On January 28, holdings of frozen fishery products in Chicago were 5,818,000 pounds, a decline of 7 percent below those on the last Thursday in December and 26 percent under January 29, 1942, according to the Service's local Fishery Market News office. Blue pike and sauger, halibut, and whiting were the only important items to show gains over stocks of the previous month. Blue pike and sauger, and whiting holdings also were greater than those of a year earlier, but halibut declined 42 percent in this comparison. The general decrease in holdings from the previous year indicates a continuation of the trend to market more of the fish supply in the fresh condition in this area.

Stocks of frozen fresh fish in Canadian cold-storage plants on February 1 totaled 20,134,000 pounds, a decrease of 23 percent under the holdings of the previous month, according to the preliminary data released by the Dominion Bureau of Statistics. Large reductions in holdings were reported in all important items except cod fillets and tullibees. Compared with February 1 a year ago, however, the only items showing decreases were salmon, sea herring and tullibees. Holdings of salmon were 24 percent below those of a year ago; sea herring, 28 percent; and tullibees, 9 percent. Stocks of salmon, halibut and sea herring accounted for more than 60 percent of the total volume of fresh frozen fishery products held by Canadian

plants on February 1st.

Holdings of frozen smoked fish, which totaled 890,000 pounds, were 29 percent below the stocks of the previous month and 45 percent less than those on the same date in 1942.

Canadian cold-storage plants froze 1,401,000 pounds of frozen fresh fish during the month of January, according to preliminary data released by the Dominion Bureau of Statistics. This was 44 percent less than the freezings during the previous month and 64 percent less than the same month a year ago. The sharp decline in January, compared with these periods, was due to reduced freezings of cod and cod fillets, haddock fillets, salmon, and sea herring. Pickerel was the only important item showing a gain in the volume frozen.

Smoked fish, frozen during January, declined 34 percent compared with the previous month, but was 2 percent greater than in January 1941.

Canned Fish Trade

1942 CALIFORNIA TUNA AND MACKEREL PACKS SHOW LARGE DECLINE

California canners packed 149,156 standard cases of tuna, and 105,013 cases of mackerel during December, according to information released by the California Division of Fish and Geme. This was a decline of 65,659 cases in the production of canned tuna, compared with the same month last year, but an increase of 50,824 cases in the pack of mackerel.

The 1942 production of canned tuna, which amounted to 2,223,156 standard cases, was 20 percent under the pack in the previous year, while the 602,784 cases of mackerel canned during the year was 28 percent under the 1941 yield. The decline in the production of tuna resulted from the requisitioning, by the Government, of a. considerable number of the craft engaged in the capture of these fish, and Naval restrictions on operations of many of the remaining vessels.

The reduced pack of mackerel, however, was to a considerable extent due to shortages of cannery labor during the latter part of the year.

1/ Standard cases of tuna represent cases of 48 7-ounce cans, while those of mackerel represent cases of 48 1-pound cans.

CALIFORNIA SARDINE LANDINGS AND PACK REMAIN BELOW LAST SEASON

In the four-week period, January 1 to January 28, inclusive, 391,104 standard cases of California sardines were packed, bringing the total for the current season to 3,151,594 standard cases, according to preliminary information furnished by the California Sardine Products Institute and the State Division of Fish and Game. This was a decrease of 31 percent below the pack for the same period last season. In the current season to January 28, there were 458,903 tons of sardines landed as compared with 550,718 tons in a similar period one year earlier, a decline of 17 percent.

GULF SHRIMP PACK 9 PERCENT BELOW PREVIOUS SEASON ON JANUARY 30

During the first seven months of the 1942-43 season, beginning July 1, the equivalent of 540,995 standard cases of shrimp was packed in various sizes in tin and glass by 39 canneries operating under the Seafood Inspection Service of the U. S. Food and Drug Administration, according to the Service's New Orleans Fishery Market News office. This was a decrease of 9 percent below the pack for the corresponding period in the 1941-42 season, and 30 percent below the 5-year average. Raw shrimp totaling 36,152,830 pounds have been used by the canners during the current season.

Wet and Dry Pack Shrimp in all Sizes in Tin and Glass--Standard Cases*

*All figures on basis of new standard case - 48 No. 1 cans with 7-oz. per can in the wet pack and 6-oz. per can in the dry pack.

Quotations for canned shrimp in the usual wholesale quantities in plain No. 1 standard. tins, f.o.b. point of production, were reported by Gulf Coast packers, as follows:

Note.--February 2, 1943 prices are maximum prices leveled off by OPA in MPR-311. This regulation became effective February 2, 1943.

