Two Philly bakers were charged with adulterating their cakes and buns by adding chrome yellow (lead chromate) in 1888.
Richly Colored Buns
In the Criminal Court today George M. Palmer, a baker, was sentenced to six months imprisonment on one bill of indictment charging him with adulterating cakes and buns made by him, and to three months on another bill charging involuntary manslaughter.
Frederick Schmidt, another baker, was sentenced to six months for adulterating his goods, while a charge of involuntary manslaughter was postponed.
These convictions are the results of the locally celebrated “chrome yellow” cases exposure, of which was revealed the fact that this deadly poison was being extensively used by a large number of bakers and confectioners, and that at least ten deaths had occurred among those who had used richly colored buns.
Other persons are to be tried, among them a manufacturer of “noodles,” a species of vermicelli, much used by Germans in soups, who used the same material as a coloring matter, evidence at the trials of Palmer and Schmidt, both of whom are men of mature years, showing that the poisonous substance had been used for a long time through ignorance of its deadly nature, but that Palmer, even when informed of this fact, continued to use it because, he said, his customers wanted “richly colored” cakes and buns.
Source: The Palatka daily news. (Palatka, Fla.), 28 Feb. 1888.
