VEGETABLE DEHYDRATION

Wairarapa Times-Age, 14 September 1942, Page 4

VEGETABLE DEHYDRATION

EXPERIMENTS IN CANADA.

IMPORTANCE OF NEW PROCESS.

OTTAWA.

Experiments in vegetable dehydration which have been stimulated owing to war conditions and difficulties of transportation and refrigeration bid fair to result in a much wider consumption and a much wider export of the products obtained than hitherto have existed.

Progress in vegetable and fruit dehydration, particularly during recent months, has advanced the all-round quality of the products involved to the point where they may now be placed in the top rank of processed food. It is recalled that in the last war, the dried vegetables and fruits served out with the rations, were not very favourably received by the troops. Their disfavour, it is stated, was justified because at that time dried vegetables were “just vegetables that had been dried.” They were toiigh and tasteless; their vitamin value was very small; and if the vegetables had been kept for a year, only dire necessity compelled consumption. But that has all been changed. Recently a demonstration was given in Ottawa of dehydrated vegetables processed in Canadian factories for and under the direction of the Agricultural Supplies Board. Carrots, turnips, cabbage, pickled beets and potatoes (mashed, riced, French fried and pan fried) were served, and the concensus of opinion was that they could not be distinguished from fresh cooked vegetables. Some of those who tasted them stated that the dehydrated products were even better than the home cooked vegetables. In the process the vegetables had lost but little of the vitamin content and nutritive value. The process of dehydration is somewhat intricate, and great car£ is exercised to ensure that none of the nutritive values are destroyed. It is estimated that a ton of potatoes (26 bags) makes 300 pounds of dehydrated potatoes, which may be packed in 15 cans of 5 gallons capacity each; 100 pounds of cabbage are reduced to 6 pounds which can be packed in a three-gallon container. When required for use the dehydrated vegetables merely have, to be soaked in sufficient cold water f° r a few h° urs w refresh them, following which they are cooked as fresh vegetables. The importance of this new process is all the greater by reason of the present shipping shortage. It is interesting to note that New Zealand at the present time is endeavouring to overcome the shortage of ie frigerator space on vessels by dehydrating butter for export purposes.