Arizona republican., 1918-02-06
POTATOES USED
ASSUBST|TUTES
FOR TIME BEING
Food Administrator Defines
Use of "Spuds" and Says
Regular Substitutes Must
Be Used If Possible

There has been considerable mis-
understanding in the use of potatoes
as a substitute in the sale of flour
on the fty-fifty basis. as prescribed
by the new wheat conservation rules,
said George H. Smalley, executive
secretary of the federal food admin
istration for Arizona, last night.
in some quarters the erroneous
impression has been gained in some
manner that potatoes are a bona fide
authorized substitute in this state.
This is far from being true and no
authority for any change in the Of
fetal list of substitutes has issued
from this office.
The use of potatoes as a substi-
tute started with the report that the
federal food administrator for Texas
had authorized their use in that
state. 1t was about this time that
Mesa merchants met with the local
food administration, and represent
ing that their stocks of official sub
stitutes were all but exhausted, they
were authorized to meet the situa-
ton as best they could, supplying
potatoes if necessary to make up the
prescribed weight of substitutes until
this office could receive confirmation
of the use of potatoes as a substi-
tute from Washington.
this agreement was to obtain only
for a limited period and only until
an ample supply of authorized sub
stitutes could be received.
I'm one or two other districts the
same practice has been allowed, but
only under the strictest understand
ing that the practice was to be
discontinued as soon as the market
could be supplied with substitutes"
The use of potatoes as a wheat
substitute in this state was authorized
today by Washington, but only on the
following basis:
l. Special permission must be OBJ
tanned by the dealers from the federal
food administrator for Arizona. 9th
erwise flour should be sold only with
an equal weight of any of the follow
ing authorized substitutes: corn meal,
corn starch, corn flour, hominy, corn
grits, barley flour, rice, rice flour,
oatmeal, rolled oats, buckwheat flour,
sweet potato flour, soya bean flour,
feterita and milo maize meals and
flours.
2. Where potatoes are allowed as
substitutes they must be sold as
flour substitute only in the proper
ton of four pounds of potatoes to
one pound of flour.
3. The sale of potatoes as sub
stitute must be discontinued as soon
as a supply of the authorized sub
stitutes is received.
Beans are not permitted as a sub
stitute.
The seriousness Of the situation
and the absolute necessity of con-
filming the list of substitutes to those
that have been named are empha-
sized in the following wire received
yesterday from the food adminlstra
| ton at Washington:
"Once more let us emphasize that
| the object of the fifty-fifty plan is
! to reduce the consumption of wheat
flour so that more can be shipped
to the allies, also to prevent hoard
! ing or purchasing more than reas-
enable supplies. also to compel the
use of substitutes on the Official
list. Potatoes should be Withdrawn
as fast as additional official substl-
! t1I+eS become available.
"A curious application of the flfty-
fifty plan is being attempted by
some of the mills" said Mr.. Smalley
"in trying to make the rule WorR
both ways. A consumer asks 1oi
corn meal for example. and is m
formed that it can only be suppneo
with an equal amount of wheat flour
There is no provision to this effec'
and the practice is Numerically OPP
posed to the purpose and spirit oil
the wheat conservation rules anc
will not be countenanced by this Of
flee. The mills have been asKce
to refrein from this practice
All in all there is a wide spreao
disposition on the part of dealers to
comply with the new fifty-fifty regu-
lations in every particular.
For the benefit of the public, print
ed in both English and spanish
literature is being distributed tt
stores throughout the state.
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