The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1918-04-29

ted States Department of Agriculture
has larger force of home demon
stration agents in the state to assist
the housewife in all lines Of food
production and conservation than it
has ever had before. 1t has in
creased it's force in the State this
year by about one hundred per cent.
Many Florida housewives are plan
ming to avail themselves of the help
offered by the Government through
these agents
The necessity for vigorous cam
paign for the filling of the home pam
try becomes at once apparent when
one knows that the Government has
Communicated IS per cent. Of the fac.
tory output of canned tomatoes; %
/, per cent of the output of other pro-
ducts during the coming season, for
the use of the army and navy.
The Government representatives
are urging that especial attention be
given to the home garden at this
season, and that nothing be allowed
| to go to waste In some of the truck
ing sections cooperative plans have
been made whereby truckers can
bring surplus vegetables to home
demonstration kitchens supervised by
home demonstration agents and op-
Grated by groups Of housewives, and
canned at those kitchens, This was
satisfactorily done in Manatee coun-
ty last year In one kitchen a group
of twenty-five housewives placed
canned goods in seventy-seven home
pantries. The growers furnished the
vegetables the housewife the labor;
they divided the cost of cans, fuel
etc, and each took one half of the
canned goods.
Plans, for similar work have been
made for Miami and Tampa house
wives, and plans for taking up the
work in Orlando are well under way
The following is an extract from the
report of Home Demonstration Agent
in Miami:
There is more enthusiasm over
( the canning center than any other
line of work, but we have had con-
( siderable trouble in getting tomatoes
to the canning center. There seems
to be no means Of transportation at
reasonable rates. We are working
on a plan now of having the women
who have cars, go out and bring
them in for their share of that days
canning"
The following is the report of work
recently done in Tampa
con Monday afternoon a group of
40 ladies met for the purpose of or
ganizing canning club; demon.
stration in canning was given, toma
toes were canned in glass, and pro-
cessed and canned in a improvised
Gamer, beans were processed and
canned in steam pressure Gamer
At the close of the demonstration it
was moved that a canning club be
organized and temporary chairman
was elected and committee appointed
to get in touch with truckers and
others who would have Vegetables for
canning The use of a large rorm,
formerly equipped by the Tampa Gas
Company for home economics work,
has been proffered for use, rent
free"
Florida annually imports eighty
five million dollars worth of food
stuff that she should produce. A con-
siderable part of this goes for canned
goods. If each housewife who has
access to a home garden would de-
termine to can as her minimum
amount a sufficient number of vege-
tables to fill her home pantry, it
would not only mean saving of
many thousands of dollars that an
nually go out of the State, but re-
leasing of food that is NEEDED else
where, and of cars now used for
bringing these goods into the state,
and that are needed for transporta-
ton elsewhere.
This Government force of Home
Demonstration Agents is here not
only to assist the housewife in filling
the home pantry and to direct the
work of the canning club girls of the
state, but this force is composed of
specially trained women prepared to
conduct classes for the women of the
state in the study of food values, the
preparation and serving of meals,
economical buying, etc. Much of the
work done by these women this year
has been along the line of food con-
servation They have been one of
the most active agencies in the State
in carrying to the housewife govern.
ment instruction for food conserva.
ton, and in assisting her to follow