A Successful Meat Preservative.

Waikato Times, Volume XXXII, Issue 2587, 9 February 1889, Page 2 (Supplement)

A Successful Meat Preservative.

A party of influontinl citizens wore preseutatthe Australasian Wool Store.", Collinsafreet, Melbourne, on Weduosdayto witness experiments with a novel process of meat preservation, introduced into the colony by Colonel House, of the United States, where, it is stated, the success of the method has already given rise to a flourishing trade in tho exportation of fresh meat from that country. As demonstrated on llt.h insfc., tho process by which flesh of all kinds may be preserved for an almost indefinite period is exceedingly simple, consisting merely in the steepinsj of the fßsh in a liquid preparalion patented as "Beniana," the etfeet of which is to render the meat entirely unsusceptible of decomposition. By this means meat has boon kept in a fresh state for over nine months, exposed to the influences of tho atmosphere, and yet at the termination of that time has not shown any efEeet of the treatment, being; in tasto hardly distinguishable from the butcher's article. The company were shown samplos of pork that had been thus preserved for over 8 months, after bavins; been kept in the liquid for less than 00 hours. The samples were declared by alt present to be perfectly fresh and devoid of any undesirable effect from their immersion in " Beuiana." Although the efficacy of this preparation has been well established in the United States, the patentees have conducted a series of experiments in Victoria, with the object of testing whether the effectiveness of the process was likely to be interfered with by different climatic conditions, bat the result of these trials has been perfectly satisfactory. The liquid has been submitted for analysis to Mr Blackett, the Government analyst, who has certified that it contains no deleterious ingredients likely to prejudice the fitness of the meat for human consumption. The gentlemen who inspected the process on January 11 were so satisfied with the results of the experiments that they appointed a committee to act as promoters oF a public company to acquire the regulation rights for the Australasian colonies, consisting of the following Cr. Godfrey, Messrs C. Smith, S. Strettle, J. N. Walton, H. Ryan and G. Brown. It is the intention of these gentlemen to bring the scheme for the establishment of preserving factories in Victoria prominently before the public, and as the want of an effective preservative has been the only obstacle militating against the success of the meatpreserving industry.