CHAPTER VII

THE MICRO-ORGANISMS OF TOMATO PRODUCTS; THE ATTITUDE OF THE PURE FOOD

AUTHORITIES TOWARD THEM; AND THE INTERPRETATION OF ANALYSES

Micro-Organisms; What They Are

By micro-organisms we mean molds, yeasts, bacteria, and their spores.

The term “micro-organisms” takes in all of these.

This chapter will deal with the subject in as short and concise a manner

as possible, with the object of giving the manufacturer a working

knowledge of it that will help him in his everyday factory routine.

Although volumes have been written about micro-organisms in food, it is

not necessary for the packer of tomato products to have an accurate,

detailed scientific knowledge of the subject in all its ramifications,

but a general understanding of it will suffice for practically all

purposes.

What are molds, yeasts, spores, and bacteria? Are they animals or

plants? Where do they grow, and under what conditions do they multiply

most rapidly? Are they harmful, or are the kinds found in tomatoes all

harmless varieties? If they are harmless, why does the government object

to them? Why is a product containing a certain number considered all

right, while when a larger number is present the product is said by the

government to consist in whole or in part of a filthy, decomposed,

putrid vegetable substance? Aren’t such foods as Roquefort cheese,

cottage cheese, buttermilk, and sauerkraut fairly swarming with the same

kinds of germs as tomato pulp? Aren’t these foods all considered

healthful? Then why object to these germs in tomato pulp? Aren’t the

germs all killed by the boiling, anyway? These are questions often asked

by pulp packers, and it is hoped that the following will throw some

light on the subject.

Molds, yeasts, spores, and bacteria are very tiny plants, not animals.

They are so small that they can only be seen by the naked eye when there

are very large masses of them together, consisting, in the case of

bacteria and yeasts, of hundreds of millions of small individual plants,

and in the case of molds, of many individual mold plants closely massed

together.

You have all seen large tufts of white mold on tomatoes, and black mold

covering a loaf of bread, but you probably did not realize the enormous

numbers of individual mold plants that were present, or the rapidity

with which they multiplied themselves. You have all seen swelled cans of

tomato pulp, and after the cans were opened you have noticed the bubbles

rising in the pulp, and have noted the very sour taste and often an

extremely disagreeable odor. In every thimbleful of that sour pulp there

were hundreds of millions of bacteria and yeast cells, so small in size

that many thousand could collect at the same time on the point of a pin

and they would not be noticed by the naked eye. It was these tiny

bacteria and yeast plants which caused the physical and chemical changes

in that pulp. Just as a parasitic vine winds itself around a tree and

sucks the life out of it, so these millions of bacteria and yeast plants

sucked all the goodness out of this tomato pulp, and left nothing but

sour, decomposed tomato fiber, acid, and foul-smelling gas.

Molds

The structure of the mold plant is similar to that of a very small vine,

the branches of which are many and are closely massed together. The tiny

threads or filaments of mold resemble the vine and its branches. These

threads keep sending out new shoots which spread rapidly all over the

surface the mold is growing on, and the fruit of the mold plant, which

is called spores, is similar to the little berries which grow at the

ends of the branches of a vine. These berries are the fruit of the vine;

spores are the fruit of the mold plant. Just as the berries contain

seeds which reproduce the plant, so the tiny spores contain the seed

which will reproduce the mold plant. These spores grow at the end of the

mold threads or branches, and when ripe, either fall on the surface

directly beneath, or are carried away by a breath of air and move along

with the dust.

The spores of the mold plant will remain alive for months in a dry

state, floating in the air, or if the air be very still, falling to the

surface. The air everywhere is full of them, and as soon as they light

upon a moist surface, such as tomato juice, for example, which contains

nourishment for them, they begin to send out shoots of mold threads and

reproduce another mold plant.

[Illustration:

Fig. 4.—Mold filament from catsup. (×150.)

]

Mold grows most rapidly upon a warm surface, preferably about the

temperature of the human body. It will not grow on a surface which is at

freezing temperature, or on a very hot surface. Under these extremes of

temperature it is unable to multiply itself. Boiling kills the mold

plant, and continued boiling of 15 minutes or more also kills the seeds

or spores of practically all species. That is one reason why it is

desirable to bring peeled tomatoes or tomato juice to a boil as soon as

possible—so that the mold and mold spores which are always on these

surfaces will be killed before they have an opportunity to grow.

There are many different species or varieties of mold plants which

thrive on tomatoes and tomato pulp, but they are all very similar; they

reproduce themselves in exactly the same way, and they are all arrested

in their growth by extremes of temperature, and are killed by continued

boiling. It should not be thought, however, that boiling for a very few

minutes will kill all mold spores, as they have a tough surface which

has considerable resistance to heat. I have seen 5–gal. pulp packed

which was only given a very short boil on account of low steam pressure,

and molds grew in the sealed cans after packing to such an extent that

the pulp all had to be thrown away. It is safe to assume, however, that

a 15–minute boil will kill mold spores and prevent the growth of molds

in the cans after they are sealed, providing, of course, that the pulp

is filled hot into cans which are clean and almost sterile.

Bacteria

Bacteria and yeasts are very much smaller plants than molds. While an

individual mold plant, growing as stated above like a very small vine,

branches out and spreads over considerable surface, bacteria (that is,

those forms in which the pulp packer is interested) are very short,

single rods, which, when multiplied in size 500 times by the microscope,

appear to be from 1/32 to ⅛ of an inch long. Yeasts, when multiplied in

size 500 times, usually appear to be from two to five times as large as

a pin head.

The rod-shaped bacteria referred to above are mainly the lactic acid,

and acetic acid bacteria, both of which produce fermentation in tomato

products. The lactic acid germ is the same one which causes milk to

sour, while the acetic acid germ is the one which produces the acetic

acid of vinegar. There are many other kinds of bacteria in tomato pulp,

many of which are small, round cells. However, the bulk of these

probably come from the soil and are natural to the tomato, and are not

counted when the number of bacteria per cubic centimeter are estimated.

The rod-shaped types indicate fermentation.

[Illustration:

Fig. 5.—Rod-shaped bacteria from tomato pulp, common in bad catsups.

(×500.)

]

Bacteria reproduce themselves with amazing rapidity. It has been found

out by watching them multiply under the microscope that under favorable

conditions one germ reproduces itself every 30 minutes, and in some

cases reproduction is known to have been even more rapid than that. The

method of reproduction is by simple division. The rod-shaped bacterium

is just like a match in shape, only many thousand times smaller, and in

the space of about 30 minutes it will divide itself in the middle, thus

changing itself into two shorter rods. Each of these rods grows in

length, and each of them then divides, making four rods. In 30 minutes

more the four rods change into eight, etc. It is the simplest method of

reproduction there is.

Bacteria also have another method of reproducing themselves which they

resort to when conditions become unfavorable for their growth and they

can no longer multiply themselves by the simple division method. Such an

unfavorable condition would be the drying up of the moist surface on

which they are growing. In this case the rod-shaped bacterium forms one

or more spores within itself. These bacteria spores are somewhat similar

to mold spores, but are much smaller. However, they are only produced by

bacteria under unfavorable conditions, while the mold plant produces

them under all conditions. The bacteria spores, like mold spores, have a

tough surface which gives them high resistance, and they contain the

germ of bacteria life which can reproduce the species when favorable

conditions for growth are again encountered. The bacteria spores,

therefore, float through the air as do the mold spores, remaining in the

dry state without nourishment for months at a time, and as soon as they

light upon a moist surface containing the elements for growth, even to a

very small degree, they reproduce the rod-shaped bacteria form, which

begins to multiply itself again by the simple division method.

Although most bacteria spores are killed by boiling for 10 or 15

minutes, there are a few species of extremely high resistance which have

been known to remain alive after several hours’ boiling. Spores of this

nature are infrequent, however, and the packer might as well forget that

they exist. Not one case of spoilage out of a hundred is caused by the

presence of such spores, and if all food products were cooked a length

of time sufficient to kill all bacteria spores which might possibly be

present, the foods would be cooked to death, and unfit to eat.

Yeasts

Yeasts are very tiny individual cells, and multiply by budding, instead

of by simple division, as bacteria do. Instead of the yeast cell

dividing in half, thus producing two cells, it remains intact, but a bud

forms on its outer surface. This bud grows in size until it becomes

almost as large as the cell which produced it, and then it separates

from the mother cell, and we have two yeast cells. Each of these two

cells then produces buds, which again separate, and so on. Like

bacteria, the multiplication is very rapid under favorable conditions.

