The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1921-06-13
TOMATO WASTE RECLAIMED.
Oil from Thousands of Tons OF Seed Is
Saved BY Scientists.

Nearly every pulping factory in the
country has Il small mountain of waste
tomato seed. One -hundredth of
every bushel of tomatoes Is seed This
uoeSH SeeA very important concern
ing an item which always has been
considered waste, but when every manu-
tacturer of catsup, pulp, soup paste and
sauce has several hundred tons of it
and scientists unexpectedly discover
that two valuable commercial products
can be made from it, the world at
\ large Is interested. Fixed oil and press
cake or meal are the latest additions
/ to the products useful to humanity
saved by specialists of the United
MATES department OF agriculture from
! huge piles of so-calied waste. I'm the
/ larger manufactures in the eastern and
| mid western tomato belts more than
I2UoNuO tons of tomatoes are puiped an
| nuallY. The waste seeds from these
large stations alone totals more than
/ 1000 tons.
| Men still young. says the department
remember when millers were prosecuted
| for dumping bran into rivers or
streams. People declared that it pois =
0ned the fish. but science learned that
! it had Il high food vatue Tor man or
! beast 20 that the man who threw bran
/ INTO Il stream today would he very
| likely to land in Jail Tomato seed
Just another product saved. like bran
! for. important uses.
The first important step in making tn
new products il To separate the sc d
from the wet waste. Several method
may he Msed. but the specialists find
that the most practicable method is to
equip the ordinary cyclone pulpIug ma
chine now in use IN most factories. with
y fine mesh woven Screen made of Va
! - wire The mesh IL Just large enough
to admit the passage Of the seeds, and
these flow out of the machine I'M a con
| - u u
skins of the fruit are discharged through
the gate a. usual The stream OF seed
and pulp is then pumped into an ad
joining cyclone machine having an or
binary twenty mesh breaker screen.
The pulp and pjcr lass through this
mesh. but the seed i retained an
passes out through the gate. The opcr
AT ion involves no increase OF lJbuF, an
l. continuous and efficient. ENperiene
with this method for MOI than tw
seasons at the Arlington Experimental
farm at Washington, ID. G, has prove
it's effectiveness.
After the seed has been separated
from the wet waste IT, is washed and
dried. and is then ready for the ollie
tracing process. Two methods of OF
solvent extraction Pressed oil is oh
tanned by mechanical presses. and com
mands a slightly higher price in tn.
market than the oil which - extracted
! bv chemical solvent processes.
! The ,tOmato-seed oil obtained bv tia,
eXpeller process is deep brown, and has
a strong odor Ii il refined. hleache,
and deodorized by the usual methods
and is then comparable in quality Will
tho common edible oils of commerce.
The value of oil cake or meal a,
stock food has been demonstrated IL
Italy, where the utilization of tomato
waste is in practical operation. Al
ANALYSIS of the meal shows the follow
ing comDosition: Moisture. 7.l5 per cent
ash. 4.64 per cent: protein, 81 per cent
lnitrogen-free extract. POI per cent, an,
fibre 22.l per cent. This ANALYSIS give'
, tomato seed meal a favorable footln'
with some of the better known seeC
meals of commerce. 1t NAV be used a
food for cattle. hoes or chickens. 1t ha
j Slightly bitter taste, which is maske,
when mixed with other food.
Owing TO the fact that the waste from
. single factory would make the profit.
; to bc derived from installing a cOmplet
2 manufacturing system hazardous, i
; would seem advisable to organize cen
trail plant. at which all the waste see'
2 from number of pulping station
: could be handled. The specialists wh'
r have baen studying the process for tn
l department of agriculture suggest tn
possibility of a cooperative plan o
. manufacture by an association of can
II ners and packers.