102 Report of Wisconsin Dairy and Food Commissioner


FOOD WORK
From year to year the reports of the Dairy and Food Department
have contained rather full discussions on the results of analysis as
shown for various foods. To my knowledge an important and large
field of activity in food work dependent to a considerable degree on the
chemistry of foods has not been reported. The correspondence almost
daily has in it letters of inquiry as to the status of food, drug and other
products of manufacture under the Wisconsin dairy, food, paint, drug
and linseed oil laws. Very frequently representatives of dealers and
manufacturers call in person, either unexpectedly or after having made
an appointment with the dairy and food commissioner. While it is
not a legal duty or function of the dairy and food commissioner to
decide for manufacturers or dealers in foods as to whether their prod-
ucts meet the requirements of law, the law states: "It shall be the
duty of the commissioner to enforce the laws regarding the production,
manufacture and sale, offering or exposing for sale or having in pos-
session with intent to sell, of any dairy, food or drug product, the
adulteration or misbranding of any article of food or drink, or con-
diment or drug and personally or by his assistants, inspectors or agents,
to inspect any milk, butter, cheese, lard, syrup, coffee, tea or other
article of food, drink, condiment or drug made or offered for sale
within this state which he may suspect or have reason to believe to be
impure, unhealthful, misbranded, adulterated or counterfeit, or in any
way unlawful, and to prosecute or cause to be prosecuted any person,
firm or corporation engaged in the manufacture or sale, offering or
exposing for sale or having in possession with intent to sell, of any
adulterated dairy product or of any adulterated, misbranded, counter-
feit, or otherwise unlawful article or articles of food or drink or condi-
ment or diug." It is thus apparent that if the article of food concern-
ing which an inquiry is received, or a conference sought, is offered for
sale in Wisconsin it becomes the duty of the commissioner to determine
whether its sale is in contravention of any of the laws he is required
to enforce. Therefore it will become necessary for him to learn all of
the facts concerning any article of food, drug, drink or condiment and
to form a judgment as to whether or not its sale is in contravention
of law, so that it is but reasonable for him to carry on this correspond-
ence and grant conferences where all of the facts are presented as a
basis for his judgment. Many times samples are submitted in con-
nection with the correspondence or in connection with the conferences.
The mutual advantage to the dealer and to the state is apparent for
if the dealer is convinced that his goods are not legally salable in
Wisconsin the cost of offering them for sale and distribution in Wis-
consin as well as later expenses due to legal action or their withdrawal
from sale may be saved, while th'e state benefits in that the time and
expense of collecting and analyzing these samples is saved. As a re-
sult of this work carried on by the commissioner many articles of food
apparently legally salable in other states are kept out of Wisconsin.
In many cases the correspondence is carried on by lawyers trained