Favorable conditions for yeasts and bacteria are the same as they are

for mold, that is, a warm temperature, preferably near blood heat, and a

moist substance which is not too strongly acid, and which contains the

elements necessary for growth, preferably the natural sugar of fruits

and vegetables.

[Illustration:

Fig. 6.—Yeasts and spherical bacteria from decaying tomatoes. (× 500.)

[The oval bodies are the yeasts, some in budding stage; the bacteria

appear as small spheres, or pairs of spheres.]

]

Yeasts are the principal gas-forming agents in the fermentation of pulp.

In the production of this gas they consume the natural sugar of the

tomato. They will multiply by the budding method described above as long

as they are in a medium which is favorable for their growth. As soon as

this medium drys up, or for some other reason becomes an unfavorable

medium for the multiplication of the yeast cells, the yeasts resort to

spore forming, just as bacteria do. These spores are formed within the

yeast cell, and when the cell wall breaks the spores pass off into the

air. Like all other spores, they have a high resistance, and will float

around in the dry state and remain alive for a very long time. When they

light upon a medium in which they can grow they reproduce the yeast

species, in the same manner in which the bacteria spore reproduces the

bacteria species from which it was derived.

Spores

The spores, then, which are found in tomato products are of three

different kinds, namely, mold spores, yeast spores, and bacteria spores.

The greater number are almost always mold spores, since the mold plant

produces spores under all conditions, while yeasts and bacteria only

produce them under unfavorable conditions. When microscopical analyses

of tomato products are reported, the mold spores and yeast spores are

included with the yeasts in the term “Yeasts and Spores.” This is

because a large number of the spores are very similar to yeast cells in

appearance, and as it would be a laborious process for the analyst to

separate them, the yeasts and spores are included in one figure, which

greatly simplifies the analysis. The bacteria spores are not included in

the count of “Yeasts and Spores.”

How Germs Retard Their Own Growth

We will say that we have stacked away a 5–gal. can of pulp which

contains several living spores of bacteria, as is apt to be the case,

since the air is full of them, and the pulp is constantly open to

contamination from the air after it is cooked; also the spores may be in

the empty cans at the time they are filled. Why is it, since these few

spores are alive, and in a favorable medium for their growth, that the

rod-shaped bacteria forms which they produce do not multiply to such an

extent that they will ferment the can of pulp. It was stated above that

bacteria do not multiply in a strongly acid medium. Since the bacteria

produce acid as a by-product of their own growth, they surround

themselves with an acid medium, and they thus retard and finally stop

their growth by the product of their own reproduction. When this acid

medium reaches a certain strength the bacteria can no longer multiply,

and if that can is not moved until used, the chances are it will be all

right when opened. But if the can is moved, the contents are agitated,

and these living bacteria are shaken away from the acid medium in which

they have been suspended, and they are shaken into a fresh, sweet medium

in which they can again begin to multiply. It may therefore follow that

if this can is moved several times it would be at least partly fermented

when opened, while if it was left alone it would have remained sweet.

This illustration shows the desirability of moving pulp as little as

possible, and as carefully as possible when moving becomes imperative.

The lack of air in the can will, of course, also retard bacterial

growth, but there is usually a small amount of air in the can, and many

species of bacteria do not need any air whatever for their growth.

[Illustration:

Fig. 7.—Mold spores and filaments. A type frequently found in decaying

tomatoes. (×300.)

]

Rapidity of Growth

Yeasts and bacteria multiply more rapidly than do the molds, and that is

why pulp which is made from tomatoes or tomato peelings which are

handled slowly or carelessly usually shows a high content of yeasts and

bacteria, while the molds may be low. As a rule, most of the mold found

in pulp was present in the original tomatoes, and is found in the pulp

because it wasn’t eliminated in the sorting. But, as a rule, tomatoes

are not full of yeasts and bacteria unless they are very soft and mushy,

and it is evident on looking at them that they have fermented to some

extent. If pulp contains a high count of yeasts or bacteria it usually

means that this fermentation took place in the factory at some stage in

the manufacturing process, or that the product has been contaminated by

fermented tomato substance lodged in pipes, troughs, and conveying

equipment. Often it is due to delay in getting the tomato stock to a

boil. The laxness in this regard in some factories is surprising, and

their pulp is almost always high in yeasts and bacteria.

When you consider the extreme rapidity with which these germs multiply,

the folly of allowing tomato peelings or tomato juice to be very slowly

conveyed to a large tank for an hour or more before the steam is turned

on becomes apparent. Much has been written about the rapidity of

bacterial reproduction, and yet extreme delay in working up tomato stock

continues in many plants, and we frequently see bacteria counts of a

hundred million or more per cubic centimeter, all of which could be

easily avoided if the packer would just make up his mind to get to the

bottom of the cause and apply the simple remedy.

Just as an illustration we will say that we are putting up trimming

pulp, and the tomato receipts are rather light and the peelers are

working slowly, or that there aren’t many peelers working. The trimmings

are passed along on a belt conveyor where they go to a bucket carrier

and are lifted to a large cypress tank with a coil. They drop into the

tank slowly, and it may take two hours for the coil to be covered so

that the steam can be turned on; or after a foot or two of the trimmings

have been put in the tank it is lunch time, and it is an hour before the

filling of the tank continues. This may make it three hours before these

peelings are brought to a boil. Suppose at the time those peelings go

into the tank they contain enough bacteria so that if they were cooked

at once, the pulp would run 10 million to the cubic centimeter. This is

very probable. However, they are not cooked at once and at the end of 30

minutes you have peelings which, when condensed and cycloned, would show

close to 20 million bacteria. In an hour the first peelings which

entered that tank would yield 40 million, and in 1½ hrs., 80 million.

This is on the basis of the bacteria reproducing themselves every 30

minutes. Even if they multiply much more slowly than that you can see

that in the course of a little over an hour you are getting into

dangerous ground, and in the course of two or three hours the bacteria

have multiplied to such an extent that the product would almost be sure

to be condemned if it was picked up by an inspector. If the tomatoes had

quite a few soft spots in them when they were peeled it is very likely

that the peelings would yield 20 million bacteria if worked up

immediately, and then if delay of an hour or more comes on top of that

you can see where you will be on the bacteria count. The yeasts are also

probably multiplying at the same time, and the molds are growing to some

extent.

Now what this packer should do is to put a small open steam jet in the

bottom of his cypress tank, with four pipes running horizontally, as in

a “breaking tank,” and turn on the steam as soon as the peelings cover

these pipes, which lie right on the bottom of the tank. The peelings are

thus kept at a boil until the steam can be turned on the coil, and then

the steam from the open jet can be shut off. This is a very simple

arrangement to make and will save no end of trouble.

It must not be thought that because micro-organisms multiply most

rapidly in a warm medium they will not multiply in a cold medium, or one

which is considerably warmer than blood heat—the degree of temperature

most favored. The only safe extremes are 33 degrees F. for the lower

extreme, and 150 degrees F. or above for the higher extreme. Anywhere

between these two extremes of temperature there is danger of germ

activity, and the nearer the medium is to 98 degrees F., the more rapid

is the multiplication of the germs.

As tomato juice contains all the nutritive requirements for the growth

of micro-organisms, and is not strongly acid, it is an ideal medium for

them to grow in. There doesn’t seem to be any medium whatever that

molds, yeasts, and bacteria prefer to tomatoes and tomato juice.

The Government Attitude on Micro-Organisms

What are the objections of the pure food authorities to the presence of

large numbers of micro-organisms in tomato products, and how do they

substantiate their objections? We know that all of these germs that grow

in tomato products are harmless. Even if an occasional harmful germ

should enter it would not be discovered by the method of analysis

employed, and unless it was in the spore form and of extremely high

resistance it would be killed by the boiling.

We know that buttermilk and sauerkraut are full of bacteria, and that

the latter is also full of yeasts, and that these two foods are

recommended by physicians as being particularly healthful because of the

lactic acid they contain, which is produced by the lactic acid

bacteria—the same kind that are condemned in tomato products.

In sauerkraut we know that these lactic acid bacteria and yeasts are

killed by the cooking, just as they are in tomato products, which seems

to make the two cases analogous. In buttermilk and cottage cheese,

however, they are alive and growing, and these products are considered

healthful. Roquefort cheese is full of a green mold which gives it its

characteristic flavor and color, and it is considered healthful. Then

why object to molds in tomato products?

