Because fish deteriorates rapidly on account of the soft character of its flesh, there are several ways of preserving it. The first of these is by cold storage. Fish may be frozen solidly either by the separate piece as is done for large fish, or in a mass when the fish are small. They are then kept in cold storage for a long time. It has been proven that a fish frozen for two years has not undergone any chemical changes. Pains must be taken, however, when buying frozen fish, to have it delivered still frozen, as all frozen flesh deteriorates more rapidly after thawing than when fresh.

Another method of preserving fish is by salting and drying. This is one of New England's great industries, and the salt codfish from Gloucester is well known all over the country. The cod are brought in by the fishing boats in hogsheads of brine. They are carefully cleaned and spread on racks in the sun to dry. The length of time for drying and the manner of cutting the fish depend upon the product desired. The fish that is sold in bulk is allowed to become thoroughly dry, whereas the fish packed in boxes is sometimes quite moist. Finnan haddie is a haddock salted and smoked to preserve it.

Another means of preserving fish is by canning. This is done in two ways. An example of the first method is the great salmon industry of our Northwestern States, where the salmon are caught in great quantities, cleaned and cut in suitable sizes, packed according to grade, and sterilized in the cans. The label on the can tells specifically what is inside. The other manner of canning is used in the sardine industry, where the small fish are pickled, steamed, and packed in oil in the cans, the oil acting as a preservative. The oil used for this purpose in France has been olive oil, but other kinds of vegetable oils are now used almost exclusively because of the expense.

Freezing

Salting

Canning