Food Adulteration as Part of the Culture of Consumption
A Survey of Practices Among Food Producers and Vendors in the Polish Lands from the Mid-19th to the Early 20th Century
Abstract
In the second half of the 19th century and the early 20th century, food adulteration was a widespread phenomenon, including in the Polish territories. Although condemned and harmful, it was a part of everyday life and reflected the economic conditions, level of knowledge, availability of raw materials, and social relations of the time. Driven by the desire for profit, adulterators tampered with the composition of food products, often endangering consumers health. The article analyzes examples from daily newspapers and specialist publications that exposed and criticized the methods used to adulterate food. Virtually all types of food were subject to adulteration—from milk, butter, and tea to spices, sweets, and beverages. The examples presented in the article represent only a fragment of this widespread practice but good illustrate the ingenuity and ruthlessness of the adulterators, who employed a wide array of surprising ingredients.
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