City in Sound; Libby Foods

This is Jack Angel with City and Sound. These are stories out of Chicago, City of All Things. Among them, the industry of food. There is little doubt that Chicago will be market center for the nation, as far as the eye can see. One of the earliest and largest of the great Chicago food processors is Libby McNeil and Libby. At its blue island plant, it not only processes in cans food, but searches out scientific advances in the product through research and development. This is one part of the project Science Calling. It is also the account of an important segment of a great industry that serves this nation from this city. Dr. R. M. Schaffner is vice president and charge of research and quality control here at Libby, McNeil and

Libby, and I am rather curious to know what a doctor is doing in that capacity. Well, I guess I am sort of the doctor that they tell stories about the Ph .D. and M .D. and the Ph .D .s of the type that don't do anybody any good. Well, you are the Ph .D. That's right. Well, you are doing a lot of people a lot of good around here. I am quite sure because this is a tremendous job you hold down and it is one of the key to production around here. Of course, research and quality control and this is what you do primarily out here at Blue Island, isn't it? That's right. Out at Blue Island, we have our East and Divisional Laboratories. The company is a whole has seven divisional laboratories corresponding to their operating divisions. In Blue Island, our so -called East and Division covers all of our research and quality control activities between the Atlantic Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. That's East as far as the company is concerned. Well, Dr. Schaffer in these days of quite fearsome competition, quality control

is a good bit more than just self -justification, it's necessary, isn't it, to stay in business? Well, we certainly feel so. The thing that we are constantly stressing is to get a more uniform quality in our products. How long have you been in business? Well, the company is celebrating its 90th anniversary this year. And this course is a Chicago industry. Yes, it started in Chicago. The two Libby brothers got together with a very small sum of money and met a McNeil and they in turn decided with a capitalization of about $100 to go into meat -packing business. They bought some cattle, few had a cattle and slaughtered the cattle and packed it in barrels and were in the business. And that was the start of all of our operations. Of course, we still have a large meat canned meat operation, one of the largest

in the world, but we are of course into all phases of food work, mostly canned, but also, of course, frozen foods as well. Continually looking forward undoubtedly, because this market is so competitively, do you have any plans to bring on anything that isn't already on the shelf? We know about tomato juice and vegetables and frozen foods and whatnot. But how about keeping pace with progress now? What do you plan for the future? Well, we feel that the big trend in the past few years has been convenience products, convenience to the housewife. And more and more of our products are what we call a formulated type product, so that you have something in a can or in a frozen food box and you're ready to, the housewife is ready to open it up and has a meal right there. How about irradiated foods? Isn't that a field you're going into? Well, we're keeping in touch closely in touch with the

radiated food field. We've done some work ourselves in the line, but mainly we've been working with other industries on the whole field of irradiated products with the thought that probably irradiated foods will supplement and complement the existing methods of preserving foods. And they won't revolutionize all foods, but certainly irradiated foods will have a niche, so that certain products will lend themselves or do lend themselves to a radiation. Dr. Schaffner, what is the big item, the big seller in canned foods? Well, they're probably, if you're talking about vegetables, we probably have three that are the largest sellers, peas, corn and tomato juice. In the fruit items, canned peaches probably are number one. Well, now as we go into the future, are we going to

more or less go out of the canned goods line and more into the frozen foods line or is that the trend that we'll follow? I doubt if we will. There seems to be a place for both types of products. Certain products have no quality advantages. In fact, some disadvantages if they're frozen. Other products are better, perhaps, in the frozen state. I think it will depend largely on a matter of the ultimate quality and the convenience to the consumer. Now, that's a question of constant testing and analysis and more or less the decision on which product serves which segment the best. That's right. Thank you very much, Dr. Schaffner. Well, we're here by a mighty powerful tomato operation. I can see that from beginning to end, and here to tell us a little bit about it is Mr. Guy Graham, we're an assistant general superintendent in charge

of the Libby's eastern division. Mr. Graham, how many plants do you have at Libby? We have in this division east of the Rocky Mountains in the neighborhood of 20 plants. Do you have much west of the Rockies? Yes, we have a lot of dozen fruit plants and plants in Alaska and Hawaii and England. Well, this is an international operation. That's right. Well, what do you do here now? I see an awful lot of tomatoes and an awful lot of production lines and there are cans all over the place and box cars. Now, how do you put these together and make tomato juice? Well, you work night and day for about two months and you get it all wrapped up and ready for Mrs. Consumer. I see. How about the canning operation in general, though? Is that your major function here in addition to research? We've already talked a little bit about that. Here at Blue Island, this is a canning plant tomato juice, deep brown beans. We also pack pickles and olives, pineapple grapefruit juice, tropical punch.

