62 CIRCULAR 7 73, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 



eggplants, kale, mushrooms, parsnips, squashes, Swiss chard, turnips 

 (including rutabagas), and watermelons were included. 



For each of the 45 commodities information is given in the text 

 on total unloads for the period and on the relative importance of rail 

 shipments. Some information is presented on distribution of decay 

 by amounts reported per carlot. For each kind of decay affecting a 

 given commodity the number of carlo ts so affected and the average 

 percentage of decay present are also given. 



For most commodities the data on decay are broken down in tabular 

 form by year of unloading and State of origin and in many instances 

 by month of unloading. Decay is recorded for each type in percentage 

 per carlot inspected. In each commodity table there are also given 

 the number of carlots inspected, the percentage of total rail unloads 

 which they represent, and the percentage of carlots inspected that 

 showed decay. 



The average of decay per carlot inspected was 2.1 percent for the 

 14 fruit commodities and 3.8 percent for the 31 vegetable ones. For 

 all carlots of fruits and vegetables inspected during the 7-year period 

 decay totaled 5,711 carlots; 30 percent of all fruit decay was caused 

 by blue mold rot and 36 percent of all vegetable decay by bacterial 

 soft rot. 



By assuming that decay occurred in the carlots not inspected to the 

 same extent as in those inspected, it was estimated that for the period 

 under study decay of these 45 commodities during rail transit to New 

 York City totaled nearly 3,000 carlots annually. 



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