The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1918-03-23
TOPEKA STATE JOURNAL
INFORMATION BUREAU
FREDERIC J. HA,SkIN, Direction
Washington, d. c.
NEW PLAN FOR FEEDING ARMY
Government Proposes to Go Into Busi-
ness of Dehydrating Vegetables ana
Cereals for Shipment Abroad.

Washington. D. c.. March 20.-An
/ amendment to the pending agricultu-
raj Appropriation bill sets aside $25o,-
| 600 to establish plants for drying veg
etables Great interest is felt here IN
the possibilities of the project, when,
it is hoped will be of notable value IN
meeting the war food problem next
year.
! 1t is proposed to dry vegetables,
| fruits and such grains as corn, instead
of canning them. Supporters, of the
| government plant scheme point out
| that while private plants for dehydra-
| ton exist, the business will not be
| built up in private hands quickly
enough to meet the war emergency.
| AS war measure, the significance
| of the dehydration project lies in the
fact that dried vegetables save an
enormous amount of freight-car and
| ocean-going tonnage. The quality and
| flavor of the product is said by experts
to compare favorably with that of
canned goods, or of fresh vegetables
after shipment.
| The saving in bulk and weight is
very striking. According to figures
| presented to the senate committee on
agriculture, in the case of some foods,
a ship can carry thirty times as much
| dried food as canned. AS one witness
! crisply put it. if you dry your toma-
| toes instead of canning them, you can
carry sixty-pound case of tomatoes
| in your vest pocket. All the food val
ue will be there, and what is equally
important, when the water removed
in dehydration is restored in-cooking,
the flavor and succulence return
tomatoes are good example for
bringing home the advantages of the
drying method of preservation under
certain circumstances. They are a
staple vegetable everywhere, canned
annually in enormous quantities. They
contain a high percentage of water,
which makes the contrast between the
dried and the fresh or canned article
more striking.
The tomatoes in a 60-pound case
when dried for shipment weigh 80
ounces. The difference between so
pounds and 80 ounces in the trans
portation problem does not tell the
whole story. In order to can a car
load of tomatoes Cor any other fruit
grain or vegetable) it is first neces-
sary to ship the material for the tin
plate to the tin plate factory; then
ship the tin plate to the can factory;
then ship the cans to the cannery;
then ship the product to the market.
In dehydration. the whole process
consists in shipping the tomatoes to
the dehydration plant-which should
be located centrally in the growing
district-removing the water, thereby
reducing the bulk 80 per cent, packing
the products in moistureproof paste
board containers, and shipping to
rket.
On the basis of such comparison.
it was estimated before the commit
tee that one freight car carrying dried
| tomatoes would do the work of los
| cars carrying the canned product.
This is extreme instance and an
| extreme view. but the general prin
! ciple of tonnage saving is obvious, and
| it is clear that, the actual saving will
| be great At this time, when the
whole movement of the national ma
chinery waits on freight cars, when
every effort is being. made to get
every possible ton mile out CT every
car, the picture painted by the propon-
ents of dehydration is an alluring onei
There is also an important saving
in materials. Still sticking to toma-
| toes as an example, experts testified
that in every carload of the canned
product there was included 10000
pounds of tin, and $4,000 pounds of
lumber. Thus when carload of
there is a heavy movement of tin
| plate, lumber and water, with rela-
| lively small movement of tomatoes.
A more important food product
which is suggested for wholesale de-
! hydration is the potato. Last year
| potatoes were scarce and high. This
year big crop was put in, and great
| quantities of potatoes are spelling on
| the farms-potatoes. one of the IN ost
valuable foods in the world, the food
| that potatoes can be dried in the form
| of a flour, that the work can be done
| either in central plants or on the farm
itself with inexpensive apparatus, and
that the dried product will keep in
definitely. A man &an carry enough
| dried potatoes in his pocket to last
! him week. After adding water and
cooking, the resultant dish lis said to
be a high grade of mashed potatoes.
In the flour forn1-riced potatoes,
| as it is called-it would of course be
possible to ship great quantities of
this valuable food abroad to our army
and our allies with a relatively small
amount Of ocean tonnage. Dehydra ted
corn can be shipped in the same way.
1t is not practicable to ship .cornmeal
to France, because in the French eli
mate it spoils in a short time.
The dehydration of potatoes is car
| ried on in Germany on an enormous
scale. Before the war there were 500
dehydrating plants in Germany. To-
| day there are 1000. The German po-
tato crop is six times as large as ours,
| totalling two billion bushels, and not
! a bushel is allowed to waste.
Practically every fruit and vegeta-
BILE can be successfully dehydrated.
| The principle is, of course, very old
ming industry, it was much better
| known than it is today. Dried apples,
for example. were "a staple American
food even twenty-five years ago.
In some cases, the dried product
after soaking and cooking, is per-
cept:bly altered from either the fresh
| OF the canned form. Thus, dried
peaches after cooking are still no.
! ticeably different from fresh peaches
or canned peaches. but they make an
| excellent dish, with all the food value
! of the original peach. In other cases,
the dried vegetable, after it has been
| soaked and cooked. is said to be
hardly distinguishable from the fresh,
! and superior to the canned form
! Senator Norris, who made expert
ments in person, stated that cooked
| dried corn was in his opinion superior
to canned corn
The keeping qualities of dried
vegetables are excellent. The British
government ordered large supplies of