New-York tribune., 1911-03-04
NEW COLD STORAGE BILL
Senate Measure Fixes Time Linn
its for Preserving Food.
BUTTER AND EGGS 3 MONTHS
Meats May Be Kept from 3 to Z
Months-Dealers Said to Al
ways Trade with Oldest Stock.
From The Tribune Bureau.


Washington, March 3.-Elaborate laws for
the regulation OF cold storage in the United
States are set forth in bill which was
reported to the Senate to-day by the Com
mittee on Commerce. which has been max
ing an extensive investigation OF the sub
ject.
In general the bill sets the following
time limits on food preserved In cold stor-
age: Beef seven months; veal, pork ana
sheep, four months; lamb. poultry. nsn'
game. eggs and butter, three months. All
foods so preserved must be branded 70
show the time Of storing or production.
Violations will be punished by fines OF
from 500 TO 5000. and imprisonment OF
from six months 10 ten years.
Some OF the practices commonly prevail
Ing In the way OF storing food are scored
by the committee in It's report. Because or
the methods adopted in preserving eggs
which the committee desgnates as "aoso-
Iutely tit for food" the time during which
they may be placed in cold storage IS Inn
tied to the period from April to June 30
Interesting statistics Of the cold storage
traffic In eggs in New York City are EN-
bodied In the report ut is claimed" the
committee says. for instance, that there
is a necessity and an advantage In the
cold storage OF eggs In each city. For ex-
ample. in New York City the egg receipts
on April 90 1910 were 5000 cases, Of thirty
dozen each. equal TO 10000 dozen, ana
for the week ended April 23 1910 the re-
ceipts were over 10000 cases OF thirty
dozen each. The demand OF the city for
consumption during that period was about
1900 cases a day: thus. the city Of New
York alone consumes 10000 dozen eggs a
day. This Is said TO be the minimum con-
sumption. Some estimate the receipts as
high as 10000 cases a day, with n daily
consumption or only 1900 cases. which
would evidently result in an accumulated
surplus, or a waste OF slump in prices, and
the surplus would have TO be placed in
cold storage. II Is claimed that this sur
plus. when carefully inspected by Gambling,
IL placed in cold storage VIII retain its
quality for a period Of several months.
This fact is controverted by the testimony
Of experienced men who have made care
ful study OF the question. II is very evil
dent from the testimony that there is a
material difference between the keeping
capacity OF eggs produced at different sea-
sons OF the year, so that we must take
into account the amount OF the product
and Of the surplus during those months
when production Is greatest
The average quantity OF eggs placed in
cold storage in New York City Including
Jersey city each year Is about seven hun
dred thousand cases. and in the city OF
Chicago about one million.
1T Is claimed that the cold storage sup
ply is drawn upon whenever the supply OF
fresh eggs falls below the market demand.
Even in August. September and every
month thereafter eggs are Withdrawn from
cold storage that the largest quantities go
out in December. and that January usually
cleans out the cold storage eggs. About
that season Il is claimed that fresh eggs
from the South begin 10 arrive in consid-
erable quantities, causing the market price
10 fall below the point where PROFIT is pos
sible in cold storage eggs, and cold storage
eggs are consequently withheld from the
market until the season arrives when they
can be sold at profit as against any eggs.
There is strong showing" says the
report. made in support OF the proposition
that the people always trade with the Oldest
stock and that when new eggs come into
the market they are withheld from the
public In order that eggs already becoming
deterorated from storage may pass out. The
reason for this is obvious, and this IS true
OF all cold storage goods The storage pro-
prietors push out the old stock and retain
the new. sometimes until It is very Old