—The principal adulteration of brandied fruit is in the use of alcohol which is not genuine brandy. It is well known that much of the brandy offered in commerce is fictitious, that is, is not the pure distilled alcoholic product from sound wine properly aged in wood before using. When brandy is purchased for preserved fruit, unless special care is taken to secure the genuine article the imitation article may be supplied. Instead of the real brandy the manufacturers may use an article which is entirely devoid of any product of the distillation of wine or containing only a small amount thereof. The term “brandy” used with the fruit in such a case is a misnomer and the article would be deemed misbranded under the provisions of the law. The manufacturer can assure himself of the purity of the brandy by obtaining it from a bonded warehouse, since it is made under the supervision of the officials of the internal revenue and kept under such supervision until delivered to the consumer. Inasmuch as preparations of this kind are regarded as delicacies and the cost of the product does not enter materially into consideration it is highly advisable that only genuine brandy, distilled from sound wine and aged in wood for a period of not less than four years, be employed in the manufacture.
Importance of the Canning and Preserving Industries.
—The statistics for the canning and preserving industries for the calendar year ending December 31, 1904, form a part of the census of manufactures, which is made in conformity with the act of Congress of March 6, 1902, and are compared with similar statistics for the census of 1900, which covered the fiscal year ending May 31st.
There has been a large increase in those industries. The slight decrease in the average number of wage-earners is more apparent than real, and is due largely to the fact that a considerable number were employed in fish canneries under a contract system. The contractor furnishes the laborers and is paid for an agreed quantity of product. The establishment reporting has no record of the number employed by the contractors, and they were not included in the number reported, the amount paid for such contract work being included in the item of miscellaneous expenses. Fishermen were not included in the census, and it is possible that a larger proportion of the salted fish was prepared in connection with the actual catch than at the census of 1900, thus accounting in part, at least, for the decrease in the quantity.
CANNING AND PRESERVING FRUITS AND VEGETABLES, AND FISH AND OYSTERS.
| Comparative summary—Censuses of 1904 and 1900. | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1904. | 1900. | Percent of Increase. | ||
| Number of establishments, | 2,687 | 2,182 | 23.1 | |
| Capital, | $69,589,316 | $47,970,787 | 45.1 | |
| Salaried officials, clerks, etc.: | ||||
| Number, | 3,604 | 2,418 | 49.0 | |
| Salaries, | $3,216,773 | $1,926,639 | 67.0 | |
| Wage-earners: | ||||
| Average number, | 50,258 | 51,955 | 3.3 | [35] |
| Wages, | $14,154,730 | $12,759,459 | 10.9 | |
| Miscellaneous expenses, | 8,544,497 | 3,290,459 | 159.7 | |
| Materials used, | 69,814,330 | 52,243,948 | 33.6 | |
| Products:[36] | ||||
| Aggregate value, | $107,534,464 | $81,020,384 | 32.7 | |
| Fruits and Vegetables— | ||||
| Total value, | $72,570,974 | $44,460,665 | 63.2 | |
| Canned Vegetables— | ||||
| Pounds, | 1,672,759,438 | 1,142,327,265 | 46.4 | |
| Value, | $45,262,148 | $28,734,598 | 57.5 | |
| Canned Fruits— | ||||
| Pounds, | 295,760,355 | 293,637,273 | .7 | |
| Value, | $11,644,042 | $11,311,062 | 2.9 | |
| Dried Fruits— | ||||
| Pounds, | 343,579,623 | 81,189,406 | 323.2 | |
| Value, | $15,664,784 | $4,415,005 | 254.8 | |
| Fish— | ||||
| Total value, | $24,452,533 | $20,542,691 | 19.0 | |
| Canned— | ||||
| Pounds, | 259,469,861 | 167,836,808 | 54.6 | |
| Value, | $15,966,513 | $14,308,723 | 11.6 | |
| Smoked— | ||||
| Pounds, | 35,439,619 | 21,252,066 | 66.8 | |
| Value, | $2,362,740 | $973,041 | 142.8 | |
| Salted— | ||||
| Pounds, | 112,156,655 | 125,669,131 | 10.8 | [35] |
| Value, | $6,123,280 | $5,260,927 | 16.4 | |
| Oysters— | ||||
| Value, | $3,799,412 | 2,054,800 | 84.9 | |
| All other products, | 6,711,545 | $13,962,228 | 51.9 | [35] |
[35] Decrease.
[36] Exclusive of fruits and vegetables valued at $715,920, fish at $274,403, and oysters at $12,900, manufactured by establishments classified as food preparations, pickles, preserves and sauces, slaughtering and meat packing, wholesale, etc.
Importance of the Industry.
—The importance of the canning industry is not to be measured solely by its commercial extent. The principle of the conservation of food products by sterilization or pasteurization is of immense significance in the nutrition of man. It enables nourishing foods of a perishable character to be kept and transported to great distances and to be used in localities where fresh foods of similar kinds are otherwise unobtainable. Such preserved foods mean everything to pioneers, explorers, armies, and navies. The “winning of the west” in the United States has been marked by the débris of the rusty cans. The roads along which the pioneers who settled the great American desert marched since 1865 have been bordered with the discarded packages in which they carried their foods.