Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-07-07
REPORT ON PACKERS
ILLINOIS BUSINESS MEN AND Elk
PERTs FIND SOME CHANGES


experts who accompanied the committee.
was made public in Chicago yesterday.
The committee says:
That a board of experts of the character
employed with professional ideals and
guided and influenced by an aesthetic sense.
which ernbodies something OF necessity and
something more of luxury should find the
product wholesome the yards generally
clean" and the inspection efficient. seems
to your committee to cover the situation.
AS n result of this Investigation we our
selves have no hesitancy in stating that
the meat products at the stockyards are
wholesome and proper food. We find That
the companies have been improving the con-
ditions and products from year to year,
that improvements are constantly being
made and will be made. and we believe that
the conditions and surroundings at the
plant carefully protect the quality of the
product
improvements Under Way.
They say that part of most of the plants
are up to date, yet in each of these there
are some rooms that are indifferentiy good,
and in most of them are some things that
they cannot approve. The committees re-
port says:
The committee can cite no better evidence
of the truth of this statement than the
under way everywhere. These betterments
relate in most places to minor thing and in
others they mean a complete rebuilding OF
old plants. Generally speaking, the more
recently built plants are the best, and much
of the adverse criticism has had it's origin
in conditions at Old buildings which have
been added to and adapted to expanding
business. Yet when the committee comes
to analyZe this criticism, it finds that part
of it is based upon principles that are
known and part of it upon an aesthetic
sense and a popular demand that food prod
ucts shall be produced in places conforming
to certain somewhat vague ideals. The
aesthetic sense embodies something of ne
cessity and something more of luxury, in
regard to the latter, of which there may be
a good deal of misunderstanding.
Nowhere Is there greater vagueneSs and
less definite information than in regard to
preservatives. Even scientists differ on this
subject. Your committee has investigated
by inquiry. by search and by analysis to
determine where preservatiyes were used.
The Use of Preservatives.
The report gives the conservatives used
but does not discuss the question of harm
fulness from .preservatives employed on the
one hand nor the supposedly increased
dangers resulting from the use of UMPIRE
served products, products differently
preserved. on the other. 1t especially COM
mends these questions for further scientific
inquiry. Concerning inspection it says:
The investigation of the regulations of the
United States and the city of Chicago for
the inspection of meats was conducted by
Drs- Hektoen, Herzog and Evans. repre-
senting the Chicago Medical Society, who
had the especial counsel of Drs. Ravenel,
Peters and Reynolds. These men wrote to
number of scientists and the committee
embodied in its report the reply of Prof.
WEIGH of the Johns Hopkins University,
Baltimore, who said
In view of the absence of any positive
n riS frno
the meat of cattle affected with only To-
Called tuberculosis, or actinomycosis
uumpy jaw of slight or moderate extent
it would, in my opinion, be extravagant
ana indeed absurd TO condemn the car
cases of such cattle, provided the animals
are well nourished and otherwise in good
condition. 1t is. of course understood that
the diseased parts and organs are COM
pletely removed and destroyed, and that
proper precautions are taken to guard
against the accidental contamination Of
the meat with the tubercle baeilH during
and after slaughtering. AS regards tuber-
culosis, I consider that all reasonable de-
mands are met by the condemnation of the
tuberculosis and with generalized tubercu-
losis The demands solely of public health
would doubtless be met by less stringent
regulations"
Inspection Generally Good
In summing up its observance of the in
spection the committee says:
iAist'cIlioh VI cafCaSSeS mas OSen OBJ
served in operation in all of the houses, and
a very considerable amount of time has
been spent. in some cases for hours in sue
cession, at the same place studying this
department of the work. There are un-
questonably certain features regarding
which some minor suggestions and criti-
cisms might fairly be made. but in general
1t was found that the inspection of the dead
animal, up TO the time the carcass and sep
arated organs passed from the killing
room, was reasonably careful, thorough and
in general, efficient.
IL Is our opinion that the dressed meat
of the yards is wholesome and a proper ar
ticle for human food.
The methods employed in preserving meats
are for the most part Clearly. nothing Sc
riously objectionable being observed in any
of the houses visited
Your committee is of the opinion that the
canning departments visited in general are
cleanly In the handling, and the handling Is
done in cleanly manner by healthy per-
sons, and that the finished canned meats
offered for sale constitute wholesome and
In varying degrees nutritious articles of
diet. The use of any spoiled meat unfit for
food was nowhere noticed though it must
be conceded that some of the canned goods
contained material which is of a low nu-
tTitive value, such as pigs ears pigs
shouts tripe. etc. 1t is therefore recon-
Inended that the cans be correctly labeled
as to their contents, SO that the purchaser
may De aDie 10 FORM correct estimate
to their nutritiye value. 1t Is believed that
the government inspection should be extend
ed TO a supervision of all the materials used
for canned goods, since they are finally dis
tributed in packages bearing the declara-
ton that they contain government inspected
material. As it is at present, there is no
disinterested supervision which guarantees
the fact that nothing other than proper
material is placed in the cans.
1t Is suggested that, for the uncooked
sausage business. the meat being inspected
for trichinae be handled in especially sani-
tary rooms. and that specific rules be
adopted and enforced for the hands of
these operators 1t is believed that the
standard of sanitary surroundings and care
should be higher for these uncoeked prod
ucts than for those which to be washed
and cooked before being eaten. All cutting
and trimming meats should be washed
whether picked or fresh. This Is believed
to be the rule at present, but the system
employed permits too many exceptions.