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89
3 ham and chicken paste, 5.2 grains, 5.5 grains, and 114.5 grains.
2 chicken and tongue, 4 8 grains and 110 grains.
2 turkey and tongue, 5.5 grains and 163.6 grains.
1 veal and ham pate, 71.5 grains.
2 salmon and shrimp paste, 13 grains and 145-7 grains.
1 ham and tongue, 5.2 grains.
1 brawn, traces.
The brawn in one case was bad through a defect in the edge of the
;glass vessel in which it was put up. The attention of the firm was
called thereto.
Of the seven kinds of preparations, twelve of which contained boric
acid, nineteen samples were taken. Assuming that the addition of some
preservative is necessary, the large amounts of boric acid found are
clearly excessive. But the fact that other firms can put up similar
preparations without the addition of chemical preservatives shows
that their use is quite unnecessary. In the chicken and ham put up
by one of the firms, notwithstanding that 114.5 grains of boric acid
were present, there was a fungoid growth under the fat.
The attention of the firms concerned was called to the presence of
boric acid in their goods, and they have been informed that the Council
proposes to take action if large amounts are found in such preparations
in the future.
Several of the firms that have been communicated with on the
•subject replied to the effect that they were ignorant of the fact that
boric acid was present in their respective goods, that they had not added
any acid during the process of potting, and that its presence must have
been due to the hams, tongues, or other ingredients sold to them which
had been cured by means of boric acid instead of salt.
In the case of the sample certified as containing 163.6 grains per
pound, the vendors have written stating that they are causing the sale
of such articles to be withdrawn from all their branches.
The above explanation is feasible for the smaller amounts of the
acid found, but would not account for the extraordinarily large amounts,
viz., 163.6, 145.7, 114-5 and 110 grains per pound, discovered in some
of the samples, which could only be accounted for by the wilful addition
of the acid, or by gross carelessness in not removing from the surface of
the hams the acid which is frequently dusted over them to protect
them during transit.
The Council directed that further samples of such foods be
purchased and analysed, but the manufacturers had evidently profited
by the warning and had taken steps to see that excessive quantities
of preservative were kept out of their preparations.