Culinary Chemistry (Illustrated Edition)

Accum (1769-1838) was a German chemist who lived in London from 1793-1821. His most important achievements included advances in the field of gas lighting, efforts to keep processed foods free from dangerous additives, and the promotion of interest in chemistry to the general public. Following an apprenticeship as an apothecary he opened a commercial laboratory enterprise manufacturing and selling chemicals and laboratory equipment. He also gave fee-based public lectures in practical chemistry and collaborated with research at numerous institutes of science. He carried out experiments on behalf of the Gas Light and Coke Company which founded the first gasworks in London supplying gas lighting to both private and public areas. Most of Accum's publications were written in English, presented in a style that was accessible to the common reader. His groundbreaking Treatise on Adulteration of Food (1820) was the first book to bring the subject to the public's attention and sold 1,000 copies within a month of publication. However, it threatened established practices within the food processing industry and Accum left London after a lawsuit was brought against him. He spent the rest of his life as a teacher at an industrial institution in Berlin. This work first published in 1821 provided practical information about the scientific basis of cooking.