Well, how do you get the pineapples in and the grape fruits and whatnot and then prepare them right here in this plant? They come in in concentrate frozen concentrate form from California and Florida kind of changed the industry hasn't it? Didn't it used to be that you had to have packing plants near the source of the product? Yes, it's changing. Freight rates are causing that change in the industry. Freight rates? Yes, so that it's a little cheaper to bring the product into the... Can you move the concentrate closer to the consumer? Well, I say and the concentrate itself would change the industry wouldn't it? That's right. Do you still have a number of plants that handle this raw material near the source? Yes, well this is a good example in the case of tomatoes. These tomatoes are growing mostly locally here, a few up in Michigan, but they're generally right in the area and they come in on a daily basis fresh and we pack them up as we receive them. How many idea, how many tomatoes you handle a day?

We ran about 1150 tons here yesterday, about 20 hours. Wow, you don't know how many tomatoes are in a ton of course. They run about three tomatoes to the pound and you probably have a lot more important things to do than to stand around and count tomatoes. Take a little time to do that. Okay, we'll look around and see what we can find out. Find some. This is Mr. Richard Yerrow who's Libby's man in agriculture I understand and in what way are you in agriculture sir? Well I'm interested in all aspects of Libby's agriculture. My primary emphasis over the last several years has been that of crop protection. However, in crop protection must necessarily be interested in all phases of agriculture. This is the phase of science in agriculture and then canning products of agriculture. That's correct. Libby has a vital interest in agriculture and we're interested in a up -to -date agriculture because it is one which provides the kind of raw produce which is necessary for an up -to -date

product. Well we're hearing what certainly is an up -to -date lab with test tubes and vials. Soil samples I would gather is that not what those are over there? That's correct. We presently are in the soil testing laboratory where soil samples from various parts of the country are analyzed and determined for the amount of nutrients which are available for growing plants. So that means that then you'd go to an area that had an availability in that particular nutrient or that particular soil? Yes or if the other types of environment are proper and possibly the soil nutrients are not there it is always possible following a test as is conducted in this laboratory to add those minerals which are not present. Then you do that to help the farmer or do you have your own farms? Well in the tomato production we primarily do all of our work on a contract basis.

Libby does operate farms and consequently we run these services both for our farm acreage and for growers who produce crops for us. On each of those oh I'd say 100 vials there contain a sample of a particular type of soil in a particular area. Is that right? Each of those vials contain samples of soil taken from various locations within a field. In the sampling procedure that we follow great many samples of soil are taken for individual fields so that we can upon analysis get a very complete picture of what the nutrient situation is in that field. All right let's take the case of tomatoes. Where would you say would be the best place to grow tomatoes? Well this is a very difficult question to answer. Certainly in years gone past the location of tomato production was pretty much dependent upon that which was naturally

available. However now through the development of a scientific approach to agriculture, through the development of new varieties, soil testing and such we are able to make areas which normally were unacceptable for production. We can through addition of agriculture and knowledge make these good areas to produce tomatoes in. Well of course this is really what we call a scientific agronomy. Well we like to think of it as a well -balanced scientific approach to agriculture not only from a standpoint of agronomy but all the other phases of agriculture as well. How about the future of science and agriculture? What can we look for? Synthetic growth chemicals and things of that nature? I think aside from this there is still a tremendous amount of work to be done in the natural things which are available. You think you

can improve on nature? I think so. One of the very good examples of this is that of the control of weather. While it is difficult for anyone to make it rain or to make it snow, nevertheless we can do things through scientific channels to effectively crop in such a way so that it is not adversely affected by gross changes in weather. There certainly is a tremendous avenue for improvement in just the in the natural resources that we presently have available for production in agriculture. Well sir they tell me you're the plant manager and your name is Art Randolph. That is right. It's certainly nice to meet you here and where else would you be but right here in the plant? Well I've got to cover the entire plant from early morning for quite late at night. That's where I spent practically all my time. Could you tell us about what goes on here? We see just

an awful lot of tomatoes and I think I mentioned box cars and boxes and girls who pack tomatoes and cans. How do you square by this operation? Well this actually starts back in February and March with the contracting of the tomatoes with what we call the local growers in this area. At which time prices are set and acreage gelatins have been set and from there we go into the planning phase which is handled by our field men. They contract and follow the crop as it's being grown to assist the farmer and anything that the fields might need in the way of sprays and anything to preserve the crops. Okay I see a line of trucks out there moving in with some red, ripe, Illinois tomatoes. No what happens? Well these trucks are scheduled in here on a setup that starts at nine o 'clock in the morning. The reason for that is that the farmers start to pick around seven o 'clock in the morning and the first trucks start arriving at nine. They are scheduled in here until five o 'clock the next morning.