The difference is that in one case we have a controlled and regulated

fermentation, which is confined to one or more species, which in

combination with the characteristic elements of that particular food

produce a healthful by-product or desirable flavor. In the other case we

have an unregulated and uncontrolled fermentation, produced by a variety

of species of micro-organisms. In tomatoes we have a number of species

of molds; we have a great many different species of wild yeasts, many of

which produce by-products of a disagreeable character; and we have a

number of species of bacteria, chief among which are the lactic acid and

acetic acid types, which change the tomato pulp from a sweet product, as

it should be, to a sour one.

The objections of the government are therefore more confined to the

by-products which are produced by the growth of these germs than to the

germs themselves. It is the contention that the by-products produced in

tomato products by many of these germs are such as to be classed as a

filthy, putrid, decomposed vegetable substance. Just how many of these

germs a product may contain before it is sufficiently decomposed to be

classed as filthy and putrid is a question. The government tries to play

safe in the matter, and give the packer a fair deal. When they condemn a

tomato product as unfit for food it isn’t because it contains only an

average quantity of micro-organisms, but because the number of germs

present, and the decomposition produced, is such as to indicate extreme

laxness in sanitation and lack of care in the manufacturing processes,

or the admittance of quite a large percentage of rotten material. The

spoilage may be either primary or secondary, that is, it may be due to

the use of a lot of partly rotten, moldy tomatoes at the start, which

were not carefully sorted, or it may be due to fermentation which takes

place in the factory, caused by extreme delay or by unsanitary

equipment. In primary spoilage the mold is usually very high and the

yeasts and bacteria may be low, while in secondary spoilage either the

yeasts or bacteria, or both, will be high, and the molds may be low.

This will be explained further later in this chapter.

Government Regulations

When the government regulations on tomato products were first published

it was stated that for catsup the microscopical counts should not run

above the following:

Molds in 25% of the microscopic fields.

Yeasts and spores—25 in 1/60th cubic millimeter.

Bacteria—25 million per cubic centimeter.

It was also stated that pulp which was to be converted into catsup

should not contain more than half this number of micro-organisms, as

allowance must be made for the increase due to concentration.

The fact that pulp and catsup can be made to keep within these limits

has been demonstrated a number of times, but I have yet to see a

season’s run, all of which, or even 50% of which, will come within these

limits. It is easy enough to run individual batches which by careful

supervision over the sorters will have a very low count of molds, etc.,

but regardless of the precautions a man will take to safeguard himself,

there is almost bound to be at some time in the season some manufactured

goods that will run over these limits. The packer, however, should keep

these limits in mind as an ideal to work to, not on one batch, but on a

season’s run, but it is not an easy goal to attain, and in my opinion

the government doesn’t expect it to be attained very often. The packer

has to contend with a glut of tomatoes in September almost every year;

it is difficult to get good help to do the sorting and to supervise the

sorting; unfavorable weather conditions make the tomatoes moldy and full

of rot; delayed shipments come in in very bad condition; machinery

breaks down at the most unexpected times, and necessitates delay in the

factory at critical moments; the help get careless about the cleanliness

of the equipment, and run through some goods before the unclean parts

are discovered; accidents occur in the power plant and the plant may

have to run on inadequate steam for two or three days, etc., etc. Every

packer has been up against these things, but as a rule pure food

inspectors have not, and they are sometimes slow to appreciate the

packers’ side of the case. This is particularly true of local health

inspectors who have had no experience with food manufacturing problems,

and sometimes permit a packer to receive a lot of unfavorable and unjust

newspaper publicity.

The heads of the government pure food departments, that is, the high

officials of the Bureau of Chemistry, intend to play very fair with

canners, and it must be admitted that they will go a long way with a man

who is making an honest and determined effort to pack his goods in the

right way, and who is taking advantage of the opportunities he has to

post himself on modern methods of packing his products. The packer

should remember that the product of a plant that is run in an unsanitary

way is always under suspicion by the government, and that shipments from

these plants are the ones which are apt to be watched by the government

agents. The government can go into any railroad office, whether

government or privately controlled, ask the agent to show them the bills

of lading on shipments, and notify their inspector at destination to

take samples of the car on arrival.

Getting back to the subject of established limits for micro-organisms,

in the fall of 1916 the government authorities named the point at which

they were recommending condemnation proceedings. The notice, which was

issued by the Bureau of Chemistry of the Department of Agriculture,

stated that at the present time they were not advising condemnation of

tomato products unless the micro-organisms exceeded at least one of the

following counts:

Molds in 66% of the microscopic fields.

Yeasts and Spores—125 in 1/60th cubic millimeter.

Bacteria—100 million per cubic centimeter.

This is a long way from the limit of 25 on each count, which the

government formerly stated should not in their opinion be exceeded. At

the same time, however, Mr. Howard of the Bureau of Chemistry made a

statement to the effect that they still considered it possible under

manufacturing conditions to make these products to comply with the

original 25–25–25 limit, and that it was their intention to approach the

original limits more closely. It should not be understood that the

government thinks that products which run below the higher limits are

good enough, because they decidedly do not, but at present they are not

recommending for condemnation those products which run below these

figures.

State Food Officials

What about the state pure food boards? Do they follow the government

lead in this matter or act according to their own ideas? Some follow the

government and some do not. Some state officials are quite lenient while

others are very strict. A product which one would pass as being all

right, another would condemn. I have seen state officials condemn catsup

which I am quite sure the government would pass, although it wasn’t as

good as it should have been. If the manufacturer had cared to carry it

to the courts there would have been an even chance of him winning out.

However, the loss of prestige due to the publicity of such action is

often greater than the loss of the manufactured goods would be and as a

rule the manufacturer does not contest the case. Publicity is a powerful

whip in the hands of the government and state officials.

Checking Up Daily Runs

What is the manufacturer to do about checking up his daily runs of pulp

and catsup during the season? Is it better for him to send his samples

to a commercial laboratory, or to employ an analyst to work at his

factory, or to do the best he can in the sorting and in the factory

routine, assuming that if he uses proper care here his products are sure

to analyze all right and he doesn’t need to worry.

This problem has been discussed a great deal. To employ an analyst on

the place is usually rather expensive for a small packer if the man is

fully competent to do the work, and unless he is, he is worse than

useless. To send samples to an outside laboratory often involves

considerable delay in getting the reports, and by the time the results

are known the goods are stacked away and almost forgotten. If they ran

high in micro-organisms there was some cause for it, and that cause

should have been remedied at once, and probably would have been had the

analysis been reported within a day or two. Therein lies the chief

advantage of getting an analysis quickly. An analysis on products which

have been run a week previously is, of course, better than nothing, but

it is far from being satisfactory.

The third method, that is, relying upon care in the factory and having

no analysis made, was at one time recommended, but it is not now

considered good policy. In a great many cases where this policy was

adopted it was found out when it was too late that much of the goods

that was thought to be all right was decidedly off. There were

undiscovered errors in the manufacturing process, and they remained

undiscovered because there was no means of checking them up.

My advice in this matter is to have an analyst trained for this work and

employ him at your factory if you are so far from a reputable analyst

that it will take some little time to get a report. The Research

Laboratories of The National Canners Association at Washington is

undertaking the training of men in this analytical work for those

companies that desire it. If the packer is close enough to a reputable

analyst to get a report within a day or two he will find that such an

arrangement is usually satisfactory, and he should rush his samples with

all possible speed, and request the analyst to wire the report if the

analysis is high.

Then there is the problem of what laboratory to send samples to. Will

any reputable chemical or bacteriological laboratory do for this

purpose? Many packers have made a mistake right here, and the analyses

they have received have been worse than nothing because they were not

only grossly inaccurate but misleading. They have gone on thinking their

goods were all right and have found out later by some accident that they

were all wrong.

Although an analyst may be a good microscopist and fully competent to do

general bacteriological or biological work, he cannot possibly get a

correct microscopical analysis on tomato products unless he is familiar

with the Howard method as used by Mr. Howard. This means that he must

use the exact technique that Mr. Howard uses in his laboratory. Every

manipulation, no matter how slight, must be made in precisely the same

manner that Mr. Howard makes it; otherwise the results are worthless. An

analyst, in order to be competent to use the method, must either work

with Mr. Howard until he can check him on all kinds of samples, or he

must work with one of the analysts that have been closely associated

with Mr. Howard in this work. If the analyst has had factory experience

and can assist the packer in running down the causes of high counts,

that is a great advantage.

How to Interpret Analyses

We will say that a sample of pulp taken from one of the daily runs has

been sent to an analyst, and the report on it is as follows:

Molds in 70% of microscopic fields.

Yeasts and Spores—10 in 1/60th cubic millimeter.

