20 MISC. PUBLICATION 604, U. S. DEPT. OF AGRICULTURE 
Skill in the proper interpretation of grade defects is not the only attribute of a 
good inspector. He may be able to score grade defects of a certain product per- 
fectly, but unless he can accurately record and report his findings, his inspection 
is worthless. Thus, a good inspector must demonstrate his ability to record 
his notes in systematic and proper form, as these are the basis of his final report 
on the inspection certificate. Ability to describe and report his findings on the 
final inspection certificate, accurately and in accordance with instructions, is just 
as important in making an inspection as accurate judgment in appraising the 
physical aspects of a product. 
One of the principal aids in training new inspectors and enabling the inex- 
perienced ones to interpret properly various grade factors for certain products is 
by use of imitation fruits and vegetables modeled and produced in the Depart- 
ment. These plaster models are painted by artists who have become highly 
skilled through long experience, and they are used to illustrate the lower limits 
of a grade for many products. Such models are particularly helpful in illustrat- 
ing defects of color or shape, because it is impossible to define these factors in 
descriptive language. It is not feasible to furnish plaster models to all inspectors, 
owing to the length of time necessary to prepare them, and the cost. However. 
over a long period of years the Department has been able to supply each Federal 
supervisor, as well as each receiving market inspection office, with many models, 
and each year new ones are added to the list. Photographs, both colored and 
uncolored, are also used to a considerable extent to illustrate various grade defects 
of certain products. Many color comparators also have been distributed to 
inspectors to aid them in proper color interpretation for grades of certain 
products. Such visual aids help materially in maintaining uniformity in the 
interpretation of grades throughout the country. 
At the conclusion of training, new inspectors are usually given a written 
examination to determine their grasp of the subject. Even after receiving instruc- 
tion in such schools, new inspectors are fie assigned to work with older 
experienced inspectors before they are allowed to proceed alone. 
During the first year, a new inspector may work on only a very few products— 
possibly on only one. Thus, the Federal supervisor would license him to inspect 
only those products for which he demonstrates special fitness. As time goes on, 
he may receive training in the inspection of additional commodities, in which 
case, these commodities would be added to his license card. As an inspector’s 
license is extended to cover additional products, he naturally becomes more 
valuable to the service. However, it may require several years of experience 
before he is proficient in the inspection of as many as a dozen products. Experi- 
ence often qualifies an inspector for better paying positions in private industry. 
Some become packinghouse managers. Others become marketing specialists 
in the United States Department of Agriculture. Others fill desirable marketing 
jobs in the State governments and in industry. 
Inspection Procedure 
Many large shippers who operate packinghouses place blanket orders with the 
inspection service for inspection of all of their shipments. Federal supervisors 
or keymen in charge of the field office nearest the packing plant usually assign 
certain inspectors to be responsible for the w ork at such packinghouses. The 
inspector, therefore, upon reporting to the packinghouse in the morning, ascer- 
tains from the shipper or his foreman what cars are to be loaded and inspected 
that day. The smaller shippers may place their orders for inspection by telephone 
with the nearest inspection office where the Federal supervisor or keyman in 
