Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1916-12-26
FOOD AND DRUGS
ACT IS CAUSE: Of
MANY vIOLATOR5

WASHINGTON, d. c., Dec. 26.-In
the enforcement of the Food and
Drugs Act during the last year. Z. S.
Department of Agriculture officials an
alyzed 29,S33 samples of foods and
drugs offered for interstate shipment
and for import. A physical examina-
ton was made of samples from &c.
46S shipments offered for import. OF
these foreign shipments. $3.50 were
found to violate the law in some re-
spectS and were either excluded from
the country or admitted only after the
importers had relabeled them to COM
ply with the law. OF the samples of
domestic products analysed 1885,
either because of the nature of the
product or because the label on it
did not tell the truth, were found to be
in violation of the Federal law. In
1864 cases the department recommend
Ell to the Department of Justice that
criminal prosecution be instituted
against the manufacturers or that the
goods be seized. In many cases where
there was no evidence of intention to
defraud. and where there was merely
some easily remedied flaw in the
wording of label, the shippers, after
being warned in hearings, voluntarily
took steps which made their products
fully comply with the requirements.
In all, there were held SITS such
hearings, many of which resulted in
the prosecutions indicated and the
gathering of evidence for a large
number of additional cases. which will
be forwarded to the Department of
Justice
The Bureau of Chemistry, in its an
rual report, also calls attention to
the fact that through the system of
Service and Regulatory Announce
ment now in use, manufacturers are
given due notice of the requirements
and thus are enabled voluntarily to
make their products conform to the
law. In this way the government
achieves its purpose. frequently with
out entering into needless and very
expensive litigation.
IN the regulatory work, special en-
phasis has been given to the control
of drug products and foods liable to
spoilage and pollution. These fire.
Cuently constitute a serious menace to
health. The food inspectors have
been instructed to be particularly
watchful for interstate shipments of
bad eggs, milk, oysters, and spoiled
canned goods, and false and fraud
emily labeled medicines and spurious,
synthetic drugs.
Curbing fraudulent Medicines.
Attempts to counterfeit or adulter-
ate imported drugs have been more
common since the recent high price
and scarcity of many of these products
encouraged their imitation. 1t is in
teresting to note that of the 1,036
cases terminated in the courts during
the year. 1873 were brought on ac-
count of the false and fraudulent label
iEg of medicines. In all of these med
ical cases, save five, the courts found
for the government, and this, it is be-
lieved, has exercised an important de-
terent effect on the vendors of nos
trums shipped from one state to an
other.
The work of controlling the fradul-
ent labels of medicines and mineral
waters has been greatly strengthened
by the establishment of a separate OF,
flee to deal with these matters. At
the request of the Secretary of Agri-
culture an officer of the IT, S. Public
Health Service has been detailed to
take charge of this work. Moreover,
through the close cooperation estab-
lished with the foods and drugs offic-
ials of many of the states, the De-
partment was able to direct the atten-
ton of the local authorities to the