New-York tribune., 1922-06-11
The EUer-Present Danger
OF Making II Too Rich

The claim Is made that II a standard Of u
per cent Of butter fat were enforced IL would
prove TOO rich for popular consumption. a
glance at the schedules on file at the New
York Board of Health. taken from samples n
ice cream put on sale locally, shows that ths
general average is well above per cent n
butter fat Some ice cream runs as high as
IS per cent. according 10 these figures Ths
is duo 10 tho fact, IL is pointed out, that II Is
impossible for manufacturers 10 keep aofc-
lutey 10 the per cent line. Rather than put
out ice cream which runs under the city stand-
ard. they play Safe by n goody margin.
Thus the public gets ice cream which probably
averages nearer 10 per cent Of butter fat
rather than the per cent which is legal.
Any sample taken by the New York Board
Of Health which shows less than per cent of
butter fat is considered a ease" and the vio-
lator Of the law Is summoned 70 court The
records show that between May and December
last year there we're ls5 prosecutions insti-
tuted by the Board Of Health. This seems on
eouragng on the face Of It, but the fines total
only s4,465.
Thh means that the person who adulterates
his ice cream until it falls below the per
cent Of sustaining fats can count on a fire Of
less than s25 for his offense.
A great deal Of the ice cream sold in New
York goes 70 children, and il would seem that
the person who would try 10 iniure the health
Of the growing generations should be subjected
to severe penalties. but reading between
the lines Of Board Of Health statistics would
indicate that such is not the case.
Some samples gathered by local officials have
run as low as ? or per cent Of butter fat
A fine Of a few dollars in such a case would
seem to be totally inadequate.
There are $500 ice cream manufacturers
in New York City, according 20 permits issued.
There are 1000 dealers who sell ice cream, and
many Of these are also manufacturers Bot
no person can engage in the wholesale manu-
facture Of ice cream without permit.
In the matter Of sanitation, the city authori-
ties claim that there is little basis for COM
plant, owing 70 the system Of inspection pur-
sued The city ordinances call for certain
conditions Of cleanliness Of surroundings. and
the sterilizng Of containers in the manufac-
ture Of ice cream. II is claimed that, owing
TO the rigidness Of sanitary inspection, there
are fewer "hokey-pokey" vendors on the streets
this year than in previous years.
Much trouble has been caused in previous
years by confusion regarding the exact mean
ing Of the word gelatin" The sale Of adul-
terated or misbranded gelatin is now pro-
hibited. Adulterations have been clearly de-
fined, and since the adoption Of this law II IS
claimed the trouble over gelatin in ice cream
has been rendered negligible, and glue Is no
longer an article Of diet.
The law calling for the pasteurizatlon Of all
the products used in ice cream except tho
favoring materials, marked probably tho
greatest step in producing safe" ice cream.
Complaints about the ice cream cone are
seldom heard nowadays, whereas a few Yeas
ago they were numerous. The laws with re-
gard 10 the manufacture Of cones are liberal.
All that is required Is that the cone be made
of Wholesome materials s"-and apparently
it is.
Also those who are in the business Of public
inspection say that the public Is getting more
natural fruit favorings in ice cream than was
the case in years gone by Dealers found y
10 thef advantage 10 eliminate 'i' "i''''e'0'
favors as far as possible.
OF the $500 wholesalers who are making
ice cream under permit in New York City, only
six, it is estimated, are really large concerns.
Most Of the others are seasonal manufacturers.
That is, they begin business in May and end
in October producing no ice cream during TIE
winter months. while the biz plants run all
the year around
When in Doubt About II,
"Ereeze Your OUn"