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JUN 5 1917
UNM of ºſcº.
DE PARTMENT OF COMMER C E
34.5 BUREAU OF FOREIGN AND DOMESTIC COMMERCE
•r. E. E. PRATT, Chief
SUBSTITUTES FOR TIN CANS
HOW TO OFFSET ANY
POSSIBLE SHORTAGE
Issued in Collaboration with the Bureau of Standards
WASHINGTON -
GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE
1917

SUBSTITUTES FOR TIN CANs.
How To of FSET ANY PossiblE SHORTAGE.
The Department of Commerce in cooperation with the Depart-
ment of Agriculture has long been earnestly striving to increase the
output of tin cans for food containers. To this end it has endeavored
to increase the supply of tin, to secure the continuous movement of
the materials entering into tin cans from the place of production to
the place of use, and to facilitate the supply and movement of ma-
chinery for producing cans. The Department desires in every prac-
ticable way to promote the present and permanent prosperity of the
tin-can industry. There is no possible doubt of the steady and
growing demand for its products. - X-
Tin plate is 98 per cent steel and 2 per cent tin. Steel is the back-
bone of war, and the mills have not been able to keep all their cus-
tomers fully supplied at all times. Moreover, abnormal freight
demands have made prompt deliveries uncertain. There have also
been decreased imports of pig tin, due to decreased production and
reduced shipping facilities. It is not surprising, therefore, that the
tin-plate makers can not provide the can manufacturers with suffi-
cient plate to enable them to meet the increase in the demand for
cans, which is 25 to 40 per cent greater than it was last year.
It is therefore imperative that the available supply of cans be
utilized, in so far as possible, for packing products that can be pre-
served only in tin, and that substitutes be used for other products
wherever practicable. Such containers should be cheaper than tin,
so that the ultimate benefit from lower costs may offset the initial
expense of the substitution. - -
CoST AND DESCRIPTION OF FIBER CONTAINERs.
The price of glass has steadily risen and has reached a point at
which any large extension of its use for food containers is imprac-
ticable. At present fiber or paper containers of good quality are
being produced in considerable and increasing quantities, and for
many purposes are supplanting glass and tin plate. The price of
the fiber containers depends upon the size, the quality of the paper-
pulp material, the number of treatments with paraffin, and the
amount of printed matter on the outside. The commoner types
98.653°–17 (2) - 4 -
may be obtained at 1.25 to 1.5 cents for the half-pint size, 1.25 to
1.6 cents for the pint size, and 1.5 to 1.65 cents for the quart size.
Fiber containers are made in various shapes and sizes adapted to
different purposes and may or may not be coated with paraffin,
which is chemically inert and is sometimes baked into the paper
material. Some of these containers are claimed to be air-tight,
proof against leakage, and protected from contamination by the
paraffin. Some containers appear to be more nearly air-tight than
others of the same style, probably because of better fittting covers.
These containers are light in weight, pack readily for shipment,
are easily opened, and are used but once. -
FIBER CONTAINERs FOR DELIVERING FooDs TO CONSUMER.
The demand for “ready-to-eat” foods,such as baked pork and beans,
spaghetti, etc., with the simple direction “Heat and serve,” repre-
sents the largest factor in the increased use of tin cans. These foods
must be processed in the containers at or above the temperature of
boiling water, and no substitute for tin has been found that satis-
factorily meets these conditions. However, a great economy in
tin can be effected by home cooking of such products during the
present shortage. - •
Fiber containers are recommended for the distribution by the
retailer of many foodstuffs, including milk, cream, buttermilk, ice
cream, oysters, sirups, marshmallow creams, dried fruits, preserves,
jellies, mincemeat, horseradish, relishes, pickles, deviled ham and
chicken, vinegar, dry and prepared mustard, soda water, salads,
sauerkraut, and olives. - - -
FIBER CONTAINERS FOR PACKING AND THE wholesALE TRADE.
It is claimed that dry food products such as coffee, tea, alum,
baking powder, spices, raisins, and prunes may be successfully packed
by producers and manufacturers in paper or fiber containers. For
some of those products, bags lined with tinfoil have been in successful
use for 10 years or more and they form an attractive package that is
said to be moisture proof. - -
Other commodities usually packed in tin could be marketed as
well in paper or fiber, with the advantage of lower cost. Among
these tobacco occupies a conspicuous position, and other articles are
lye, cleansers, soap powders, shoe polishes, metal polishes, soaps and
shaving preparations, toilet articles, such as talcum powder, and
various dry drugs and chemicals. Paper containers are also suggested
for preserved fruits and jellies made at home. Cloth sacks for tobacco
and wood for sirups and molasses are also recommended where retail
sales can be made in bulk. - -- -
4.
For packers of dry products who are opposed to the adoption of
fiber containers because of the good will built up upon the style
and shape of a tin container, fiber containers having a tin top and
bottom are available. These containers, when labeled, have the
appearance of all-tin cans, and are almost as serviceable. *
Purchasers of large quantities of foodstuffs, such as hotels, restau-
rants, and boarding houses, can also contribute directly to the tin-
saving campaign by buying supplies in large cans instead of small
ones. In addition to aiding in tin conservation, they will thus get
the supplies at a lower rate. -
TESTS OF SUBSTITUTE CONTAINERS–TRADE LISTS.
Certain types of these containers are now being tested to determine
to what extent the claims of their manufacturers as to their general
qualities can be substantiated. Manufacturers of substitute con-
tainers who wish their products tested should send samples to the
Bureau of Standards, Department of Commerce, with full informa-
tion regarding commodities for which the containers are specially
designed, prices, and ability to contract for early deliveries. Names
and addresses of firms prepared to supply fiber and other containers
may be obtained from the Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Commerce
or its district or cooperative offices. Cooperation is required be-
tween the Government departments, the manufacturers of tin plate
and of substitute containers, the packers of foodstuffs and of other
articles commonly put up in tin, and the general public, if the avail-
able supply of tin plate is to be limited to strictly necessary uses.
and if, at the same time, the largest possible quantity of food is to
be preserved against the special needs of the coming months.
O
__-
Gaylord Bros.
Makers
Syracuse, N.Y
PAT, JAM. 21, 1908
!
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3 9015 03599 5177

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