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39
In frozen meat, the fat is of a deadly white colour. The flesh has a
uniform pink appearance owing to diffusion of the colouring matter of the
blood. The outside part has a wet, par-boiled appearance, and there is
oozing, as well as dripping of liquid from the meat.
On landing, a similar system of examination is adopted as was described
in the inspection of canned food. If any unsound or diseased carcases are
found, they are at once destroyed; but it is often most difficult to state
whether these carcases are diseased or not. The lungs, liver, and other organs
have been removed, and the signs of disease may be apparent in these organs
alone, though possibly the whole carcase may be unfit for human consumption.
In some instances, it is almost impossible to express an opinion as to the
healthiness of a carcase unless one is present at the slaughtering and dressing,
and this constitutes an objection to frozen meat. Otherwise meat may be kept
indefinitely by freezing. It is true that the cold does not always kill the
micro-organisms. Putrefactive bacteria possess an unusual resisting power
against low temperatures, but this resistance does not in any way militate
against the preservative effect of the cold. Though the putrefactive bacteria
are not destroyed by cold, yet the low temperature prevents their multiplication,
and in this dormant condition the development of their action is
prevented.
Frozen meat though, may possess one obvious disadvantage. In the process
of thawing, water vapour and putrefactive bacteria may be deposited
upon the surface of the meat, and thereby greatly affect its capacity for keeping
sweet. Though some butchers assert, that on a sultry day, frozen meat will
keep sweeter than fresh meat when exposed to similar conditions; this is
generally recognised to be a fallacy. When frozen meat is thawed, and
exposed on a hot day in the window, or on a board in front of a shop, it soon
becomes tainted. Fortunately, in most instances, frozen meat is not kept
long after it has been thawed. It is sold in shops, whose motto is "quick
returns and small profits." At its best, it is sold very cheaply, and when it
has become slightly tainted, it is sold at such a low price as to tempt poor
people to invest. Most meat of this description is usually sold on Saturdays ;
if not disposed of on Saturday nights and the shop is not opened on Sunday
mornings, it is consigned to a place of business situated in a poor neighbourhood
where a large trade is done on the latter day. In streets known as
market streets, it is no infrequent sight for the owner of frozen meat to sell a
large quantity " for what it will fetch." Unfortunately, the whole of the meat
may not be disposed of in any of these ways, and then commences the slippery
slope which leads to the factory of the less reputable of canned meat manu-