12654. Misbranding  of coffee.    U.  S.  v.  The  Independence  Coffee  &  Spice
Co., a Corporation.     Plea of guilty.     Fine, $40.     (F. & D. No. 18731. 
I.  S. Nos. 20606-v, 20607-v, 20608-v, 20642-v.)
At the May, 1924, term of the United States District Court within and for 
the District of Colorado, the United States attorney for said distract, acting 
upon a report by the Secretary of Agriculture, filed in the District Court 
aforesaid an information against the Independence Coffee & Spice Co., a 
corporation, Denver, Colo., alleging shipment by said company, in violation 
of the food and drugs act as amended, in various consignments, namely, on 
or about November 28, 1923, and January 23, 1924, respectively, from the State 
of Colorado into the State of Wyoming, and on or about January 24, 1924, 
from the State of Colorado into the State of Nebraska, of quantities of coffee 
which was misbranded. The article was labeled in part: (Case) "16-3 Lb. 
Tins" (or "16-2 Lb. Tins" or "60-1 Lb. Cans") "Breakfast Call Coffee The 
Independence Coffee & Spice Co. Denver, Colo.;" (can) "Steel Cut Three 
Pounds" (or "Two Pounds" or "One Pound") "Breakfast Call Coffee The 
Independence Coffee And Spice Co. Denver, Colo."
Examination by the Bureau of Chemistry of this department of 16 of the 
alleged 3-pound cans showed that the average net weight of the cans examined 
was 2 pounds 15.13 ounces; examination of 16 cans from each of the two 
consignments of the alleged 2-pound cans showed that the average net weight 
of the said cans was 1 pound 15.17 ounces and 1 pound 14.98 ounces, respec- 
tively; and examination of 5 of the alleged 1-pound cans showed that the 
average net weight of the cans examined was 15.33 ounces.
Misbranding of the article was alleged in the information for the reason 
that the statement's " 16-3 Lb. Tins " and " Three Pounds," borne on the cases 
and cans, respectively, containing a portion of the article, the statements, 
" 16-2 Lb. Tins," and " Two Pounds," borne on the cases and cans, respectively, 
containing a portion of the article, and the statements "60-1 Lb. Cans" and 
"One Pound," borne on the cases and cans, respectively, containing the re- 
mainder thereof, were false and misleading in that the said statements repre- 
sented that the cans contained 3 pounds, 2 pounds, or 1 pound, as the case 
might be, of the said article, and 'for the further reason that it was labeled 
as aforesaid so as to deceive and mislead the purchaser into the belief that 
the said cans contained 3 pounds, 2 pounds, or 1 pound, as the case might be, 
of the said article, whereas, in truth and in fact, the cans did not contain 
the amounts declared on the respective labels but did contain less amounts. 
Misbranding was alleged for the further reason that the article was food in
package form and the quantity of the contents was not plainly and con- 
spicuously marked on the outside of the package.
On August 25, 1924, a plea of guilty to the information was entered on 
behalf of the defendant company, and the court imposed a fine of $40.
HOWARD M. GOEE, Secretary of Agriculture.