6 MISC. PUBLICATION 5 98, U. S. DEPT. OF AGRICULTURE 



How are United States standards revised? 



Suggestions are invited from anyone who is interested in using the 

 standards. Canners, buyers, brokers, wholesalers, industry and con- 

 sumer organizations, and inspectors contribute valuable data. Com- 

 mittees made up of representatives of the food processing industry 

 meet with Department officials to discuss these standards and to submit 

 proposals for such revisions as they feel are needed. Letters are wel- 

 comed from any individual or organization that desires to comment on 

 the practicability of the standards or to suggest amendments thereto. 

 All are reviewed with great care and weighed in connection with 

 related statistics and data. 



What does the scoring system indicate? 



All United States standards for frozen and canned fruits and vege- 

 tables include a scoring system. In dried fruits, allowances in terms 

 of percentages are used instead of a scoring system. The scoring sys- 

 tem for the theoretically perfect product would be 100 points. Each 

 grade is allotted a range of score points, depending upon the product. 

 For example : 



Canned red sour 

 Canned tomatoes pitted cherries Frozen lima beans 



Grade A 90 to 100 points 85 to 100 points 90 to 100 points. 



Grade B 75 through 89 points— (No Grade B) 80 through 89 points. 



Grade C 60 through 74 points 70 through 84 points.. 70 through 79 points. 



On what is the scoring system based? 



Each product is inspected and scored upon specific factors which 

 reflect the quality characteristics of the finished product. In general, 

 the quality factors for processed vegetables are color, size, excellence 

 of workmanship, and succulency ; for fruits the important factors are 

 color, size and shape, excellence of workmanship, and ripeness. Fla- 

 vor, of course, is considered in grading all processed commodities. 



Why are there only two grades for some products? 



Some products, such as canned spinach or canned grapefruit juice, 

 have been marketed commercially in two grades only. If a product 

 has been sold commercially for a considerable length of time as Fancy 

 and Standard, it would not be desirable to include an additional grade 

 because there would be no need for it, and to establish another grade 

 would defeat the purpose of simplification and standardization. The 

 Department has provided only the grades necessary to market a given 

 commodity properly. If a product in the United States standards has 

 only two grades — Grade A or Fancy and Grade C or Standard — it 

 does not mean that a grade has been omitted. Most likely, the prod- 

 uct is one for which only two grades for general consumer acceptance 

 are necessary. 



What is a trade standard? 



In the infancy of the food-processing industry, there came into use 

 "trade standards" or "commercial standards,'' few of which were re- 

 duced to writing. During the years when the industry was small and 

 there were comparatively few canners, and products were not distrib- 

 uted in the enormous quantities they are today, these standards no 

 doubt served a good purpose. But definite and well-written stand- 

 ards for grades become an imperative necessity when an industry 

 grows to the huge proportions of today's food-processing industry. 