Bacteria—12 million per cubic centimeter.

What does that analysis mean?

The first item means that the analyst examined through the microscope 50

views of a thin layer of the pulp on a slide, and that out of these 50

views, 35 of them contained sufficient mold to count them as positive

fields, so that molds were found to be present in 35 out of 50 fields,

or in 70% of them.

The second item means that from another prepared slide of this pulp

(which slide is so ruled that the volume of liquid on any given space of

it can be measured) there were found to be 10 yeasts and spores in

1/60th of a cubic millimeter. A cubic millimeter is about ⅕th of a drop,

and 1/60th of a cubic millimeter is therefore about 1/300th of a drop—an

exceedingly small quantity, almost inconceivable. The best way to

conceive it is to think of one drop of pulp mixed in 299 drops of water,

and a drop taken from this exceedingly dilute mixture. In this almost

inconceivably small amount of pulp there were 10 yeasts and spores.

The third item means that in the same slide in which the yeasts and

spores were counted there were found to be 12 million rod-shaped

bacteria in each cubic centimeter. A cubic centimeter is about 20 drops.

More important to the packer than the above, however, is the

interpretation of the analysis from the factory standpoint. What does it

indicate about the way the tomatoes were handled and worked up? The

molds are high and the yeasts and bacteria are low. It means that in all

probability the tomatoes were not properly sorted, but that they were

worked up rapidly enough after the sorting. It indicates primary

spoilage, but little or no secondary spoilage. If there had been

secondary spoilage, either the yeasts or bacteria or both would be high.

It is a tip for the packer to watch the sorting belt closely.

We will say that the report on another sample is as follows:

Molds in 20% of the microscopic fields.

Yeasts and Spores—70 in 1/60th C. M.

Bacteria—110 million per C. C.

What is indicated by that analysis?

It shows that the tomatoes were probably sorted all right, and that the

primary spoilage is probably small, but that there is a very strong

indication of secondary spoilage, that is, spoilage which took place in

the factory. Unless the tomatoes were extremely soft and partially

fermented when they were run up, there was probably great delay at some

stage in the manufacturing process, or some of the equipment was in a

very unsanitary condition and the fresh goods became contaminated with

fermented tomato substance which was carried over with it a little at a

time.

Suppose the analysis ran as follows:

Molds in 20% of the microscopic fields.

Yeasts and Spores—25 in 1/60th C. M.

Bacteria—110 million per C. C.

This also indicates secondary spoilage. The same conditions are

indicated in this analysis as in the preceding one. The only difference

is that instead of the fermentation being conducted by both yeasts and

bacteria, it was conducted by bacteria alone. In other cases the yeasts

and spores may run high and the bacteria low, indicating that the

fermentation was one of yeasts, and not bacteria. If all three of the

counts run high it indicates that either the tomatoes were very moldy

and soft to begin with and were improperly sorted, or that they were

both improperly sorted and that the pulped juice was improperly handled

in the factory. It is almost a sure indication of primary spoilage, and

points very strongly to secondary spoilage also.

There has been considerable criticism of the Howard method of analyzing

tomato products, and it cannot be denied that the method is far from

being ideal. It is the best method that we have, however, and the packer

can be sure of one thing, namely, that if his products are made right

they will never show a high test by this method. It is true that all

improperly made goods do not give a high test by this method, and that

is one objection to it. These cases, however, are infrequent. The method

of estimating all three counts has also been criticized as being unfair

and not in accordance with the best bacteriological practice. If

anything better was suggested the Bureau of Chemistry would no doubt be

glad to adopt it, but so far as I know, no improvement has been offered.

PART II

The Manufacture of Tomato Catsup, Chili Sauce, Trimming Pulp, and Tomato

Soup

CHAPTER VIII

A DISCUSSION OF PRESERVATIVE AND NON-PRESERVATIVE CATSUPS, AND THE MOST

FREQUENT CAUSES OF INFERIORITY

Unfavorable Publicity on Preservatives

When the pure food movement first swept over this country the subject of

preservatives got very wide publicity, and the sensational press fed the

people up on the news that their food was being doctored with all sorts

of chemicals. Tomato catsup came in for its share of this publicity, and

the two preservatives most commonly used in catsup, namely, benzoate of

soda and salicylic acid, were classed among the chemicals that were

ruining our stomachs.

Although salicylic acid has been ruled out, benzoate of soda is still

being used to some extent. The great bulk of the catsup now being

manufactured, however, is made without preservative, because packers

realize that a good percentage of the public became prejudiced against

preservatives of all sorts during the pure food agitation, and a great

many are still prejudiced against even so mild and harmless a

preservative as benzoate of soda. There are those who still maintain

that this preservative is or may be harmful when used to the extent of

one-tenth of one per cent, which is the permissible amount according to

the federal law; however, the Remsen board appointed by President

Roosevelt to decide the benzoate question unanimously decided that when

benzoate of soda is used in condiments to the extent of one-tenth of one

per cent it is perfectly harmless. It was even found to be perfectly

harmless in much larger proportions.

These facts, however, have never reached the masses, most of whom never

heard of the Remsen board, and even if they had, a great many people

would still remain prejudiced. Most packers think, therefore, that it is

best to play safe and make their catsup without chemical preservative,

relying solely upon sterilization to keep their product from spoiling up

to the time the bottle is opened, and upon so called “natural”

preservatives to keep it from fermenting after the cork is drawn.

“Natural” Preservatives

That these “natural” preservatives, when present in large quantity, as

they sometimes are, may be more harmful to the stomach than a minute

quantity of benzoate of soda, is surely a reasonable supposition. I have

known of people getting sick directly after a meal by eating a good deal

of catsup of high acidity on a steak and drinking milk along with it. At

least the sickness was attributed to this combination, and it doesn’t

seem unreasonable. A high acetic acid acidity will keep catsup as well

or better than ⅒th of 1% of sodium benzoate will. There are catsups on

the market made “without preservative” that would probably never

ferment, even if exposed to the air for a year, because they contain so

much acetic acid. The raw acetic acid is, of course, not permitted to be

used, but a very strong distilled vinegar is used containing about 10%

of acetic acid.

The “natural” preservatives of catsup are the vinegar, sugar, salt, and

spices. The vinegar probably exerts 80% of the preserving property, the

sugar about 10% and the salt and spices together 10%. The sugar would

have much greater preserving properties if it was present in higher

concentration as in preserves or jelly. It is doubtful if the

preservative properties of sugar are very great when it is only present

to the extent of about 10 or 15%, and the product is of a liquid nature

like catsup.

Proper Acidity

The proper thing for a packer of non-preservative catsup to do is to

strike a happy medium on acidity; use enough vinegar to keep it under

almost any conditions, but not so much as to almost entirely mask the

tomato flavor and require sugar in such large quantity as to make the

final product resemble tomato preserves. A good total acidity is 1.25%,

figured as acetic acid. This figure includes both the acetic acidity of

the vinegar and the natural acidity of the tomato. If a catsup is

properly manufactured, this acidity should answer practically all

purposes. The catsup packer should not be expected to make catsup which

will keep in perfect condition in restaurants where absolutely no care

or intelligence is used in handling it. This class of restaurant

proprietor is fortunately in a decided minority, but rather than make a

catsup that will be so strongly acid that it will stand up under his

treatment, he should be educated to use a little care in the handling of

the catsup.

The following is a common abuse in restaurants. We will say, for

example, that three catsup bottles are on the tables containing from a

half inch to two inches of catsup. The waitress does not like to put a

bottle which is almost empty before a customer, so she pours the

contents of two of the three bottles into the other one. The catsup in

these bottles may be a week old. When the contents of the bottle

containing this mixture are almost gone she pours the rest of it into

another partly filled bottle and so on, so that some of the bottles may

contain catsup which is over a month old, and in a warm, poorly

ventilated restaurant it is apt to start fermenting. The proprietor

should be educated to the fact that when using a non-preservative catsup

he must not pour it from one bottle to another, but must leave it in the

original container until almost gone, and then use the balance for

making tomato sauce, spaghetti sauce, and for flavoring soups, gravies,

etc.

One advantage the packer using benzoate of soda has over the

non-preservative packer is that he can make his catsup so that it will

keep properly and at the same time maintain the natural tomato flavor to

a high degree. The tomato flavor is maintained because it is not largely

masked by the use of a lot of vinegar and sugar. The packer using

benzoate rarely uses more than a third as much vinegar or half as much

sugar as the non-preservative packer.

