220 Cooperation in Agriculture 



Methods of Insuring Uniformity in Grading and Packing 



There are several methods by which uniformity in the 

 grading and packing of fruit can be accomplished in a 

 cooperative association. The association should first 

 define the grades of the different kinds of fruit. It should 

 then provide rules to cover the grading and packing and 

 provide the machinery by which these rules can be en- 

 forced. Where the fruit is not packed in central packing- 

 houses, it is sometimes picked and packed by the grower 

 according to the rules of the association, and inspected by 

 an employee of the association before it is accepted for 

 shipment. This system works fairly well with fruits that 

 have to be handled quickly like the small fruits and the 

 deciduous summer fruits. The association provides an 

 inspector at the shipping station, warehouse, or other point, 

 and he makes a general inspection of the packages when 

 the fruit is delivered by the grower, passing the packages 

 that conform to the established grades, and throwing the 

 other packages into lower grades or returning them to the 

 grower for regrading and packing. This is the least effi- 

 cient system that can be adopted, because it does not 

 help the grower in the original grading and packing of 

 the fruit. 



A better plan is to have the grower pick the fruit when 

 directed to do so by the association. It is then graded 

 and packed in the orchard or packing-house on the farm 

 by trained men in the employ of the association, working 

 under the direction of an association foreman. Under 

 this plan the fruit of the members of an association can 

 be graded and packed with comparative uniformity. A 



