The Chronicle-star combined with the Moss Point advertiser., 1949-09-09
Menhuden -. Facts And FoIIocies

was the refinement OF n emo
products, viz, the fish meal and
the fish oil. Treatment of Men
haden oil first permitted its use
as a rapidly drying paint vehicle.
Subsequently, researches initial
ed and conducted by the Fish
Wildlife Service of the United
States Department of the Interior
SO refined Menhaden oil that it
became a highly valuable product
used in the manufacture of high
quality soaps and cosmetics, thus
expanding its former general mar
ket in the manufacture of limo
leum, paint and the tanning of
leather. One hundred and sixty
five different uses of Menhaden
oil and Menhaden oil by-products
are at present operating.
Equally has been the evolution
of the use of the pressed Men
haden scrap. Menhaden fish meal
was first used as fertilizer but
during the war such use became
entirely prohibited. / happened
to be a member of the Commit
tee called by the President OF
the United States to Washington
to cooperate with the National Re-
search Council of the United
States in the search for more
fish meal since the lack of sup
ply of proteins needed in the pro-
duction of poultry, cattle and 9th
er livestock became a critical war
emergency. On our recommends
ton, the Government of the Unit
ed States prohibited the use OF
Menhaden meal or other fish
meals as a fertilizer and COM
PEELED the use of these meals as
supplements for stock food.
Subsequently, it was realized
that the substances contained in
Menhaden fish meal were of high
est Importance. 1t is necessary, il
this be understood, to refer a mo-
ment to certain scientific aspects
of nutrition. Although at first
glance it may appear that this has
nothing to do with the problem
Immediately at hand, it most GER
tainly does.
Broadly considered, foods fall
into three classes, carbohydrates
(such as starches and sugars),
fats (such as butter and olive OLD
proteins (such as beef and fish.
Carbohydrates and fats may be
stated, with general accuracy, as
providing the fuel for the ma
chine, while proteins form the
actual structure of the machine,
whether it be a fish, a bird or a
man. Proteins in turn are highly
complicated substances construct
ed OF building stones known as
amino acids,e Recent and COM
pletely confirmed research show
that the amino-acids that make
up the construction of our human
bodies are more available from
fish than they are from meats.
which is rather an unexpected
discovery,
Tens of thousands of lives of
American and other allied pris-
oners of war who had been starv-
ed in Nazi and japanese prison
camps were saved by the admin
istration to them upon their lib
Grafton of these purified amino
acids.
So well is this now understood
that no longer do the Menhaden
reduction plants continue the
processing of Menhaden to the
stage where the pressed scrap
becomes fish meal. but they sell
the product in the form of a lio-
uid, and, furthermore, many
plants recover the soluble amino
acids by an additional recovery
treatment of the water used in
the initial extraction of the pro-
TENS.
The protein of the fish Scrap
runs from go per cent to SIS per
cent. Some plants specialize in
their procedures, coordinating the
processing SO that n plant
brushes the oil and produces the
fluid protein product while an
other plant treats the run-off wa
ter and saves the water soluable
amino-acids.