Evening star., 1952-03-03
Chemistry improves
Candy for Soldiers
Strict ON Requirements
Are Net in New Types
By Thomos R. Henry

BY Thomos r. Henry
Better candies for soldiers now are
being produced by Department Of Agri.
culture chemists.
Several types more suitable for field
rationS than any known in the past have
been produced in a cooperative project
with the National Confectioners' Assoc
citation and the food laboratories Of the
Quartermaster Corps.
During the past war. candy came into
its own as an essential "munition," how
ever ridiculous the idea might have
seemed to soldiers of the past. It was o
concentrated form Of energy for man.
power.
However. need for CONNECTIONS that
combine high concentrations Of various
food substances with greatly improved
storage life and increased appeal to o
soldiers appetite was recognized. The
candy must be kept for six months at
100 F. or two years at the normal tenn.
perature Of 70.
Tends to Dry Out.
Among the improved candies de-
veloped to date by the departments
Southern Region Laboratory. according
to the report Of the Bureau Of Agricul-
tural and Industrial Chemistry, are disks
of fudge, caramel and caramel-nougat
combinations. Especially valuable Is the
new caramel It is recovered from sweet
whey. obtained in dry powdered form
as a by-product of cheese manufacture.
It can be produced rapidly and with
little labor
A big problem in connection with the
use of fudge in Army rations has been
the tnnHnnnv of fhic fvyINa ~ V,f31y %a rl,.11
out. The department chemists have
succeeded in obtaining from corn sugar
a new chemical, sorbitol which prevents
this type of deterioration. The result.
according to the report is fudge of ex-
cellent texture which should retain its
Smoothness much longer than standard
preparations.
The coating on all these candies is q
regular commercial coating chocolate
which withstands heating at 11O degrees
Fahrenheit for two years. Further re-
search is being carried on to develop q
coating of somewhat better eating quail
ity which also will meet the severe ON
temperature requirements.
considerable problem, it is stressed,
is that of making the new types Of candy
in forms which can be packed easily in
turned out by candy manufacturers with
their present equipment.
Substances from tomato leaves can
be synthesized into potent sex harmones.
Production of both progesterone, one
OF the female hormones which has a
wide use in medicine, and testosterone,
the male hormone. has been accom-
plished by Department of Agriculture
chemists.
Demand Increasing.
About two years ago. according to q
report just made, they succeeded in
isolating from tomato leaves an alkaloid,
tomatidine. Some tests were made Of
this as an antibiotic. Resulting from
this. cooperative program was started
with the National Institutes Of Health
which showed that only three chemical
steps were required to convert the aka
loid into one of the chemical substances
known as sterols which, in turn, can
be transformed easily into either Of the
sex hormoneS.
The demand for both the materials
is increasing. Progesterone has been
found to be powerful preventive for
spontaneous abortion and for the relief
OF the widespread cancer Of the cervex.
Testosterone is widely used In treatment
OF breast cancer in women.
The great value of the discovery lies
in the fact that hitherto only three
sources have been available for the syn
thesis OF these hormoneS. One has been
cholesterol, isolated from animal nerve
tissue Another has been stigmasterol.
obtalnable from soy beans. The third
and easiest to use has been diosgenin,
obtained from Mexican yams. These
cannot be grown in this country in COM
mercial quantities.
Tomatidine, according to the an.
nouncement Of the Bureau of Agricul-
tural and Industrial Chemistry, can be
obtained from leaves, stems and roots
OF tomatoes
There is possibility. according to the
report, that tomatidine can be used as
a material for Synthesis of cortisone.
Search OF plant chemicals for this pur-
pose now is in progress all over the
world. In order to use the tomato aka.
lold one further chemical step than that
needed for production of the sex hor.
mones is required. This has proved. to
date, extremely difficult and may be
found impossible
Special tomato plots are being grown
for the production Of tomatidine and
studies are being conducted to determine
yield and cost data for different varieties.
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