“What the Department of Agriculture Is Doing for the Housekeeper”
By L. A. HANSEN
The words used as the heading of this article are the title of Yearbook Separate 621, a pamphlet recently issued by the Department of Agriculture. It reviews the varied activities of the department in things that pertain to home matters. It calls attention to the increasing demand for reliable information regarding cooking, food values, dietetic principles, wearing materials, sanitation, household efficiency, etc. The interdependence of agricultural interests and home problems, and the fact that agriculture supplies the bulk of raw materials used in the home for food, for clothing, and for household equipment, bring it within the scope of the department to supply all information possible to meet the housewife’s needs and to insure a better utilization of agricultural products in the home. There are a number of bureaus through which the department works to secure its information. The utilization in the home of agricultural food products has been given special attention through the nutrition investigations of the Office of Experiment Stations the past twenty years. This has included the investigation of the composition and nutritive value of more common foodstuffs; the formulation of dietary standards; the digestibility of foods; the cooking, canning, preserving, and general care and preparation of foods; relative costs of food materials; planning of meals; and various household questions on sanitation, conveniences, and other problems. The results of the nutrition investigations have been published. About fifty numbers of the Farmers’ Bulletin, besides a number of other publications giving these, are available to those wishing them. That these are in demand is seen in that to date over twelve million copies of the Farmers’ Bulletin containing topics on food and nutrition, have been needed to meet the requests for them. The Farmers’ Bulletin has covered a great variety of topics, such as food value of milk, sugar, bread, fruits, vegetables, and eggs; bread and bread making; canned fruits, preserves, and jellies; the preparation of vegetables for the table; corn meal and its uses in the diet; Kafir corn and cowpeas and ways of using them; and the care of food in the home. Other popular publications have dealt with food customs and diet in American homes; green vegetables and their value as foodstuffs; and raisins, figs, and other dried fruits, and their uses in the dietary. Recipes are often included, gathered from many sources, compared, studied, tested, and modified before being published. A list of choice publications might be given here, but space would not permit a very complete one. Full information can be had by addressing the Department of Agriculture, Washington, D. C., asking for a list of publications on subjects of interest to housekeepers. Many of the publications referred to contain matter of special interest to those who make healthful living a study. There are also, of course, suggestions regarding the use of things for which the vegetarian or strict health reformer has no use. One must always use care and judgment in what he reads, believes, and practices. The attention and study now being given the various questions that pertain to home and living is productive of much material that makes rational living easier.