Many non-preservative catsup makers who read this will think a total

acidity of 1.25% is higher than necessary. They will say to themselves

that the acidity on their catsup never runs over 1%, and they have never

had any complaints. It may be that they do not have a very big

restaurant trade where so many of the fermentation complaints come from,

or that they do not have a very wide distribution of their product so

that it is subjected to all sorts of climatic conditions, or it may be

that they are having a case of fermentation now and then in households

but never hear about it. In that case the housewife usually merely drops

that brand and buys another one next time. But where a restaurant or

hotel is having fermentation trouble, the manufacturer is sure to hear

about it quick.

It is wise to allow a fair margin of safety, and my experience is that a

total acidity of 1.25% is not too high. Quite a few catsup packers

maintain an acidity between 1.50% and 1.75%, and one large concern has

for years kept the acidity of their catsup around 2%. This, however,

seems unnecessarily high. Acidity will be discussed further in the next

chapter.

Processing Catsups

Non-preservative catsups should either be processed after filling and

sealing, or the bottles should be sterilized before filling and the

catsup filled very hot without giving an after-sterilization. Catsups

made with the addition of benzoate of soda are not processed; however,

the fact that benzoate is used should not cause laxness at any stage in

the manufacturing process. It is a mistake for manufacturers to think

that ⅒th of 1% of benzoate of soda will keep their product in perfect

condition regardless of how careless they are in their manufacturing

processes.

Advantage of Benzoate Catsups

Some brands of benzoate catsup enjoy a very good sale, and are popular

with those who do not like a strongly acid and sugary catsup, but prefer

one which is mild and in which the predominating flavor is one of tomato

blended with mild spicing. A restaurant using a catsup or chili sauce of

this character will almost always use more of it than they will of a

strongly acid catsup which is highly spiced. If the catsup is mild, more

of it is usually used at a time.

Causes of Poor Color and Flavor

The chief objections to most of the catsups on the market are a lack of

bright red color, and a more or less scorched taste. This may be due to

a number of causes. The brownish color may be due to underripe tomatoes,

or to tomatoes which were picked during a spell of cold, dark weather.

It takes sunshine to give tomatoes a brilliant color, and when there is

an absence of sunshine for a week or ten days many of the tomatoes will

rot before they attain a bright red color. At such times during the

season it is impossible to get a brilliant color, but if the packer will

exercise as much control as he is able to over the picking, persuading

the farmers to hold their tomatoes back just as long as possible, he

will not have a great deal of such goods and he can get a fair color out

of what he does get, out of these dull colored tomatoes. He should be

careful not to mix brownish tinted catsup with the brilliant red goods.

If he will keep similar shades of catsup in the same shipment he is not

nearly as apt to have complaints as he will have if he mixes different

colors. It is even more important that all the bottles in one case

should be very nearly alike. A grocer who receives a case of catsup all

of which is very slightly off in color will usually not complain unless

it is decidedly off. If, however, off colored bottles are mixed in the

same case with bottles of a brilliant red color, the poor colored goods

suffer greatly by comparison, and then there is apt to be a complaint.

The other causes of poor colored catsup are scorching at some stage in

the manufacturing process and too much cooking. By too much cooking is

not only meant too long a cook at one time, but also too much cooking in

the aggregate. For example, a packer receives tomatoes of good color and

he cooks them into pulp, which requires a cook of thirty minutes. He

packs the pulp in No. 10 cans and sterilizes it about forty minutes, and

he has a good colored pulp, as it has only received two short cookings.

He stores this pulp for several months, and then makes it into catsup.

It is reheated, which is hard on the color, as heat applied to cold pulp

for five minutes to bring it to a boil seems to hurt the color as much

as a half hour added on to the cook after the pulp is hot. After

reheating, it is cooked into catsup, which requires about thirty

minutes, and after being bottled it is sterilized at a high temperature

for about an hour, which makes the fourth cooking those tomatoes get.

This is what is meant by too much cooking in the aggregate. Too long a

cook at one time will, of course, also darken the product.

Scorching is more frequent with catsup made from pulp than with that

made from fresh tomatoes. Much of the catsup made from pulp, although

not actually scorched, has a very faint scorched flavor to it.

It is hard indeed to make catsup from pulp which tastes like the goods

which is bottled from freshly run tomatoes. It falls behind in both

color and flavor. One finds that color and flavor are very closely

associated in catsup. A bright red catsup is practically always a fine

flavored product, while a dull colored catsup with a brownish cast to it

very frequently has a more or less unpleasant taste with the suggestion

of being somewhat scorched.

Advantage of Direct Conversion of Tomatoes Into Catsup

Many catsup makers are doing away with winter packing almost altogether.

They bottle at least 90% of their catsup direct from fresh tomatoes.

Half of the remaining 10% is made from 50% fresh tomatoes and 50% pulp,

the pulp being added about ten minutes before the cooking is completed.

This fresh tomato and pulp mixture makes a much better flavored product

than one can expect to get from straight pulp. Pulp can always be used

in combination with fresh tomatoes at the beginning and at the close of

the season when the tomato receipts are light.

Catsup made direct from tomatoes is not only of superior quality, but it

can be manufactured at least 20c a dozen cheaper for the pint size than

catsup made from canned pulp. In many cases the difference will run more

than that. Packers who put up a general line of tomato products will do

well to reserve their fresh tomatoes for catsup, and to use their pulp

for bean sauce, spaghetti sauce, tomato soup, etc., all of which can be

made better from pulp than one can make catsup from pulp.

Thickness

The thickness of catsups found on the market is fairly uniform, and

there is rarely a cause for complaint on this score. When catsup is

packed in cans, the thicker it is the better the buyer likes it as a

rule; however with bottled goods excessive thickness is not a virtue but

a cause of much annoyance to the consumer. It is better to have it just

a shade too thin than too thick.

Spicing and Sweetness

Improper spicing of catsups is not a common fault either. Even where

essential oils are used exclusively for spicing, a real good flavor can

be had if the oils are properly administered. As to sweetness, many

catsup makers are coming to the conclusion that the public is demanding

a slightly sweeter catsup than was generally packed eight or ten years

ago. There is very little doubt but what a composite sample from a half

dozen prominent brands of today, if compared with a composite sample

taken from the same brands ten years ago, would show quite an increase

in sweetness. One of the largest selling brands on the market has a

distinct sweetish taste, and the public, at least a large percentage of

it, seems to like it. There are still many who like a tart or slightly

sour taste, but the tendency is unquestionably in the other direction.

“Black Neck”

A rather common defect in bottled catsup is what is commonly called

“black neck,” which is a darkened space in the neck of the bottle, all

the way from a half inch to over two inches in depth. Several years ago

I made a very thorough investigation of the causes of black necked

catsup, and every thing seems to point to the fact that in nine cases

out of ten it comes from leakage of air into the closure of the bottle.

The space between the surface of the catsup and the top of the bottle

should be a vacuum if the seal is perfect, as this space is left by the

contraction of the catsup in the bottle when it cools. Many closures, no

matter what style, do not seem to be entirely impervious to air, and the

catsup gradually darkens as the air is gradually admitted. A suggestion

for overcoming “black neck” will be given later under the head of

“stacking catsup.”

General Attractiveness

The general attractiveness of the package is, of course, important. A

cheap, unvarnished label which quickly becomes dirty looking, and a

cheap tin cap which gets black and filthy looking on the inside after

the catsup has been open a few days, do not enhance the sale of a

product, and only make a very slight reduction in the manufacturing

cost. The packer should by all means use either a re-tinned cap or an

inside enameled cap. Ordinary plain tin caps should be absolutely

barred, as they are entirely unfit for a bottled condiment which

contains as much acid as catsup.

Although the remarks in this chapter have been confined to catsup, it

should be understood that they apply equally to chili sauce, which only

differs from catsup in that it is made from peeled instead of strained

tomatoes, and is usually a little bit more spicy.

CHAPTER IX

A DISCUSSION OF THE INGREDIENTS OF CATSUP; WHEN AND HOW THEY SHOULD BE

ADDED; AND THE AMOUNTS OF EACH PER 100 GALLONS OF FINISHED CATSUP

Practically all of this chapter will be devoted to non-preservative

catsup. The use of benzoate of soda and the changes in the formula which

its use involves will be briefly discussed at the end of the chapter.

Measuring the Volume of Tomato Juice

When catsup is being manufactured direct from tomatoes the tomatoes

should be previously cycloned, either by the cold or hot process. I have

never cooked catsup direct from crushed tomatoes, as it is evident that

crushed stock is open to at least two objections. The first is that the

finishing point would be rather hard to gauge accurately, due to the

presence of so many peelings, and the second is that when the peelings

and seeds are screened out by the finishing machine they would no doubt

carry some of the ingredients with them, chiefly sugar, which would be a

waste.

