The Poison Squad: One Chemist's Single-Minded Crusade for Food Safety at the Turn of the Twentieth Century

In contrast to the defensive approaches of their competitors, some food manufacturers saw the rise in pure food advocacy as an opportunity to reformulate their products and capitalize on consumers’ desire for purer, safer foods. One of the most popular products on the market was ketchup, which was frequently adulterated with the preservative sodium benzoate. Henry J. Heinz led the charge with his improved recipe for ketchup which, with the boiling of the tomatoes and the introduction of vinegar, became safe to store on shelves and provided greater longevity. He also found that his new formula was popular for its unique taste, which became a favorite with consumers. He openly advertised the cleanliness and fastidiousness of his production facilities and his employers as a selling point for his brand of ketchup. While a bottle of Heinz ketchup may have cost a few more pennies than another brand’s version, the price difference was insignificant to most shoppers, and the flavor of the product and the peace of mind which came with knowing it was safe to eat was well worth it. Heinz enthusiastically joined the pure food movement and encouraged his peers in the food manufacturing industry to join him in creating higher quality products they could be proud of.

In 1908, Dr. Wiley turned his attention to testing of an artificial sweetener known as saccharin. President Roosevelt’s physician, a close friend who he trusted implicitly, was worried about Roosevelt’s weight and instructed him to use it daily as a sugar substitute. In a meeting with Roosevelt, with the results of his study not yet analyzed or published, Wiley made the mistake of suggesting that saccharin was dangerous and that only a fool would recommend it for use. Worse for Dr. Wiley, Roosevelt had experienced no side effects himself. Despite Wiley’s expertise and experience, Roosevelt considered his personal, anecdotal experience to carry more weight than Dr. Wiley’s predictions about the sweetener. Roosevelt questioned Dr. Wiley intelligence for suggesting that saccharin was dangerous. In retaliation, to challenge Dr. Wiley’s standing, Roosevelt ordered the creation of a scientific review board, with the express purpose of reassessing Dr. Wiley’s research. Roosevelt and Wilson appointed Ira Remsen, Russell Chittenden, Christian A. Herter, Alonzo E. Taylor, and John H. Young to the board which would come to be known as the “Remsen Board.” Wiley had no objection to three of the members, but he objected to the appointment of Ira Remsen, who discovered saccharin, and Russell Chittenden, who had close connections to the borax and corn syrup industries. Those in the industry, in politics, and with an interest in pure foods were given the impression that the Roosevelt administration was inclined to protecting big businesses.

In August of 1908, Dr. Wiley attended the National Association of State Dairy and Food Departments’ annual conference. The president of the association and food commissioner for North Dakota, Erwin F. Ladd, began his opening speech with a scathing indictment of James Wilson as a sympathizer and puppet for food manufacturers. Attacks against Wilson continued throughout the conference, and Wilson was furious to learn that neither Dr. Wiley nor any of the other members of the department in attendance had stepped up to defend him. It became clear that the members of the NASDFD were squarely in Dr. Wiley’s corner and did not trust Wilson or his motives.

Wilson began to censure Dr. Wiley’s publications, including official reports slated for regular release and additional bulletins meant to inform the American consumer of the latest research into food adulterants. It gradually became public knowledge that a rift existed between Dr. Wiley and Wilson, and that Wilson was attempting to countermand many of Dr. Wiley’s decisions. Multiple newspapers came to Dr. Wiley’s defense, lauding him as an uncompromising crusader unintimidated by the powerful food and chemical industries or changing political climates and alliances. These reporters stressed that Dr. Wiley’s efforts were in many ways sacrificial, and that all his efforts were in the spirit of protecting the consumer. These articles hinted that if Dr. Wiley were to be removed his post, it would be to the detriment of the American people, who would be left without a champion to advocate tirelessly for them. Rumors swirled that Wilson was already making plans to dismiss Dr. Wiley.

In December of 1908, the Bureau released the findings of the Poison Squad experiments into formaldehyde, unequivocally confirming it to be extremely dangerous. In other rounds of the experiments, not every participant had been significantly affected; in the formaldehyde studies, every single volunteer had become seriously ill. They lost weight, had trouble sleeping, experienced headaches, nausea, and vomiting, and developed dizziness and vertigo. Laboratory tests run on their urine and blood suggested that the chemical was causing damage to their immune systems. In a rare display of unanimity, no one in the USDA argued with Dr. Wiley that formaldehyde should be banned. In another victory for Wiley, the department sided with him in his findings on borax and the implications of its use, and the government had begun the seizure of products which contained it. An additional set of attacks came disguised as the alternate opinion of a fictional expert scientist. “H.H. Langdon” was a pseudonym contrived by H.L. Harris, who worked as chief publicist for the Pacific Coast Borax Company. In a blow to Dr. Wiley’s efforts, the Remsen Board’s findings on sodium benzoate differed from Dr. Wiley’s, likely because they did not follow his protocols and came up with implausible, alternative explanations for why their participants were displaying symptoms upon consuming the chemical.

James Wilson never intended for the Coca-Cola company to become a target of the USDA. He was compelled to change his stance when Fred L. Seely, editor of the Atlanta Georgian, interviewed Dr. Wiley in October of 1909. Seely confronted Wiley during their meeting at the Chief Chemist’s office, asking why the department never pursued action against the soft drink giant. Coca Cola replaced its previous stimulant ingredient, cocaine, with enormous, undisclosed amounts of caffeine into its namesake soft drink. Dr. Wiley produced for the reporter the correspondence between himself and Wilson through which Dr. Wiley detailed his concerns about Coca-Cola. He cited its potential to become habit forming, its tendency for producing nervous side effects, and the fact that caffeine was a drug and consumers had no idea how much they were consuming with each serving. Furthermore, Lyman Kebler, the department’s expert on pharmaceuticals, was alarmed by the number of very young children who were regularly being sold the product. Dr. Wiley recognized that there were many parents who refused to allow their children to drink coffee and tea in excess because they were concerned about the amounts of caffeine contained in those brewed drinks, but who were permitting them to consume Coca-Cola because they were not thoroughly informed of the amount of the stimulant contained in the enormously popular soft drink. Wilson had dismissed and rebuffed Dr. Wiley’s urgings to hold Coca-Cola accountable. Pausing the interview, Seely walked directly into Wilson’s office, informing Wilson that he intended to write an article revealing that the USDA was refusing to protect its consumers.

Wilson took Seely’s threat seriously and informed Wiley the following day that the time had come for the USDA to tackle the issue of Coca-Cola. Two weeks after Seely’s visit, the department seized a shipment of syrup sent from Atlanta, Georgia to Coca-Cola’s bottling plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee, triggering a mandatory hearing, The United States vs. Forty Barrels and Twenty Kegs of Coca-Cola.