The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1911-02-10
SEEK STANDARDS
FOR LOCAL FOOD.
Believes Existing Frauds Can Be
Stopped by Adoption Of
Proper Law.

Agitation for food standards is Il
follow the securing Of pure milk and
properly protected food and fruits 40
eording to plans Of Food Commissioner
blanchard. Poi minus Impurities, OK
tracts really extracted, ice cream made
out of at least milk and pouad Of
, bread weighing sixteen ounces are all
on the cards.
The presentation Of these matters
before the coming legislature will wind
up year of progress towards one
feature OF the ''Greatcr Honolulu
that has so far not been exampled As
slming that all plans for the better
mont Of Honolulu s food supply will be
permitted to pass, the city win have a
code covering the sale Of foodstuffs
that will be one of the best in the
world and which viii go far towards
making il healthier and more attractive
to the transient visitor for whom at
present the picturesqueness of the fish
market does not counteract fishmarket
conditions.
Poi has been the subject of laboratory
experiments in Blanchards office for
two months preceding and following
the announcement OF the vile condi-
tions existing in the Honolulu poi shops
made by The Advertiser on facts Sc
cured by Blanchard 8 investigators.
Samples of poi secured at different
places in the city range from 21.5 per
cent of solids up to 80 per cent, diff
ference of over fifty per cent. Tests
arc now being made to establish
standard Of purity aiming to do away
with the discrepancies at present in
existence. Traces of animal fat have
been found in the poi by previous tests
made by the board Of health, its pres
ence there having but one explanation
and that an unsavory one
Water has been taken from different
samples of poi, and the poi dried by
Blanchard and out of almost thirty
samples not two proved to be of the
same color, They ranged from an en-
vio1s green to a joyous purple with all
the shades of blue and yellow in be-
tween. This is at present the subject
Of further investigation.
Bretd Standards.
With one or two exceptions bread
from every bakery in town has been
examined and weighed. While some Of
the ingredients that often went to make
up an apparently savory loaf would be
barred should a food standard be made
, into law, the chief fault lay in weight.
While it is popularity supposed that
the loaf Of bread represents a pound
and while the public since time inn
memorial has been paying its nickeis
for the same, not one of the loaves test
ed weighed a pound. Many weighed as
! little as twelve ounces and nearly all
!. ran from one and half to two ounces
I below what probably win be set as a
! standard.
After Extractors.
/ While sufficiently covered by federal
law, standards for fruit and other ex-
I tracts are sought, owing to the difficult
ty of applying the federal law, which
neeessitates reports to Washington, or
l. ders of prosecution and other red-taped
; routine which would take up the time
/ necessary for three trials under ter
ritOrial law.
+ One drugstore has manufactured over
:, one hundred gallons of vanilla extract
4 alone during the year which does rot
), come up to the federal standard and
{ thus would not meet territorial require
ments were there any such. Other lrug
s stores have probably manufactured
t more. The manufacture is not confined
e to vanilla.
l. 1t is the intention of Blanchard to
t have the legislature, if possible, adopt
}. the standards of the federal govern
J. mont as there could be no prosecution
d if there were discrepancies between the
J. two. An example of the uselessness OF
/. ununiform laws was shown in middle
q western States attempt TO forbid the
. sale of food containing bezOate of soda
q within its borders. Products violating
3 the law were shipped in from othar
4 States and the producers fought 1t 10
= the federal Supreme Court where they
won out
e Ice Cream Tests,
r, Another subject Of Blanehard's pres
n emit investigations is ice cream, an in
a vestigation into the Honolulu brand Of
d this delicacy having been started by
+ the late r. A. Duncan, Blanchard q
II predecessor. Under food standards
Is Blanchard believes that ninety-eight
per cent of the ice cream at present
D. being manufactured and sold for such
a would disappear from the market. Tho
gelatine brand of ice cream would then
II be tabooed factor in the market which
1t is unhappily not the case now.
le Butter standards are sadly needed IN
Honolulu, laboratory tests failing to give
e any of the samples of local production
70 an absolutely clean bill Of health. Thu
. federal law which sets certain per
centage Of solids and butter fats al
- mandatory is busted" with cheerful
y regularity. Salt and water appear in
y local samples to an undue degree, ev.
= cry pound of salt which can be sold
" at fifty cents pound realizing hand
some profit.
y "My Investigations have proved d
. me that there is a great deal of fraud
e being practised in the city" said Bian
Is chard yesterday. "And believe mosi
le of it would be made impossible if food
70 standards were adopted
IN --s-t.s.-
h DO you WANT RELmF7
ID - n -