If the tomato juice is delivered to the catsup cooking kettle from a

“breaking tank,” as it is in the hot pulping method, the volume of

tomatoes to be used per batch of catsup is measured on the “breaking

tank,” and the cycloned juice is delivered from this tank to the catsup

cooking kettle as the condensation gradually allows more and more of it

to be taken care of.

If the cold pulping process is used some other method of measuring the

tomatoes for each batch must be used. One way is to have the catsup

cooking kettle built high enough so that it can hold the entire volume

of cycloned juice required for the batch without boiling over when the

steam is turned on. The juice is then pumped over to a certain measure

on the kettle before the cooking is begun. This requires very high

cooking tanks. Another way is to take over as much juice as the kettle

will hold and concentrate it, and then shut off the steam and take over

another measured volume according to a gauge on the inside of the tank

which reaches from top to bottom, and is marked off in gallons. If this

method is used the cooking kettles need not be so high. Another way is

to use a meter on the pipe line between the cyclone and the cooking

kettles, which will register, within twenty-five gallons, the volume of

tomato juice being pumped over.

It is, of course, an advantage to start the cooking as soon as the coil

or jacket is covered, so as to kill growing micro-organisms as quickly

as possible, and it is also an advantage to keep the contents of the

kettle vigorously boiling from the time the coil or jacket is covered

with the fresh juice until the batch of catsup is finished.

None of the ingredients should be added until all of the tomato juice

for the batch is in the kettle, with the exception of the bag of spices.

It is usually not considered advisable to cook batches of catsup of over

300 gallons when finished. I have cooked as much as 400 gallons at a

time, but it requires quite a long cook to complete the condensation

unless the tank has a large surface for evaporation and a coil with a

very large cooking capacity, and a high steam pressure is available.

Amount of Tomatoes

In discussing the proper amounts of the various ingredients to use, a

batch of finished catsup of 100 gallons in volume, when measured hot,

will be taken as the basis throughout this chapter.

The amount of tomatoes required to make 100 gallons of finished catsup

varies according to the season of the year and the quality of the stock.

If the tomatoes are watery, or contain so much rot that 25% or more must

be cut away, that of course makes a big difference. If, on the other

hand, the tomatoes are large and meaty, and contain scarcely any rot, a

comparatively small amount of them are required. Taking tomatoes of

average size, containing an average amount of solid matter, and from

which 10% by weight of rotten material is sorted out, it is safe to

figure on 37 bushels of tomatoes or 59⅝th bushel baskets for 100 gallons

of finished catsup.

Keeping Batches Uniform

If the catsup batches are to be kept uniform in size throughout the

season, as they should be, the quantity of tomatoes per batch will have

to be changed slightly from time to time according to the amount of

water they contain. The only safe way is to put a gauge on each cooking

tank which marks the desired volume of catsup when cooked, and to vary

the volume of tomato juice per batch to the extent which is indicated by

the gauge. If the batches are running two inches low, the cook will know

by a little experimenting just how much extra juice will be required per

batch to make it right.

Having all the batches come out exactly the same in size is important,

both in preservative and non-preservative goods. In the former, the

percentage of preservative cannot, of course, be kept uniform unless the

batches are kept uniform in size. In non-preservative goods it is

advisable to keep the percentage of acetic acid—that ingredient upon

which the keeping quality chiefly depends—as nearly uniform as possible.

Of course, if a batch runs large, the acetic acid percentage will be

low, while if the batch runs small, the acetic acid percentage will be

higher than necessary. The spicing will also be more uniform if the

batches are uniform in size.

Use of Spices in a Sack

Where the spices are put in a sack, the sack is usually tied to the

coil, if this type of cooking tank is being used, and where a jacketed

kettle is used, there being no place to tie the sack, it is usually just

thrown on top of the boiling tomato juice and allowed to float around

near the surface during the boiling. One concern uses a long pole which

is suspended from overhead and reaches to within a foot of the bottom of

the jacketed kettle. The sack is tied to this pole, and it is thus held

down during the boiling. As to whether any flavor is actually lost by

allowing the spice bag to float near the surface is a question. This

could easily be determined by an analysis of the spice residue.

Use of Spices Direct and When to Add Them

As far as I know, whole spices are always used when the spices are

placed in a sack, and when they are thrown into the catsup direct,

ground spice is used. It is claimed by some that the latter method gives

just as good results as the former, and that no advantage is to be

gained by the use of sacks. As to whether or not this is true I cannot

say, as I have never used ground spices in catsup with the exception of

pepper, ginger and paprika. The reason for using sacks, of course, is to

allow the flavor of the spice to be extracted without having the spices

come in direct contact with the catsup. If you will macerate some ground

allspice or cloves in dilute acetic acid for a while, you will notice

the black substance which is extracted, and it is surely reasonable to

suppose that at least some of this will be extracted in catsup when the

ground spices are thrown in direct. As for the cassia, there probably

would be no objection to the use of the spice direct.

The flavor of mace is lost by continued boiling, and the use of it in a

sack which stays in the boiling liquid for thirty minutes or longer is a

waste of the mace. If mace is boiled long in direct contact with the

catsup it imparts a very bitter taste. The proper way to add mace is to

throw it in direct in the broken form about three minutes before the

batch is done. Ginger should be added at the same time as mace, as its

volatile oil passes off very rapidly, and if cooked long it will

practically all be lost by volatilization. As to the pepper and paprika,

they are added direct in the ground form at the beginning of the

cooking. Mustard is also said to be used in catsup, but it apparently

isn’t used extensively.

Use of Spices in Two Batches

If the whole spices are placed in a sack it is a good idea to cook each

sack of spices in two batches. In this way more of the flavor is

extracted than would be taken out by one boiling. This can be proven by

cooking a batch of catsup with no spice other than a sack of spices

which has been previously cooked in a batch of catsup. Note the flavor

which is extracted by the second cooking, and you will see where you are

losing valuable material when you throw away a bag of spice residue

after one cooking. Of course the cook will then have two sacks of spices

in each batch—a new one and an old one, and he must mark them in some

way so he can tell which is which when the batch is drawn off. A good

way is to tie the new sack with a single knot, and the old one with a

double knot. This method seems to be less confusing to the cook than any

other.

It is also important to tie the spices in the sack loosely. If a cook is

not instructed about this he will invariably tie a cord around the sack

so close to the spices that there is no room for them to move around

while the sack is being agitated by the boiling. Undoubtedly a better

extraction can be obtained if the spices have freedom of movement in the

sacks.

What Is Extracted

What we really get from the spices is a water extract. The acetic acid

of the vinegar probably extracts a little more, but as the vinegar is

only cooked in the catsup about three minutes, a great deal of

extraction could not be expected from that source. Not only the volatile

oils, but organic compounds called esters, and also some of the

non-volatile oils are extracted from the spices. The volatile oils

produce most of the flavor, however the esters also add to the flavor

considerably. The non-volatile or “fixed” oil of cayenne pepper has

quite a strong spicy flavor, although not nearly as strong as the

volatile oil of cayenne. The fixed oils of cassia, allspice, and mace

have no flavor at all.

Even though a bag of spices be boiled in two batches of forty-five

minutes each, a great deal of their flavor is still left in them. This

has been proven by chemical analyses of spice residues. Even quite a

large percentage of the volatile oils still remain in the spice residue,

and, of course, a larger percentage of the non-volatile or fixed oils.

It is a question, however, as to whether the extraction of the volatile

oil of these spice residues would be a paying proposition. So far as I

know, none of the distillers of essential oils seem to be interested in

them.

Storing Spices

Spices should not be held in storage for a long time, particularly in

open bins, as some of their volatile oils pass off little by little into

the air and are lost. This is especially true of cassia, either ground

or broken. They should be stored in a dry place, as some of them are apt

to mold if left in an atmosphere of condensing steam, and of course this

mold would contaminate the catsup to some extent. I have seen mace which

was in a very moldy condition due to its having been stored in the cook

room for some time, and having collected moisture. Some of the milder

varieties of pepper are also known to become moldy on exposure to

extreme dampness.

Quality of Flavor

A great deal could be written about the quality of various varieties of

the same spice. All of these varieties will not be discussed here but I

will try to show how the packer is sometimes mislead by spice salesmen

who show chemical analyses of their spices as positive proof of the

actual value that they contain. As a matter of fact, the true value of a

spice cannot be shown by a chemical analysis.

