Western Regional Research Laboratory

Fruits, vegetables, alfalfa, poultry, and wheat are the crops assigned to the Western Laboratory. These products, with the exception of alfalfa and wheat, are used almost entirely for human food. For that reason research on food products and processes commands an important place in the work of the Western Laboratory.

During the war, studies on vegetable dehydration were urgently needed to assist industry in meeting military demands for large quantities of dried foods. More than a billion pounds of dehydrated vegetables were produced during the war. Several important discoveries made at the Western Laboratory helped make possible this production. It was shown, for example, that easily controllable factors, such as moisture content and the composition of the package atmosphere, are effective in preventing rancidity and staleness in many kinds of dehydrated vegetables. Improved processing methods, studies on the suitability of raw materials, more precise analytical procedures, and better designs for equipment are among the contributions. A large amount of new information is available in the form of publications on these and other related subjects.

Commercial production of spray-dried whole-egg powder was greatly increased during the early months of the war to such an extent that egg drying became a major wartime industry, with an annual volume of 300 million pounds. As many servicemen can testify, serious trouble developed with the spoilage of stored egg powders. To solve the problem, research for the improvement of the keeping quality of dried eggs was requested by the Army Quartermaster Corps and much work was done on it at the Western Laboratory. Factors such as moisture content, atmosphere in the sealed container, and acidification of the powders were studied. Besides, chemical research yielded important basic information on the components and reactions in dried eggs that cause spoilage.

The control of acidity during the drying and storage of eggs will extend by at least four times the useful "shelf life" of the product. The beating or whipping properties of unacidified-spray dried eggs are poor, while those that have been properly acidified before drying are about equal to fresh eggs. The process consists of adding a small amount of hydrochloric acid to the eggs before drying. After dehydration, enough sodium bicarbonate is mixed with the dried powdered eggs to neutralize the acid. Upon reconstitution of the powder with water, the reaction between the acid and soda forms a small amount of sodium chloride. The salt thus introduced is barely detectable. The results of the studies on dried eggs make them a much better and more useful material and may thus serve to provide additional market opportunities.

Research on frozen foods is an important activity at the laboratory. Although a large and expanding industry now exists, the freezing methods of preserving foods present many problems that require technical attention. Work was done on fruit purees and other contributions have been made in freezing technology.

The pack of frozen apricots in California alone increased from 55,000 pounds in 1940 to 34,800,000 pounds in 1944, and that of peaches from 97,000 to 22,700,000 pounds. Most of these frozen fruits were used in pies. A large share of them was treated with a sodium bisulfite bath to prevent darkening, a procedure developed at the Western Laboratory. Large quantities of fruit were processed in that way which could not be canned because of metal shortages. It was noted that scalding sweet corn on the cob before removing and freezing the kernels gave a better product than when removal from the cob is the first step. Progress has been made in solving the problem of preventing the development of undesirable flavors in frozen peas. Tests to determine the sanitary history of frozen fruits and vegetables have been developed, together with other procedures, and recommendations to assure a continuation of the generally good conditions of sanitation that now prevail in this industry.

It has been found that some wastes from canneries and freezing plants can be employed as culture media to grow useful yeasts, molds, or bacteria. One example is the use of pear cannery waste in the production of a feed yeast rich in proteins and vitamins. Semicommercial-sized batches of yeast products have been made and are being tested for their feed value by cooperation with the Oregon Agricultural Experiment Station.

Another possibility under investigation is the use of the wastes as a culture medium for the production of antibiotic compounds. The juice from waste asparagus butts is especially suitable for this purpose. Among the antibiotics being studied are tyrothricin, citrinin, and subtilin. Subtilin was discovered and named by the Western Laboratory in 1943. A method for its preparation has been found and tests were started in cooperating medical clinics to determine its usefulness. Preliminary indications are that subtilin may be helpful in treating tuberculosis and amoebic dysentery. The use of these and other similar antibiotics also is being investigated for the control of plant diseases. For this purpose it is not necessary to purify the products; hence costs will be much lower than for a material, planned for medical use.

Investigations on different phases of fiber production from proteins are under way in all four regional laboratories. At the Western Laboratory the proteins are the keratins (important constituents in feathers, hooves, hair, and horn) and the proteins from wheat, alfalfa, and egg white. Each has been used in the experimental production of fibers, plastics, and adhesives. Most of the work done thus far is quite fundamental in nature, in order to establish a firm scientific basis for the production of useful specialized products. Keratin proteins are of particular significance because they are nonfood proteins and are, for the main part, now wasted or diverted into products of low value.

The use of agricultural products as basic raw materials for industry holds great promise for the country as a whole. Much of our economy is based on the utilization of expendable raw materials drawn from the oil well and the mine. When these materials are gone, and the time is near for some and distant for others, we shall be faced with the necessity of turning to the supply of reproducible raw materials offered by agriculture. At present we are in the position of an individual who is living on his capital. When that capital is gone, there will be none to replace it. Let us live industrially on our agricultural products, our income, and postpone the bankruptcy which will face the country when our stored-up supplies of fuel and other materials are spent.

THE AUTHOR

H. T. Herrick is special assistant to the chief of the Bureau of Agricultural and Industrial Chemistry. After 15 years' experience in industrial work, Mr. Herrick came to the Department in 1926. He has been chief, Industrial Farm Products Research Division; assistant chief, Bureau of Agricultural Chemistry and Engineering; and director, Northern Regional Research Laboratory.