BACON. The smoked meat product which is prepared from the sides, belly or back of hogs. A variety of bacon known as "bacon squares," which is used chiefly in cooking (as a garnish or flavouring agent), is prepared from the jowls. In the British trade, bacon ordinarily consists of the entire side or half of the hog, or the half with only the shoulder end removed. In the United States, bacon for the domestic trade consists of the smaller cuts previously mentioned.
In the days before modern methods of food preservation were introduced salt was universally used for preserving meat not re quired for immediate consumption. When farming practice did not include the provision of more than very limited supplies of winter keep for stock, farmers every autumn killed off all but a small number of their cattle, sheep and pigs and salted down the flesh for their meat supply until the following spring. Pigs were cut up, put in tubs of brine for a time and afterwards smoked in the open chimney. The principle of curing bacon is practically the same to-day although it is now carried out almost entirely at factories on a large scale. The "sides" (i.e., one half the pig divided along the backbone without the head) are placed in large tanks containing a strong solution of salt. Salt is also thoroughly rubbed into them by hand, or brine is injected by means of a syringe. Hams are often cured separately and sugar or molasses are sometimes used as well as salt in the process. The details of treatment vary and the precise method of curing is often regard ed as more or less of a trade secret on which a reputation for special quality and flavour is based.
The methods of cutting a side of bacon vary in different coun tries and in different districts, which give the name of the "cut." The most general is the "Wiltshire" cut. After chopping the carcass along the backbone and removing the head, feet, tail, vertebrae and shoulder-blades, the whole of the remaining side, including the ham, or gammon, and shoulder, is termed a "Wilt shire side." A very large proportion of the bacon cured in Great Britain, the whole of the supplies received from Denmark and other continental countries, a large proportion of the supplies from Canada and the Irish Free State, and part of the supplies from America are placed on the British market in this form.
Trade in Bacon.—According to the returns collected by the International Agricultural Institute the number of pigs in the world is about 14o millions, being about one-third the number of cattle or sheep. The returns are incomplete, an important omis sion being the number kept in China, which is unknown. As the importation of pigs from China was one of the chief factors in developing the present breeds of pigs in Europe and America the absence of statistical information from that country is regrettable. On the basis of available statistics about S4% of the world's pig stock is in North America and 4o% in Europe. The numbers kept, and their distribution are affected by racial and religious considerations. Even the most precise statistics of the number of pigs would give little information as to the production of bacon. It may be surmised that much the largest proportion of the flesh of swine is consumed as pork and not converted into bacon. This is certainly the case in the United States which has the largest stock of pigs of any country for which information is available. In England with its comparatively small stock, the total annual output of "pigmeat" is about 250,000 tons but how much of this is consumed as pork and how much as bacon is a matter of con jecture.. As articles of commerce, however, the two commodities are distinct and consequently in dealing with international trade it is easy to discriminate.
Practically the whole of the international trade in bacon is with Great Britain as an importing country and other countries as exporters. Up to the middle of the 19th century the British Isles were self-supporting, and were indeed exporters of pig meat. In 1840 the imports of bacon and hams were 6,181 cwts., and the exports 27,832 cwts. in addition to 29,532 cwts. of pork imported and 80,440 cwts. exported. Practically all the imports of "bacon and hams" consisted of hams from Germany and all the pork was salted. Most of the exports went to India or the British West Indies. Since that time the importation of bacon and hams has steadily increased, with a slight falling off in the period 1864-7o, due probably to the American Civil War. The United States began to send bacon and hams to the British Isles in 1846 and from that time to the end of the century dominated the trade. In 18J4 the proportion of total imports received from that source was go% and in 1880 reached 92%. Thereafter there was a decline. In 1900 the proportion had fallen to 75% and in 1910 to 43%.
The reason for the relative decline in the British supplies from the United States was the appearance of competitors for the British trade. Both Canada and Denmark began about 1870 to send bacon and hams to the British market, but for a long time they were able to make very little progress. In 1870 Canada had secured only 1.3% and Denmark only 0.5% of the total trade. Both had to meet the competition of a well-established rival. In a report published in 1926 by the Ministry of Agriculture on the marketing of pigs it is stated : "It is possible that the growth of the pig meat-packing industry about this time, which made it less profitable than formerly to export pig meat from America in the form of bacon and hams, assisted Canada and Denmark to penetrate a market almost monopolized by America. Canadian bacon and hams competed directly with American because of their similarity in quality, which accounts for the fact that until the War, Canada was unsuccessful in establishing a firm hold on the British market. The Danes on the other hand, created and sup plied a new and important demand for a high quality, mild-cured, lean bacon; to only a slight extent did Danish bacon actually dis place American. In fact, aided largely by the War, American bacon retained its hold on the north of England until the last few years, Danish bacon finding its principal market in London and the South." The relative position of the chief suppliers of bacon and hams to the British market just before the War was as shown in the table below. The total British imports in 1913 were, cwts. and of this total each of the countries supplied the proportion indicated:— United States . . . . . . . . PlitiDenmark . Canada . Russia Sweden . . . . . . . . . o•I In 1926 the quantity received from each of the principal sources of supply was as follows :— It is noteworthy that while Denmark has increased its quota to 42%, and Canada to 11% the proportion from the United States has fallen to 25%.
