Filth in Fruit Paste

Abstract

Abstract Development of a method for recovering all types of filth encountered in fruit paste has been initiated. A number of people were consulted about their experiences in examinations of fig paste by method 36.053 and their efforts to improve recovery of rodent hairs, fly eggs, and maggots by supplementary or substitute procedures. Their answers indicate that a method incorporating extensive digestion of the fruit tissue to liberate filth elements, followed by sieving on a No. 140 screen and washing forcibly with a spray of water to reduce the amount of fruit tissue, then examining the sieve residue microscopically for insects and hairs, appears feasible. Application of this procedure to a commercial straight Calimyrna fig paste resulted in improved filth recovery compared to the AOAC method but proved time-consuming due to the amount of residual fig tissue on the sieve. Kerosene-water flotation treatment of the washed residue on the screen expedited the counting of filth elements, giving recoveries intermediate to those obtained by the AOAC method and direct microscopic examination of digested and sieved residues. It is recommended that the study be continued.