The difference is that in one case we have a controlled and regulated fermentation, which is confined to one or more species, which in combination with the characteristic elements of that particular food produce a healthful by-product or desirable flavor. In the other case we have an unregulated and uncontrolled fermentation, produced by a variety of species of micro-organisms. In tomatoes we have a number of species of molds; we have a great many different species of wild yeasts, many of which produce by-products of a disagreeable character; and we have a number of species of bacteria, chief among which are the lactic acid and acetic acid types, which change the tomato pulp from a sweet product, as it should be, to a sour one. The objections of the government are therefore more confined to the by-products which are produced by the growth of these germs than to the germs themselves. It is the contention that the by-products produced in tomato products by many of these germs are such as to be classed as a filthy, putrid, decomposed vegetable substance. Just how many of these germs a product may contain before it is sufficiently decomposed to be classed as filthy and putrid is a question. The government tries to play safe in the matter, and give the packer a fair deal. When they condemn a tomato product as unfit for food it isn’t because it contains only an average quantity of micro-organisms, but because the number of germs present, and the decomposition produced, is such as to indicate extreme laxness in sanitation and lack of care in the manufacturing processes, or the admittance of quite a large percentage of rotten material. The spoilage may be either primary or secondary, that is, it may be due to the use of a lot of partly rotten, moldy tomatoes at the start, which were not carefully sorted, or it may be due to fermentation which takes place in the factory, caused by extreme delay or by unsanitary equipment. In primary spoilage the mold is usually very high and the yeasts and bacteria may be low, while in secondary spoilage either the yeasts or bacteria, or both, will be high, and the molds may be low. This will be explained further later in this chapter. Government Regulations When the government regulations on tomato products were first published it was stated that for catsup the microscopical counts should not run above the following: Molds in 25% of the microscopic fields. Yeasts and spores—25 in 1/60th cubic millimeter. Bacteria—25 million per cubic centimeter. It was also stated that pulp which was to be converted into catsup should not contain more than half this number of micro-organisms, as allowance must be made for the increase due to concentration.