FINAL 20 PERCENT OF CANNED SALMON RELEASED BY FOOD DISTRIBUTION ADMINISTRATION

Salmon canners are permitted to sell to wholesalers for later civilian distribution the remaining 20 percent, about 50 million pounds, of their 1942 pack under Food Distribution Order No. 23 issued February 19 by the Secretary of Agriculture, and administered by the Food Distribution Administration of the Department. As previously announced by the Office of Price Administration, all wholesale and retail establishments are required to hold their stocks of canned salmon, along with all other canned fish and canned shellfish, pending consumer rationing of these products.

The order completes the allocation of the 1942 pack of canned salmon, the Government having previously released 20 percent to civilians on October 26 and purchased 60 percent for military and allied purposes. FDA Order No. 23, effective February 19, continues in effect all provisions of War Production Board Order M-86-b which it supersedes--except for the release of the 20 percent of the canned salmon pack. It continues the requirement that canners of sardines and mackerel supply 80 percent of their 1942 production to the Government for direct war needs. The remaining 20 percent of these packs was released for civilian use on October 26.

SALES OF CANNED FISH LIMITED BY OPA

Because a large volume of consumer buying threatens to reduce supplies unreasonably before fair sharing under rationing can be started, the Office of Price Administration, acting at the request of Secretary of Agriculture Claude Wickard, suspended sales of canned fish--including canned shellfish--and canned meats, effective 12:01 a.m., Thursday, February 18. "Canned fish"* means all fish or shellfish packed in hermetically-sealed containers of any type and sterilized by the use of heat. It does not include processed foods as defined in Ration Order No. 13 or pharmaceutical products.

The ban on sales will continue until a rationing program now in preparation--under which all persons will have equal opportunity to share in the limited supply--can be put into operation. Canned fish and canned meats will be rationed under the forthcoming meat rationing program. The freeze will not last longer than 60 days. Sales of canned meat and canned fish are frozen at all levels, except that wholesalers may acquire stocks of canned fish. This provision was inserted because canners of fish are not able to continue accumulating the stocks they have been producing.

The order, Restriction Order 3--Canned Meat and Canned Fish--does not apply to sales or transfers of canned fish and meat to certain listed war agencies. Among them are the Army, Navy, and Marine Corps and Coast Guard, the Food Distribution Administration and the Office of Lend-Lease Administration, or other designated persons or Government agencies,

TENTATIVE SPECIFICATIONS FOR CANNED SEA HERRING PREPARED BY FDA

The tentative specifications below, applying to all 1943 purchases of large sea herring for Government requirements, were being sent to packers for criticisms and suggestions by the Food Distribution Administration on February 12.

(a) DEFINITIONS: For the purpose of these specifications:

(1) The term "natural" means without the addition of any condiments except brine or salt, but may have added oil of the same species of fish.

(2) The term "net content" means the total weight of the fish and liquid in the can. (3) The term "drained weight" means the weight of the fish in the can after the fish has been emptied from the can following sterilization, and after it has been allowed to drain for two minutes over a sieve of not less than eight-inch diameter, containing eight meshes to the inch (0.097 inch per performation).

(4) The term "well cleaned" means that the heads and tails shall be removed; the fish shall be practically free from scales (i.e., scales shall not cover more than 5 percent of the surface area); free from entrails with blood sacs along the backbone removed.

(5) The term "official inspection sample" means the cans drawn for inspection by the designated sampler of the Food Distribution Administration.

(b) SPECIFICATIONS:

(1) Fish shall be firm, of good appearance and well cleaned. Cans shall be packed as full as practicable. In round cans the length of the fish shall be packed parallel to the side of the can; in oval and other flat type cans the length of the fish shall be packed parallel to the bottom of the can. The average net content of the No. 300 (300x407) can or the No. 1 oval can shall be not less than 15 oz. with average drained weight of not less than 124 oz. and shall contain not more than seven fish. If other sizes of cans are used, the net content and drained weight shall be in the same proportion as the relative size of the cans. The fish may be packed natural or with added oils or sauces as may be specified by F.S.C.C. Cans shall be sound and clean, free from rust and serious dents, and shall be inside enamelled. No. 300 (300x407) size cans shall have not less than four inches of vacuum and No. 1 oval cans shall have not less than two inches of vacuum.

(2)

Not more than one-sixth of the containers in a lot may fail, in some respect, to meet requirements of these specifications, provided, however, that the average of all of the samples within a lot meet the requirements in the specifications.

*An amendment issued February 25 defined "fish" as any edible part of fish, including fish roe and caviar. It includes all products containing fish in which the fish constitutes more than 10 percent of the total net weight.