Political Carttoon, The Evening World (New York, N.Y.).
June 9, 1906, Final Results Edition, Page 3, Image 3. Chronicling America.
The Public was concerned over the unsafe meat they were consuming.
THE PURE FOOD AND
DRUG ACT OF 1906
S. 88, Draft bill of the Pure Food and Drug Act, December 14, 1905. U.S. Capitol.
A proposal was drafted with the assistance of Neill, Reynolds, and Wilson, then passed on May 25, 1906. Though the Neill-Reynolds report didn't pertain specifically to the Pure Food Bill, the public’s reaction resulted in the passage of the bill. The Pure Food and Drug Act was then approved on June 30th, 1906. Several bills regarding the supervision of food & drug production and safety were previously discussed, though none officially passed.
The Pure Food & Drug Act of 1906
"The Pure Food and Drug Act prevented the manufacture, sale, or transportation of adulterated or
misbranded foods, drugs, medicines, and liquors."
-U.S. Department of Agriculture.
The Pure Food and Drug Act, 1906, Congress.
The Pure Food and Drug Act, 1906, Congress.
The Evening Herald, Dec 31, 1906
"The Federal Meat Inspection Act of 1906 (FMIA, created in addition to the PFADA, 1906.) was enacted to prevent adulterated or misbranded meat and meat products from being sold as food and to ensure that meat and meat products are slaughtered and processed under sanitary conditions. The Act requires covered meat products to be labeled and packaged in accordance with the chapter to effectively regulate commerce and protect the health and welfare of consumers."
-Animal Legal & Historical Center, Michigan State University.
Inspections
The Pure Food and Drug Act allowed for government overview through inspections, declared to examine for safety hazards
in factories. This includes mold, overcrowding, and other circumstances which don't comply with the regulations.
An inspection of hogs ready for the cooler at Swift & Company, Chicago, Illinois, February 24, 1906. H.O White Co.
FDA inspectors seizing crates of contaminated frozen eggs.
National Archives, Records of the Food and Drug Administration.
"Was it permitted to believe that there was nowhere upon the earth, or above the earth, a heaven for hogs, where
they were requited for all this suffering? ...Suddenly it had swooped upon him, and had seized him by
the leg. Relentless, remorseless, it was..."
-Sinclair, Upton. The Jungle:(1906).
Bureau of Chemistry
"Several of the scientific experts who constitute the aids and Lieutenants under Dr. Carl L. Alsberg, Chief of the United States Bureau of Chemistry, and who diligently and quite impartially play detective on germs and end non-law-abiding food manufacturers, are young women."
"They are both clever and thorough, and not only are they among the very best aids to the Government in the detection of infractions of the Pure Food and Drug Act, but they have given excellent service during the conduct of prosecutions. In several notable cases won by the Government in persecutions of food producers, the success of the government's case has been largely attributable to their preliminary work and their court testimony."
New York Times (1857-1922); Aug 3, 1913; ProQuest Historical Newspapers: The New York Times.
Women played a major role in labs, detecting infractions of the act. The evidence they collected in their investigations assisted in court cases against food factories.
Tomato Catsup Case
Industrial age ketchup was often made from fermented tomato cores and skins, vinegar for flavor, and dyes to make it red.
National Archives, Records of the Food and Drug Administration.
Adulturation of Tomato Catsup, May 13, 1912, Secretary of Agriculture.
"The Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906, signed by President Theodore Roosevelt, meant that ketchup—and its rotting, explosive tomato ingredients—was now regulated. In the image above 1909, the company making “Squire Tomato Catsup” was prosecuted and fined $50 for making ketchup from “Decomposed Material.”
-National Archives Pieces of History.
“Elk Pride Tomato Catsup” was found to have yeasts, bacteria, and mold filaments in samples of its products when tested by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The shipment was condemned for destruction when it was found to be “adulturated in violation of the Food and Drugs Act . . . because it consisted in whole or in part of a filthy, putrid, or decomposed vegetable substance.”
-National Archives Pieces of History.
After the 1906 Pure Food and Drugs Act passed, product labels advertised purity.
National Archives, Records of the Patent and Trademark Office