Take, for example, cassia. The finest flavored cassia is the Saigon

cassia, which can be obtained in the thin quill, the medium bark, and in

the thick bark. At the other extreme we have the China cassia, which is

considerably cheaper than the Saigon. If the catsup packer is going to

judge his spices according to strength, he may find that he gets more

strength from the cheap cassia than from the expensive one. The chemical

analysis may show that the China cassia contains more essential oil than

the Saigon does. In fact, this is often the case. However, what about

the quality of that essential oil? There is the point. The essential oil

extracted from the Saigon is different from that extracted from the

China cassia. It has a more delicate, refined flavor. Its flavor is more

pleasing to the palate, and is free from “harshness,” and “strength” of

an unrefined nature.

This does not mean that one cannot make a nice flavored catsup with

China cassia, as such is not the case, but a better flavor can be

obtained with Saigon. The point is that quality of flavor as well as

quantity of flavor must be considered. Chemical analyses are only of

value when exactly the same variety of two or more samples of spice are

compared.

When it comes to cayenne pepper, the quality of the flavor is not the

important factor that it is in the milder spices. Cayenne is used to

give “hotness” to the catsup, and the hotter the cayenne is, the greater

its value to the packer. The Mombassa and the Japan chillies are the

hottest, although in recent years they have been so expensive that it is

more economical to use some of the others, even though a slightly larger

quantity may be required.

For allspice, it is not necessary to use a large, fancy berry, but a

small size which is fairly free from sticks, stones, and decayed or

pithy berries will answer the purpose just as well. The relative values

of samples can be compared by inspecting them and noting the percentage

of foreign and decayed material.

As to cloves, it is again not necessary to use a fancy article, although

all varieties will not impart exactly the same flavor, just as in the

case of cassia a different flavor is obtained from Saigon and China

cassia. Some packers like the flavor of the Zanzibar cloves, while

others give another variety slight preference, chief among which are the

Penang, Amboyna, and Pemba.

Penang and Banda are the fanciest varieties of mace, but some of the

other varieties are all right for catsup, with the exception of Bombay

mace, which has no flavor, and is considered an adulterant.

Use of Essential Oils

In many cases spices are not used at all, but their essential oils are

used instead. In other cases both spices and oils are used. Some packers

object to the use of cloves on account of the large amount of tannic

acid they contain (usually from 16 to 20%), which it is thought has a

darkening tendency, especially if any iron is present, and it is also

thought that other darkening substances are extracted from the cloves.

If the essential oil is used, this is avoided.

Essential oils, when added properly, produce a catsup of good flavor,

and the product is in every way acceptable. A better flavor, however,

can be obtained by the use of whole spices. A water extract obtained

from whole spices is different from the essential oil of the spice. It

contains the essential oil, part of it at least, but it also contains

other substances which impart flavor. The flavor produced by whole

spices is not quite as harsh as that produced by essential oils. “Harsh”

is not exactly the word, but it comes about as close to it as anything I

can think of. The whole spices impart a wealth of flavor, but there is

freedom from “strongness,” or any faint suggestion of a “drugstore

taste.” I have tasted catsups made with oils in which this “drugstore

taste”—I use the term for lack of a better one—was apparent, and it may

have been due to the quality of the essential oils used, but more than

likely was due to the fact that they were not properly administered. It

is necessary to get the oils thoroughly and evenly incorporated into the

catsup without volatilizing too much of them.

How to Add Essential Oils

The best way I know of to do this is as follows: Add the oil from a

small lipped container, like an 8 oz. glass graduate, after the catsup

is cooked, that is, just as soon as the steam is shut off of the batch,

spreading it slowly over the entire surface of the catsup, not dumping

it in one spot; then turn the steam on full, and leave it on five

seconds; then shut it off immediately, and open the exhaust. This will

not make an absolutely perfect mixture of the oil in the catsup, but it

will do the job better than agitators, and by only leaving the steam on

five seconds very little of the oil is lost by volatilization. The

brushing of the catsup through the finishing machine also helps in more

thoroughly mixing in the oil, and if the catsup is then pumped from the

finisher to a receiving tank over the filling machine, as is often done,

the mixing is made still more complete by the pumping process. If a

number of different essential oils are used they are mixed together

before adding. One large manufacturer whose catsup is well liked uses no

whole spices at all, even using oleo resin capsicum instead of ground

cayenne pepper. Oleo resin capsicum is much hotter than the ground

cayenne, and, of course, a very small quantity of it is required.

Paprika

Paprika is used to a very large extent in catsup, chiefly because of its

bright red color, which assists to some extent in toning up the color of

a catsup that would otherwise be rather unattractive because of its

brownish cast. If any appreciable help is to be obtained from paprika,

it must be used in large quantity, and it must be of the most brilliant

red variety. Much paprika has a dull brick or brownish color, and it

might as well be left out. The use of only a pound of paprika to 100

gallons of catsup scarcely produces any effect on the color. If paprika

is used, at least two pounds should be used for this quantity of catsup,

otherwise it might almost as well be omitted. Of course, paprika is a

spice as well as a color, and on that account it can be used in catsup

without any statement on the label to the effect that the product is

colored artificially. It does impart some flavor, but the flavor isn’t

particularly desirable in catsup. If paprika was yellow or brown,

instead of red, it is doubtful if it would be used at all in catsup;

certainly it would not be used extensively.

Most of the best catsups on the market are made without paprika, and

these catsups are as a rule the most brilliant in color, as they are

made almost entirely from fresh tomatoes. The color is not killed by a

long succession of cooking processes, and therefore the use of paprika

is unnecessary and would add absolutely nothing to the color.

Paprika is a rather poor excuse for a coloring matter anyway. The

coloring principle in the spice is not soluble in the catsup, and all of

the color is retained within the grains of the powder. If this coloring

principle dissolved in the catsup, as does cochineal, the effect would

be very good. The use of paprika is very easily detected by pouring out

a bit of the catsup on a piece of paper, and making a thin layer of it.

The grains of paprika then stand out very prominently.

Some catsups are literally “loaded” with paprika, and they have a sort

of brick color, which is somewhat different from the color produced by

fresh, ripe tomatoes. This catsup would no doubt be brown if so much

paprika wasn’t used. As to flavor, such goods are usually not very good,

and are often very poor indeed.

Quantities of Spices and Oils per Batch

As to the quantity of spices to use per 100 gallons of catsup, I would

suggest 3 oz. of ground cayenne pepper, 1½ lbs. of medium bark, broken

Saigon cassia, 1¼ lbs. of whole allspice, and 1¼ lbs. of whole cloves.

The cassia, allspice, and cloves go in a sack, and the cayenne goes in

direct at the beginning of the cooking. If paprika is used it is put in

with the cayenne. If the essential oil of cloves is preferred to the

whole spice, 1 oz. of it will give a pronounced clove taste, although

not too pronounced.

If it is desired to use essential oils altogether, with the exception of

the cayenne pepper, a good mixture is ½ oz. oil of cassia, 1 oz. oil of

cloves, and ½ oz. oil of pimento. A good flavored catsup can also be

obtained with the amounts of pepper, oil of cassia, and oil of cloves

given above, but with no oil of pimento.

It should be remembered that with these oils the most important point is

the successful administration of them. Giving proper quantities to use

amounts to nothing if they are improperly administered. In fact, any

kind of a formula for making a tomato product amounts to very little in

itself. It doesn’t make any difference how fine a formula a man has, it

by no means assures a good product. When the formula is obtained a bare

start is made. In the hands of one manufacturer excellent results will

be obtained with the use of a formula, while another man who has

practically the same formula will make an absolute failure of his

manufacturing.

Essential Oils Economical

The use of spice oils is more economical as far as the actual expense of

the formula is concerned, and it is also very convenient, as you have

your flavoring in small packages in a highly concentrated form. As these

oils are distilled from spices which are wormy, or for some other reason

not marketable as whole spices, the spice from which they are distilled

can be obtained very cheap. As a rule the oils are distilled where the

spices are grown, and only the essential oil is imported. In order to

make the oils comply with the regulations of the U. S. Pharmacopoeia, it

is usually necessary to re-distill them here, as they often contain lead

from being transported in lead containers.

Adulteration of Ground Spices

If ground spices are used they should be bought from a concern of very

high standing, as their adulteration is by no means an uncommon

practice. Deception is, of course, difficult in whole spices. Such

adulteration as the use of ten or twenty per cent of ground pepper

shells in ground pepper has frequently been discovered by government

chemists. Ground olive stones, sawdust, brick dust, ground cocoanut

shells, and many other inert substances have also been found in ground

spices. Adulteration can almost always be detected by either

microscopical or chemical examination, but there have been cases where

the adulteration has been so cleverly done that the only way it could be

verified was by detective work on the part of government agents.