Arriving at the inbound gate and checked off for arrival time they proceed to the inbound scale where their gross weight is weighed and proceed from there to the government graders who are from the department of agriculture and they determine the quality of the tomatoes. If the tomatoes are acceptable then they move on to the dumping apparatus which is run at the rate of about 60 tons per hour and from there they are dumped in the flume water which conveys them up to the trimming lines. Oh yeah. Oh but the trimming lines what happens. Well after being spray washed and having been floated in through the flume water they are inspected in the head end of the tables and the inspectors there are taught to remove anything that will require trimming. Any portion of the tomato that will not make a good tomato juice or in other words may not be edible

and from there the tomatoes travel on a fast belt to our first operation in the cooking. While they are trapping along those belts the trimmers as we call them trim out those portions of the tomatoes that are not desirable and then put the trim portion back on the fast moving belt going to the first cooking operation. Are they peeled? They are not peeled. The peeling is done that is they are not peeled by hand. The peeling is actually done by machines which we refer to as separate saves or actually a juice press. When you cook them they're peeled when you cook them. Now the entire tomato is cooked up one time and the skin and seed is removed after they are cooked. Oh I see. Well then what happens? From there the juice is extracted and accumulated and stainless deal tanks until a thousand gallons has been accumulated at which time the salt is added and then the batch is thoroughly agitated and tests are running the laboratory at that time for body or viscosity as we call it. Also checked for salt in the general

acidity and general characteristics of the product itself and assuming that the tests have all checked out to our standards we immediately pump over to the filling operation which is over in the next building. Randolph I understand that you are approaching 50 years of service with Libby. That is correct and you've seen the canning business change a great deal as a matter of fact that they have a canning business when you came in here. Well actually this part of our business originated down the stockyards about 1906 at which time Pickles and Allows were added to the line to compliment the canned meat business. At that time we also packed the little ketchup and various types of table sauces and things of that nature but as the business expanded we outprew the quarters that we had down the stockyards area so that 1917 this plant was started and actually started to operate in the summer of 1918. Actually at that time we would handle about 800 to 900 ton of tomatoes a season just packing ketchup. In 1928 we went to the tomato juice business

and while the packs were quite small at that time they've expanded to the point now where we run more in one day than we did back in 1916 and 17 in an entire season. What would you say that the business is any tougher now than it was back when you broke in? Well as far as I'm concerned I think it certainly is we have many more items to cover. When you have a volume like we are running through here the constant checking and delivery of cans which are also little over 11 carloads a day plus three or four cars a ketchup glass plus the caps and the necessary labels and boxes we have to be constantly on the alert and on checking to see that we have the necessary supplies. I see thank you very much sir. Well the pilot plant development lab is an interesting facet out here at Libby's. In charge of it is Mr. Joseph Hanley who is in charge of manufacturing research and new product development. I gather much of which is done right here isn't it? That's right Mr. Angel. A good deal of the product development work particularly for products

that are going to be packed in the eastern division lab of the company is done in this department. Like exactly what was that consistent of? Well we are continually looking for new lines of products to merchandise and when suggestions or ideas come in from various segments of management the formulation work in its bench stage has started at this laboratory. We then as a product is developed and we see the direction that is required to take from a technical standpoint. We develop the particular types of pilot lines that will be required in order to simulate the actual production of the product when it's transferred to the commercial plant. Well now how about the ingredients themselves say you plan to bring out a pineapple grape fruiter, pineapple orange juice combination or concentrate or something. How do you determine how much pineapple goes in

and how much grape fruiter? There are a number of ways in which those factors are established. First of all in our experimentation we start out on a very small scale which we call a bench scale speaking technically in which many modifications are made of a product combining various percentages of the ingredients in which we are interested in. These experiments can be performed more or less fairly rapidly and when we approach the point that we think that we have a product that may be close to what we are looking for we will then turn it over to our flavor evaluation group for additional suggestions and ideas which stay obtained through their regular taste panel operations. Well I was going to say are these the people we refer to as the taste battle has correct constraints. Do you mean these people go around doing nothing but tasting new products and now they most of them have specific duties but over a period of time their sense

of taste perceptions have been evaluated and certain classic certain people are ideal for tasting vegetable combinations for example where we find other people may have the more adapted tasting of fruit drink or some are taste pedals pretty important they or let's simulate or represent the consumer that's exactly right and we find as our work progresses along this line that we have to pay a great deal of attention to their suggestions and recommendations. What's the kind of thing you can't do by automation like bringing in these tomatoes. That's absolutely correct. The automation enters into the work when we take their suggestions and are able to transcribe them into an actual plant operation. Well how does this work sort of like a jury does the taste panel get together and vote on the flavor of product or the consistency of it. This work on flavor evaluation is all carried out on a statistical analysis basis. In other words the results of the work are tied into a formal statistical

analysis and the significance of the results is evaluated from a mathematical standpoint based on the laws of probability. Do you ever find that what your taste pedal likes the consuming public doesn't or vice versa. Well very seldom do we run into a situation of that size of that type because when we have a product that has apparently received the favor of our own taste panels we then expand this work to consumer groups. Tell me this working around food as you do eight, nine, ten hours a day. How's your appetite? My appetite is real good. And if there is one conclusion here it follows that our taste and living depends much on our taste in food. Yesterday it was grown. Today it is processed and already the search is for tomorrow. For new processes, new packaging, better products, the great food for

thought in a nation's basic industry. This is Jack Angel with Dan Hosek, an engineer whose recordings here have imprinted City in Sound.