The Palatka news and advertiser. [volume] (Palatka, Fla.) 1908-19??, 1911-11-24
ENDORSE CITRUS
EXCHANGE MOVE
IN SURPRISING GREEN ORANGE
SHIPMENTS.
Comes From the Boston mass. }
Transcript In Lengthy Edito-
rial of Recent Date.

Transcript, heartily endorsing the
work of the Florida Citrus Exchange:
For years We have heard it said
that the Italian fruit vendors ripened
their bananas by taking the punches
to bed with them, but as we, person
ally, never obtained our bananas from
such sources-that is, never knowing
ly-the news was received calmly.
Within the past few days, however,
we learn that we have been frequent
ly partaking of "sweated oranges,
and first we demand to know what a
sweated orange is, and second we de-
mand that somebody put a stop to it.
IF given to the orange habit, our
eyes have squinted shut under the
acid persuasion of sweated fruit,
which would taste sour by any other
name. Between the end of the sea-
son for California oranges and the be-
ginning of the season for the Flor
ida variety sa period when the fruit
dealers must be satisfied with any
kind of oranges they can obtain. VI
timately this dearth will be supplied
by Porto Rican and Cuban oranges;
but, at present, the temptation Is
strong on the Florida growers to
hasten their shipments when they can
| ha fri1if
is green, for, holding it until cooler
weather and competition, they re-
ceiye only $1.25 and $780, The or
anges come North as green as young
foliage, but by leaving them in a
closed room with a kettle of water
on gas stove the lightning change
is both gratifying and profitable; in
forty-eight hours they are a plausible
yellow. This process Is not necessary
in getting the Florida fruit to north
ern markets; 1t is necessary if the
green fruit, shipped to catch the
early high prices, is to sell. The
temptation to ship green grapefruit is
even stronger with the Florida grow
ers and the tangle of lawsuits which
snarls the Southern fruit dealers had
its beginning in this practice.
whether this forced fruit is in
furious to health is a matter of dis
pute. In the contest between the
Florida Citrus Exchange and one of
these too-eager shippers, the car of
grapefruit chosen for the issue was
examined by the Federal inspectors
and three representatives from the
New York board of health and pro-
nounced ripe which, Of course,
proves nothing, except that this par
ticular fruit was ripe.
"This pot of trouble has been in
brew since 1907, when DR.. w. D.
Bigelow began the study of artificial
ripening of oranges. The practice was
known then to be extensive, but un-
der the prevailing interpretations of
the pure food law it was not certain
that 1t could be successfully attack
ed. The government sent its agents
| to Florida to smell around The
chemists tried a few experiments In
the privacy of the laboratory. What
they learned was that the main OBJ
lection to the forced ripening of or
anges is that 1t does not ripen. The
color of the skin oranges, but not
the chemical constituents of the fruit.
The percentage Of acid remains very
high, and the sugar, which develops
in normal ripening, does not appear.
You are eating green apple painted
red on the outside.
Last April these experiments had
made it possible for the board of
foods and drug inspection to issue a
bulletin to the Federal officers of this
department, declaring such oranges
to be injurious, particularly to chill
dren, and citing the passage in the
food and drugs act under which pro-
ceedings might be begun. The bull
letin reads:
The coIoring of Green Citrus Fruits.
"The attention of the board of food
and drug inspection has been direct
ed to the shipment in interstate COM
merce of green, immature citrus
fruits, particularly oranges, which
have been artificially colored by hold
ing in a warm, moist atmosphere for
short period of time after removal
from the tree. Evidence is adduced
showing that such oranges do not
change in sugar and acid content af-
ter removal from the tree. Evidence
further shows that the same oranges
remaining on the tree increase mark
edly in sugar content and decrease in
acid content. Further, there is evil
dence to show that the consumption
of such immature oranges, especially
by children, is apt to be attended by
serious disturbances of the digestive
system.
"Under the food and drugs act Of
June 80, 1906, an article of food is
adulterated, "if it be mixed, colored,
powdered, coated or stained in mat
ter whereby damage or inferiority is
concealed 1t is the opinion of the
board that oranges treated as men,
toned above are colored in manner
whereby inferiority is concealed and
are, therefore, adulterated.
''The board recognizes the fact that
certain varieties. of oranges attain
maturity as to size, sweetness and
acidity before the color changes from
green to yellow, and this decision is
not intended to interfere with the
marketing of such oranges.
H. w. WILEY,
"F. L. DUNLAP,
GEORGE P. McCABB,
Board of Food and Drug Inspection.
such a method of coloring fruit
seems plainly enough to be a man