Of glucose is worthy OF attention.
The fresh Cassava roots contain in ad.
Gition to 26 per cent starch an average
of per cent Of cane sugar. Expert.
ments conducted on a commercial scale
have shown that 1t is possible to get
glucose from the fresh roots to the
amount of 80 per cent Of their total
weight.
y Recent reports from the West In.
dies give the cost of production OF cas-.
saNa as from $4,000 to $3.50 per acre,
yield . to 10 tons OF roots; profits $25
TO $50 per acre. In Jamaica the roots
are ground and dried and the meal is
shipped to England to he manufa, tur.
cd into glucose. The factories are said
to pay IS TO $40 per ton for the fresh
4 roots delivered at the mill. In Florida
the starch factories pay So TO IS per
ton for the fresh roots. There are
no glucose factories in Florida. The
starch mills recover only 20 pounds of
starch out of the possible &c in every
\ hundred pounds Of root, but they save
and dry the waste. This starch waste
has market value OF from so to Sl2
per ton and Is said to be in growing
demand for feeding purposes, not only
in Florida but throughout the South.
ern States
| Planters in Jamaica are said TO be
well satisfied with the profits to be
derived from this industry and are
not only rapidly increasing their acre.
age but are investing much capital in
starch factories.
Starch Is like sugar in that II takes
almost nothing from the soil. Hawaii
worth of sunshine, air and water in
the shape of sugar every year. While
there may not be much water that is
not required for the sugar crop IL has
always seemed TO me that there is q
GOOD deal of air and sunshine going
to waste for want of some one to en-.
JOY and profit from them. Cassava
does not require irrigation and makes
good crops with fair amount OF rain
tall. | have said nothing about its
wonderful value as forage plant.
The forage value of cassava is well
known. 1t ought to be more widely
cultivated by stockmen on that &C..
count alone.
There is, 1t seems to me, an oppor.
tuDity here for the development OF a
profitable manufacturing industry.
There is room for starch factories in
1 q good many localities in the islands
provided there Is a good supply OF
water for the mill. Or a glucose fac.
tory could be erected in Honolulu,
where there is already an acid manu-.
factory with a capacity much greater
than Its present output to work up
cassava meal which latter could be
manufactured at comparatively slight
cost on the plantations where the
| crop Is grown. This Is a matter which
ought to prove of interest to those
who own or control large bodies Of
land from which they at present re-
ceive but very small returns.
Cassava is crop that can be grown
with little labor. Where grown OH
an extensive scale practically the
only hand labor required Is that of
planting the canes and digging the
roots, and already somewhat crude
machinery has been devised for both
OF these operations. The land is plow-
cd rather shallow ESQ as to keep the
roots OF the plant near the SURFACED,
furrowed and cross.furrowed with rows
four feet apart. The canes or old
stalks OF the plant are cut into joints
from to inches long and a man
drops two joints at each check-row.
The seed Is covered with a hoe or
is plowed under. A disC.harrow Is run
between the rows two or three times
to loosen the soil, keep down weeds and
give the plants good start. When the
plants are two feet high there is no
further cultivation. December and
January are the best months TO plant
cassava in Hawaii. The crop Is ready
TO harvest in from ten TO twelve
months. In Florida digger" of sim.
pie construction is in use. The cost
Of digging Is there estimated at $3.50
per ton. Digging the roots has al.
ways been considered the most expen.
siye item of production in Hawaii 1t
is possible that we are behind tho
times in this regard. One man aud
team ought to care for 40 or 80 acres
OF cassava except at planting and har.
vesting time.