Custer County Republican. (Broken Bow, Neb.) 1882-1921, 1908-01-30
The Nebraska
Pure Food Law
The Purpose of Its Enactment and
Some of the Thidgs Accom-
plished Under 1t.


1907, in fulfilment of the Repub-
lican State Platform, upon which
it was elected, enacted the Pnre
Food Law. This act designates
the Governor as Food, Dairy and
Drug Commissioner and author
ICES him to appoint deputy and
chemist, who are charged with
the enforcement of the law.
Joseph w. Johnson is deputy and
e. L. Redfern is chemist.
The law was enacted for the
purpose of establishing honesty
in the Food, Dairy and Drug
business In this state. There
had grown up general dissatis-
faction among the milk and
cream producers of the state from
the feeling that the creameries
were not giving the farmers a
square deal in measuring the
butter fat in the cream sold. On
the other hand, the creameries
and milk consumers Of this state
claimed that some of the farmers
were careless and unsanitary in
the production of their milk and
cream and that much of the pro-
duct marketed was unfit for use
and ought to be prohibited by
law from being sold. In answer
to this complaint and in order to
establish integrity in measuring
the butter fat in the cream and
to establish cleanliness in the
production of milk and cream,
the Pure Food law provides for
system of inspection which is in
tended to be a check against dis.
honesty in cream testing and
against the marketing 10y farmers
OF unsanitary milk and cream.
Under this Dairy department of
the Pure Food law there are now
four dairy inspectors travelling
constantly over the state, visiting
cream receiving stations, in
structing testers and samplers of
cream. These dairy inspectors
are experts in their business,
graduates of the Dairy depart
ment of the State Agricultural
college, and are enthusiasts in
their line of work. 1t is a part
of their business to report to the
Food Commissioner any cream
tester or sampler who is either
incompetent or careless or dis
honest in his work. There are
about LOO receiving stations in
the state, CT which about $40 are
testing stations.
The Pur. Food law in it's
efforts to establish honesty in
foods has in mind three things,
adulteration, misrepresentation
and short weight. Much of the
adulterat1on that was in foods a
few years ago has been stopped
by the national law, but the in
yentive mind employed by the
manufacturing interests is con-
stantly busy discovering new
tricks of adulteration, and it is
part of the Nebraska law to look
out for these new inv ntions and
to head them off by prosecution
and publicity as fast as they APP.
pear.
The old-fashioned system of
handling food stuffs in the gro
Gerry stores in bulk was unsani-
tary, for it was not easy for the
groceryman to protect the barrel
ed stuff in his store from dust,
dirt and general uncleanliness.
To meet the demand of the con-
Stunning public for cleaner food
the package system was invented.
The manufacturers saw that by
putting up food stuffs into pack
ages they could appeal to the
public in behalf of their package
goods on the ground that they
were more satisfactory than
goods handled in bulk. AS soon
as the package goods became
popular, the factories thought
out and began to practice the
short weight trick. They found
they could put up package of
oatmeal that looked like two
pounds and that would pass off
in the smarket for two pounds,
when in reality there was less
than two pounds in the package.
This short weight scheme
/ developed rapidly, each factory
competing with its rival to see
which could sell the smallest
: amount of food for the money.
J To stop this short weight cheat
> in Nebraska the branding re-
quirement was put in the Pure
y Food law. recurring food nack-