The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1918-06-13

Inere Is llHe oppoi tuhits -
ida to establish factories to dry or
dehydrate vegetables says the state
Marketing Bureau This industry is
already thriving one on the Pacific
Coast. and promises to rival that OF
drying raisins. prunes and other
fruits.
Prof. E. G. Horst Of California, in
discussing the subject, says most OF
the former hop drying factories now
dry process practically every kind OF
vegetable, fruit and berry. The war
has practically put the hop industry
out of business and vegetables are
now being used. The dehydrati0n
process exhausts the moisture of the
green vegetable, and in doing this
nothing is added to preserve the pro-
duct, as in extracting the water the
perishable portion of vegetables is
eliminated and the dried article will
keep indefinitely. The flavor, texture
and food qualities of the vegetable are
in no way impaired, and when the
dried product Is soaked in water for
Ia short time the original bulk is re-
stored and when cooked 1t is difficult
to tell the dried from the fresh. No
chemical changes occur, he says, in
the vegetable during the drying pro
cess and the full flavor is retained
There need be no waste az the
green tops, Feelings, and even the
water used to wash the vegetables
can be saved and all fed to live stock
The waste water can be run into bins
with the trimmings and the combina-
ton fed to hogs.
The development of the dried veg
etable industry will mean much to
producers, because it will insure a
permanent and reliable market for
vegetables. The great loss through
VILLAGE and deterioration incident to
the marketing of fresh vegetables
will be avoided, because the green
produce can be picked in the field as
reeded and taken direct to the driving
ing plant.
1t will mean that a vast saving can
be effected in the handling of food
supplies. AS fresh or canned vege-
tables contain from 60 to IS per cent
of water, the transportation equip
ment, handling charges and freight
or express charges are expended in
handling from so to IS per cent of
weight and volume of something that
is not food. Furthermore, in canned
goods the cost Of small cans and
wooden crates needed for vegetables
runs into big figures, whereas the
containers needed to handle dried veg
etables are inexpensive and can be
made of material not needed for other
purposes. A pound of dried tomatoes
is equivalent to 20 pounds of fresh.
and a cube of compressed dried to-
matoes weighing 21-4 pounds has the
same food value as case of canned
tomatoes weighing so pounds, accord
ing to Prof Horst.
In a carload of canned goods "a
600 pounds of the total weight of the
shipment is made up of tin and of
wooden crates. all of which the con.
sumner must pay for when buying his
food. This comparison is not intend
ed as reflection upon canned yepa.
tables, he says, for they are excellent
food and serve very useful pnrpose
but it is given to indicate the MANY
economic advantages which are nos
sessed by the evaporated vegetables
These advantages largely influenced
the government in contracting for the
large quantities now being purchased
for the American army abroad II Is
estimated that one shipload of dried
vegetables is equivalent to 30 shin
loads of the same vegetables in =