There are many bacon factories, some of them very large, in Great Britain but practically all of them are privately owned. The only part of the British Isles where co-operative factories have been established in any appreciable number is in Southern Ireland, now the Irish Free State. In England attempts have been made to establish co-operative bacon factories in different dis tricts, but with only partial success. In a report published in 1925 by the Ministry of Agriculture some particulars were given of the co-operative bacon factories then existing in England :— The first of these to be established was the St. Edmundsbury factory in Suffolk which was started in 191o. Two years later the Herts and Beds factory was started at Hitchin. The others were established since the War, and one ceased operations after a short period. But the difficulties encountered and the reasons for the comparative failure to establish bacon factories on a co operative basis belong to the story of agricultural co-operation in Great Britain.
Curing.—In commercial practice in the United States, the cuts which are to be made into bacon, after a thorough chilling, are placed in a sweet pickle solution consisting of a carefully prepared mixture of salt brine, a sweetening agent, such as sugar or molasses, and a small quantity of nitrate or nitrite of soda. The salt protects the product and imparts an agreeable flavour; the sugar tends to soften the harshness of the salt and probably serves as a basis of fermentative changes which contribute an agreeable flavour. The nitrate or nitrite makes permanent the natural colour of the meat.
The basis of all pickles used in meat curing is a salt solution. The first step is to make up a salt solution of loo° salometer strength, i.e., a saturated solution, which is then diluted to what ever strength may be desired for the various cures. Pure water and a good clean grade of salt are used. This pickle ordinarily is filtered through sponges to remove any suspended matter and is often filtered through a filter press and canvas cloth before being used on the meat.
The sugar and nitrate or nitrite, in the proportion desired by the packer and approved by practice and the regulations of the United States Bureau of Animal Industry, are dissolved in water and boiled for about five minutes. After boiling, the solu tion is added to the pickle and carefully mixed. The temperature of the finished pickle should be brought down to 36° F. and should be maintained there during the entire process of curing. The curing is done in vats of wood or concrete. The wooden vats, in general, hold 1,40o pounds of product. The concrete vats are built for carrying capacities over 1,400 pounds. Formerly, con siderable curing was done in tierces of standard size holding about 35o pounds of meat.
From 20 to 30 days are required to cure bacon properly, de pending on the weight of the bacon and the method of cure. The rooms in which the curing is done must be kept at a steady tem perature of 38° F. Bacon cuts are usually cured in a pickle of approximately 68° salometer strength. They are left in cure according to a ratio of approximately 21 days to the pound. Thus, a ten-pound cut will be left in the cure for approximately 25 days. Bacon cuts in sweet pickle cure are overhauled at inter vals during the curing period. Overhauling involves the trans ferring of cuts from one curing vat to another to make sure that all surfaces of the meat are exposed to the curing solution.
During recent years, a somewhat different method of cure has developed, known as the dry cure. Instead of using a sweet pickle, the meats are packed closely in water-tight containers, with a slight sprinkle of salt, sugar and nitrate or nitrite of soda between the pieces, and left to cure for roughly, 25 to 35 days. After curing, the meats are soaked in water to remove the sur plus surface salt and a portion of the salt absorbed by the meat itself, and then thoroughly washed in water at IIo° F. with the aid of brushes. After washing, the product is dried on the skin side by scraping with a bell-shaped scraping device. The product is then branded ; that is, the trade mark of the packer is applied on the skin with indelible vegetable ink, sometimes with the use of heated iron dies.
After smoking, the bacon is chilled to approximately 55° F. It is then wrapped : first in grease proof paper, then in a rag ham paper and finally in an attractively coloured and printed parch ment paper covering, for sale in whole pieces or for slicing in the retail meat shop. The wrapping serves to some extent as a pro tective covering and helps insure arrival at the market in a clean and attractive condition. Sometimes bacon cuts are marketed without this wrapping, particularly when the product is con sumed near the point of production. The bacon also may be sliced in the packing plant and packed in glass jars, paper cartons, or wrapped in a transparent wrapper in quantities suitable for small families. The packing and other operations are carried on under highly sanitary conditions. Through the use of gloves, for ceps, etc., the product is often "not touched by human hands." Food Value: Production Figures.—The chief value of bacon as a food lies in its store of readily available energy or calories. A pound of bacon will contain about 3,00o calories, which is about three times as much as the average person will consume in an entire meal. This high energy content is due to the large proportion of fat present. The fat in the bacon is very readily and completely digested. The protein in bacon is of a very high quality and high digestibility. The lean part of the bacon con tains appreciable quantities of vitamin B and the fat part usually supplies modest amounts of vitamin A. The lean part also fur nishes some mineral elements, especially phosphorus and iron. Of course, the quantities of these minerals and vitamin B in a pound of bacon are not very great, and depend upon the relative amount of lean present. A 250-pound hog will yield only from 12 to 15 per cent of its weight in cuts suitable for bacon.
Figures on the production of bacon in the United States are not available. However, according to the latest census reports (1925), the annual production of smoked pork, which includes, in addi tion to bacon, smoked hams, shoulders and butts, approximates 1,236,000,000 pounds, valued at the plant at $336,122,000. Bacon always has been an important item in exports of meat from the United States. During 1919 exports of American bacon exceeded 1,230,000,00o pounds. Exports declined gradually after this time. In 1927, they approximated 105,649,020 pounds. (0. G. M.)