Evening star., 1939-10-22

Ople ndQ eaten one 1000 IN common
! until the industry itself has learned
to maintain clean and sanitary con-
ditions.
When the trailer rolls into a crab
meat-producing community it needs
only to connect electric cables and
water pipes to set up operations.
Lacking electric lines, it can op-
crate on power supplied by its own
storage batteries. Very often, the
bacteriologist and sanitarian who
travel with the trailer are joined by
State or local officials likewise in
terested in cleanliness of crab-meat
plants.
Undeveloped Methods.
Processing methods for canning
crabs from American waters have
not been developed. Grabs that are
sold in cans usually come from
Japan and. in a few instances,
Russia. Crabs caught in American
waters are first cooked and ster-
ilized in huge retort, then allowed
to cool and dry. Workers pick out
the meat, place it in containers with
screw tops and, with no delay, pack
the containers in ice-filled barrels.
From there until the crab meat
reaches hotel dining room or a
consumers kitchen, it is fast trans
port and cold storage all the way.
The meat goes bad if left at ordinary
temperatures for any length of time.
Biggest danger in this packing
process is that the meat will become
contaminated through contact with
dirty hands or filthy surroundings
between the time it leaves the cook
ing vat and the time it is packed
in ice. That is the reason food and
drug inspectors are constantly try
ing to get packers to clean up their
plants and educate their workers to
the need of keeping clean. Under
the old law the inspector could do
nothing even inspect a
packing plant unless the operator
agreed to the inspection. OF course.
it was different story if the packer
was found to be shipping contami-
mated meat. In that case the in
spector could 60 to a State or local
health authority to force the packer
to clean up"
Today the story is entirely differ
ent. When the new Food and Drug
Act went into effect last June 2
the Secretary of Agriculture was
authorized henceforth to compel
packers to operate under Govern
ment inspectors unless they volun-
tarily keep their plants clean and
ship pure products.
Operations Begun.
Little time is lost after the trailer
is set up, ready for operations. A
Federal inspector, with legal powers
to check crab-meat shipments, sta
tions himself at the local express or
shipping Office and awaits results
He knows that in an hour or so a
consignment of freshly packed crab
meat will arrive ready for shipment.
When it does he removes repre-
sentative number of cans from the
lot, clears the rest for shipment after
noting its destination. Sample cans
are rushed to the trailer and the
bacteriologist goes to work.
He mixes some of the crab meat in
sterile water, then pours a small
amount of the water into broth"
on which any stray bacilli will soon
thrive Microscopic game of the
bacteriologist is "E. COLI which is
of intestinal origin. Its appearance
in freshly-packed crab meat rem
ders the food potentially dangerous
because OF the possible presence of
disease-producing bacteria, which
can cause plenty of trouble if they
get into the human digestive system.
In 18 to "a hours the bacteriologist
checks his broth for formation of
gas. If it has formed the danger
flag is up. on goes wire to the
food and drug inspector stationed
at the point of destination of the
crab meat shipment. Contamination
is suspected. The shipment must be
held up, pending final tests. The
inspector holds the crab meat,
usually getting an EMBRACE on it
with the aid of local health authori-
ties, if necessary. 1t is not allowed
to go into consumers hands. In
another "a hours the bacteriologist
has completed his tests, has final
results one way or the other, and
wires instructions to the inSpector
either to seize or release the ship
ment.
An order to seize it means the
shipment is contaminated. If the
shipper wants to do so, he can get
his own bacteriologist to check the
test and 60 into court demanding
release of the shipment in the event