COLORING MATTER
Sausages and other chopped meat preparations, together with corned meat that has been cured without saltpeter, are often treated with artificial coloring matter.
Aniline red and cochineal carmine are usually employed for this purpose. The former may be detected, according to Allen, by picking the meat apart and treating it with methylated spirit, strain or filter the extract and take up with water. Then a piece of white wool (nun’s veiling will do) is immersed in the boiling liquid and, if it is dyed red, rosaniline is present.
Cochineal-carmine may be detected by the method used by Klinger and Bujard. Cut up fine about 20 grams of the meat and heat in a water-bath with water and glycerine mixed in equal parts. If the above coloring matter is present the liquid will become quite red in color, if not present a slight yellow color results from this treatment. If a spectroscope is available this dye is easily recognized.