In case you were wondering whether General Electric’s Schenectady Works provided adequate nutrition for its workers in 1919, you may rest assured. For starters, Charles Ripley, author of “Life in A Large Manufacturing Plant,” wants you to know that the bill of fare for a typical noonday meal served to employees was the “full equivalent of the meals that were served in this restaurant five years ago, despite the steep increase in the cost of all food stuffs during this period. The ability to serve this meal today at the price in force five years ago is the result of skillful application of engineering principles in the kitchen and in the method of serving customers.” Well we’d expect nothing less.
So what was in that typical midday meal? Roast beef, gravy, mashed potatoes, stewed tomatoes, coconut pudding, bread and butter, a mug of milk, and, apparently, sugar.
And how much sustenance did that typical 25-cent midday meal provide? Why, precisely 32½% of the average calories needed daily by a man employing muscular strength!