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7 Food Drug Cosm. L.J. 5 (1952)
A History of the Adulteration of Food before 1906

handle is hein.journals/foodlj7 and id is 31 raw text is: Vol. 7, No. 1 January, 1952 food'Drug' Cosmetic law A HISTORY OF THE Adulteration of Food Before 1906 By F. LESLIE HART The Author Discusses the History of Adulteration During Four Main Periods - Ancient Times, the Medieval Period, the Period of Development of Commerce and the Legislative Period up to 1906 And chalk, and alum and plaster are sold to the poor for bread.- Alfred, Lord Tennyson, Maud (1854). T HE ADULTERATION of foods is as old as commerce itself. In early times foods were few and simple. Trade existed for the most part through barter. Markets offering fully prepared foods had not yet come into existence. Rather, such markets as did exist offered raw and crude foodstuffs. Grains and spices were not ground; vegetables and fruits were fresh or dried. Only such foods as honey, ales and wines, and oils offered much chance for sophistication. Of course, crude cheating did occur. The ancient caravans crossing the Gobi Desert with bales of tea or musk sometimes added considerable weight to this valuable merchandise by inserting rocks, and even chunks of lead into the bales. As commerce developed and knowledge spread, adulteration grew more subtle. Spices were ground, flour was milled or baked into bread, milk and cheese became articles of commerce. Each offered more opportunity for hidden sophistication. A demand for laws to control this practice then arose. For the purpose of this article, the word adulteration will have a restricted meaning. It will thus differ from the definition given in the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act I in that natural happenings to foods, such as insect infestation, or rot, and accidental contamina- SRA FDC 1. Sec. 402.

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