Onions and Garlic

Onions for catsup need not be carefully peeled, as a little peeling will

not impart any foreign taste. It is well, however, to remove that part

of the peeling which is dry and comes off easily. The finishing machine

will remove that portion of the peeling which is left.

The sweet Bermuda onions are not as good for catsup as are the stronger

kind, as it takes too many of them to impart a distinct onion flavor.

The onions should, of course, be washed if they are not clean when taken

from the sack. Some firms use an onion washing and peeling machine and

they like the machine very much. A coarse grinding of the onions is

sufficient.

Some packers use garlic and some do not. Garlic is treated in exactly

the same way as onions but should be ground rather fine. The cloves of

the garlic should be removed from the enveloping tissue, but it is not

necessary to separate the individual cloves from the hard, fibrous

coating which surrounds them.

Onions and garlic should be added as soon as all of the tomato juice for

the batch is boiling in the kettle. For a 100 gallon batch, two gallons

of chopped onions and ½ lb. of ground garlic are about the right

amounts. Ground onions and garlic should not be left standing over

night, as they get black and lose their flavor. In cases where some are

unavoidably left over, they should be covered with vinegar and salt.

Sugars

The sugars most commonly used in catsup are granulated cane, clarified

cane, granulated beet, and raw, unrefined sugars.

The purest of these are granulated cane and granulated beet, which are

equally good. There is a prejudice against beet sugar by many people in

the east, who think it is not as good as cane sugar, but this is a

mistaken idea. Any food chemist will tell you that they are the same,

and are equally good. All granulated sugar, whether cane or beet, must

contain at least 99.5% of sucrose (pure sugar) to comply with the

federal standard. And remember that sucrose is sucrose, whether derived

from sugar cane or sugar beet. Almost all granulated sugar will test

99.8% sucrose, which is slightly above the minimum established by the

government. This leaves a negligible quantity of impurities, which in

the case of beet sugar are derived from the beet, and in cane sugar from

the cane. If there is any difference between the two sugars it lies in

this very minute quantity of impurities and such a difference can surely

not be objected to. Granulated sugar, whether cane or beet, is the

purest food article in commerce.

Clarified cane sugar is not quite as pure as granulated, but when used

in catsup will make equally as good a product as granulated will;

however, as the percentage of sucrose is not so high, a little more of

it has to be used. A considerable saving can often be made by buying

clarified instead of granulated sugar, but the purchase should be made

on polariscope test, so the buyer knows exactly what he is getting.

Raw sugars are slightly less pure than clarified, although there is very

little difference between the best grades of raw sugar and clarified.

Good centrifugal raw sugar will contain about 96.5% of sucrose. The

lower grades of raw sugars should not be used, as they are dark and will

darken the catsup to some extent, but there is scarcely any color to the

better grades, and they give good results. The use of raw sugars often

permits quite a saving on the sugar bill. They should be bought on

polariscope test, and when received should be tested against the sample

on which they were bought.

Sugar Syrups

“Cane sugar syrups” have for several years been offered to canners and

preservers, and they are advertised to be equal pound for pound to

granulated sugar and to be considerably cheaper. The samples of these

heavy, colorless syrups that I have tested have contained a considerable

percentage of invert sugar, and also moisture. The moisture is, of

course, worthless, and as the invert sugar is less sweet than sucrose it

is ridiculous to claim that such a product is equal in sweetness to

granulated sugar. These syrups are said to be used by some catsup

makers, however the saving that is effected by their use is probably

imaginary.

The sugar can be added at any time after all the tomato juice for the

batch is boiling in the kettle. Some prefer to add it at the end of the

batch so as to run less danger of scorching; however, if the coils are

clean, and there is a good head of steam, and the taps are working

right, there need be no fear of burning, even if the sugar is added

twenty minutes before the batch is done. The sugar should be put in

small pails or boxes, so that it can be scattered easily over the

surface of the boiling pulp. If it is put in heavy containers it is apt

to be dumped in one spot, and may not all dissolve, as much of it may

fall in a lump below the coil where the circulation is not good.

If the coils or traps are not working properly, or the tomatoes are a

little green, and the cook is having trouble with the catsup burning on

the coils badly, it is advisable to not add the sugar until a few

minutes before the batch is done.

If 10½ gallons of 100 grain vinegar are used to a 100–gallon batch,

about 105 pounds of granulated sugar will be required.

Use of Sugar in Large Quantities

It should not be thought that extra sugar is going to increase the

volume of catsup in proportion to the volume of extra sugar added. I am

reminded in this connection of a conversation I had with a large catsup

packer, in which we were discussing the large amount of sugar and

vinegar required to insure the keeping quality of non-preservative

catsup, as compared with the amounts usually used in benzoate goods.

This packer made non-preservative goods altogether, and he surprised me

by remarking: “What if we do have to use a hundred pounds or so more

sugar to the batch; we buy the sugar at 8c a pound, and sell it for

about 11c a pound in catsup. Where do we lose anything?” I was surprised

at the remark because I thought he should know better than that. If

catsup was bought and sold by weight that argument might hold good.

However, regardless of the fact that the net weight in pounds and ounces

avoirdupois is always stated on the label, the public buys catsup by

volume. Your pint bottle may hold 17 oz. avoirdupois, or it may hold 18

oz; however, in the eyes of the consumer it is a pint, and it will not

bring more money because its net weight is slightly greater than that in

the pint size of some other brand. It is the same way with the 10 oz.

and 11 oz. sizes. The public buys by volume. When we quote prices on the

larger sizes, it is so many dozen No. 10 at so much per dozen, or so

many dozen gallon jars at so much per gallon. Who cares what the net

weight is in the No. 10 can, or the gallon jar, as long as the container

is full—or as full as it should be?

Therefore, the subject of gain or loss caused by the addition of extra

sugar resolves itself into the question of the additional volume

produced. If I add a hundred pounds more of sugar per batch, how much

will my volume be increased? That is the question. It is one which I

cannot answer definitely, and I have never seen any figures on it, but I

can say this much—that every pound of sugar added to catsup in excess of

the minimum amount required is a very great loss to the packer. A 5–gal.

pail of granulated sugar will not add anywhere near five gallons to the

catsup. One gallon will come nearer to it. The reason for this is that

the sugar dissolves in the tomato juice, and although it increases the

specific gravity of that juice, it adds very little to its volume.

As to the extra vinegar which must be added to counteract the sweetness

of this extra sugar, this is an absolute loss as far as volume is

concerned. The catsup must be reduced to a definite thickness, no matter

how much vinegar is used, and if more vinegar is used, more water must

be boiled out to allow for the thinning down caused by this additional

vinegar.

Salt

An air dried salt of a fair degree of purity (about 98 per cent on a

moisture-free basis) is perfectly satisfactory for catsup. The purer

salts are often desirable in the canning of vegetables where lime and

magnesia are apt to have a toughening or hardening effect, but in catsup

a very small quantity of lime and magnesia salts have no ill effect.

Salt should be added a few minutes before the vinegar is put in. It is

desirable to add the salt toward the end of the cooking, as it acts to

some extent on the copper of the coil or kettle. Great care should be

used in so adding the salt that it will all dissolve. I have often seen

a large mass of undissolved salt in the bottom of a cooking tank after a

batch of catsup was let down, even when the salt had been thrown in a

half hour before the cooking was completed. The reason for this was that

the salt was thrown in without scattering it, and it fell quickly to the

bottom of the tank in one mass. Owing to the fact that the circulation

below the coil was poor, and that salt does not dissolve readily in

boiling water or boiling tomato juice, a large proportion of it remained

undissolved.

Salt is less soluble in hot water than in cold water. It should be

placed in small containers, such as small pails or boxes, so that it

will be light in weight and can easily be scattered over the surface of

the boiling pulp. If this is done, and done slowly, there is no need of

agitating devices to dissolve the salt. Agitators are also unnecessary

to dissolve the sugar if it is added in this way, although sugar

dissolves more readily than salt.

Thirty pounds of salt is about the right amount for a 100–gallon batch.

Vinegar

The kind of vinegar usually used in catsup is the strong distilled

vinegar—about 100 grain, which contains 10 per cent of acetic acid. The

stronger the vinegar, the better, as the weaker vinegars require too

much volume to be handled, and dilute the catsup too much when they are

added.