Daily Kennebec journal., 1916-08-19
FOOD PRODUCTS OF
MAINE-COST OF PRO-
DUCTION-C N-COND|T|ONS

! "As compensation for the falling
off of actual food production, wastes
have been transformed into food prod
/ ucts, showing how highly organized is
| the efficiency of our manufacturing in
dustries. even of the producing popu-
lation is continually tending to the
non producing labor" says William T.
Gnptill of Brunswick. commissioner Of
+. agriculture. in his annual report, which
was recently filed with the Governor
and Council. Il am referring now par
ticularly to the dairy industry" Con-
| tinuing on this line Commissioner Cup
! till saws:
| In the last 10 years the number Of
cows in the state of Massachusetts has
decreased $4,000; in New Hampshire,
! 27.Co0; in Maine, $4,000; in Vermont,
the percentage of decrease has been as
| large, although the exact figures are
not available This would naturally
mean that the price Of milk and butter
would advance; or, comparing this in
dustry with manufacturing industry,
if the output decreased by one-ffth,
the increase of price would be very no.
ticeable. Yet at the present time, the
price of milk and butter throughout
| New England is not more than it was
during the war, so years ago.
The difficulty is that the tendency
toward milk production in the New
England states and the shipment Of
milk and cream, rather than the MAX
ing Of butter. The making Of butter at
the present time is but an incident.
and. if the price of butter goes above a
certain figure, people are urged by the
manufacturers (and their agents who
are distributed everywhere) to use ole
omargarine in it's place. The argument
| is continually put up that this grease
is made under the most sanitary con-
ditions and is very nearly the equal Of
butter.
Now, if there is anyone who from
choice prefers oleomargarine to butter,
l am perfectly willing that they should
use it, but 1 wish to assure the public
as whole that oleomargarine, in its
best condition, is very much inferior in
cleanliness and healthfulness to the
poorest butter. This stuff is shipped
into the State of Maine, not only in
carloads but in train-loads, and the
people in Maine are gradually becon-
ing grease eaters instead of butter eat
ers, and, as it is entirely voluntary on
their part, that is the reason l call at
| tention to it.
| Il nave attempted to follow ship
ments of tallow from this State to its
| final destination, the oleomarearine
factory, but it passes through too many
! hands to make the shipment absolute
~ certain. 1t is pretended that this is
| done under government inspection. VET
| nobody ever hears Of government in
spector who is looking after the ship
ment OF tallow from this State to the
oleomargarine manufacturers. Even il
| there were inspectors, or if all Of the
| tal!ow from which oleomargarine is
made was from inspected meat, 1t
proves nothing. 1t only tends to allay
the prejudice that the public minds en-
| tertain regarding the general product,
for the United States inspectors
throughout the entire length of the
land. in every state. pass for food and
| for food products, nearly three -fourths
| OF those animals that are condemned
for tuberculosis by tuberculin test. This
! makes an unpleasant condition of af-
fairs. because do not believe that any
person. whoever he be, cares to eat
meat either from diseased carcass, or
tallow in oleomargarine from a tuber-
| culin animal
"The only way however, that it is
possible for the people Of Maine to en-
| Joy the certainty of eating meat that
is not diseased. even if it has been in
| spected by the United States INSPECT
crs. is to pass laws that such meat
shall not be used for food in the State
OF Maine and that no meat killed out
| side OF our borders shall be used for
| food within the State unless we are
positively assured that it is free from
! creatures free from disease It will be
necessary to establish a standard in
dependent from that of the federal
government, or our people will still be
consuming diseased meat
IF nothing but butter was allowed
to be used on the tables Of restaurants
and boarding houses the price of butter
would advance to a figure that would
make it profitable to keep cows and
| thereby increase the number of live
stock. This would ultimately tend to
lower the price Of meat
1T Is impossible to encourage farm
ers to engage in any line Of agriculture
that is Improbable; and 1t is impos-
sible, except by law, to restrain them
from engaging in any particular occu-
patton that appears to be especially
| renumerative. 1t therefore follows
that some steps must be taken or the
dairy industry will surely follow In the
steps Of the sheep industry and dwindle
until it ceases to be one Of our leading
industries. This does not mean that
there are not men in the State Of
Maine who are making good profits out
OF herds, but in that case they are
special examples rather than general
examples and sell their surplus stock
for breeding stock. to which is added
the natural product that the herd pro-
duces."