Richmond planet. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1883-1938, 1906-06-09

celnc prepared Tor the various meat-foof
products. After killing. carcassrs are
well washed and zap 20 the time they
reach thc COLLINS rooms are handled in
fairly sanitary and clcanlv manner. This
parts that leave the cooling room fot
treatment in bulk are also handled with
regard CD cleanliness. hut the parts that
are sent ffor- fhr cooling room 90 those
departments of thc pnrk.nr houses On
which various forms OF meat products
are prepared are handled with no rsrtrd
whatever for cloaulureS fn some of the
largest establishments sides th.t are sent
90 what is known as the houinc room are
thrown in "a heap upon the floor. Tns
workers climb over these heaps of meat.
select the pieces they wish and frequent
~ throw them down upon the dirty floor
beside their working bench. Even lu
cutting the meat upon the bench the
work Is usually held pressed against their
aprons. and these aprons were a. rule
indescTihably nuhy They were made On
most cases OF leather or Of rough sackinE
and bore long accumulated grease and
dirt Tn only few places were auitabls
OF cloth aprons worn. Moreover. men
were seen 60 climb from the floor and
stand. with shoes dirty With the REFUSE
Of the floors. on the tables upon which
the meat was handled. They were seen
az the lunch hour sitting on the tables
on the spot ora which tho meat product
was handled. and an this under the very
showing that this was the common prac-
tice
Meat Scraps On Dirty Floor.
Meat scraps were also found being SHOW
eled into recepacles from dirty floors
where they We're left 20 lie until again
shoveled into barrels OF into machines FOR
chopping These floors 10 must be noted.
were In most cases damp and soggy in
dark. I'M ventilated rooms. and the en-
Moves ID ffsmnrnrFe n tsIa rrTf
danger 10 health eNpectoratcd az will
upon them. In word. we saw meat
shoveled from nlthy wooden floors piled
on tables rarely washed. pushed from
room 90 room in rotten box carts In all
or which processes IL was IN the way OF
gathering dirt. splinters. floor Nth and
the eXpectOratiOn OF tubcrculOus and 9TH
diseased workers Where comment
was made TO floor superintendent about
these matters. Il was always the reply
that this meat. would afterwards be cook
ed and that this sterilization would pre-
vent any danger from its use. A very
considerable portion OF the meat so hand
led Is sent out smoked products and IN
the form Of sausages which are prepared
TO be eaten without being cooked.
A particularly glaring Instances Of un-
cleanliness was found In room where
the best grade of sausage was being pre-
pared for export. II was made from care
fully selected meats. and was being pre-
lAAtu 10 nc eaten untpoktu. IN TINS case
the employee carted the chopped-up meat
across room IN a barrow, the handles
or which were filthy with grease The
meat was then thrown out upon tables.
and the emplOye climbed upon the Ia
BILE. handled the meat with his unwashed
hands. knelt with his dirty apron and
trousers IN contact with the meat he was
spreading out. and after he had finished
his operation. again took hold Of the
dirty handles OF the wheelbarrow. went
back for another load and repeated this
process indefinitely. Inquiry developed
the fact that there was water in this
room at all and the only method tbs
adopted for cleaning his hands was 10
rub them against his dirty apron or on his
still hlthler trousers.
AS an extreme example of the entire
disregard on the part OF employees OF any
notion of cleanliness in handling dressed
meat. we saw a hog that had just been
killed. cleaned. washed and started on
its way to the cooling room fall from
the sliding rail 10 a dirty wooden fioor
and slide part way into a filthy mems
privy. IL was picked up by two employees.
placed upon a truck. carried into the
cooling room and hung up with other
oarcasses. no effort being made TO clean II.
Treatment After inspection.
The radical defect in the present sys-
TEN OF inspection is that II does not go
far enough. IL Is confined at present by
law TO passing on the healthfulness OF
animals at the time OF killing: but the
meat that Is used in sausage and in the
various forms OF canned products and
other prepared meat foods goes through
many processes. In all OF which there
Is possibility OF contamination through
insanitary handling ard further danger
through tho use OF chemicals. During
all these processes OF preparations there
10 no government inspection and no a.
.