restricted to 5 percent for certain serious defects other than soft rot and freezing 
injury. 
STANDARDS FOR RAW PRODUCTS FOR PROCESSING 
In addition to developing U. S. standards for use in wholesale trading in 
fresh fruits and vegetables, the Department of Agriculture has. formulated 
U. S. standards to serve as a basis for purchasing certain raw products for 
processing. The first set of such standards was issued in 1923 for cannery 
tomatoes. These standards were revised in 1926 and since that time their use 
has extended to all the principal States which produce tomatoes for processing. 
In 1933 separate standards were recommended for tomatoes for the manu- 
facture of strained tomato products, and during recent years about a third of 
the crop used for processing has been purchased on the basis of these two 
sets of standards. During the 1945 season, 812,232 tons were inspected by 
Federal-State inspectors. 
U. S. standards have also been issued for raw products for processing as 
follows: Apples, asparagus, snap beans, lima beans, beets, cabbage, carrots, red 
sour cherries, sweet corn, pickling cucumbers, grapes, onions, freestone peaches, 
pears, peas, spinach, and strawberries. Copies of these standards, as well as 
U. S. standards for use in wholesale trading, are issued in separate pamphlet 
form and can be obtained free of charge on request from the U. S. Department 
of Agriculture, Production and Marketing Administration, Washington 25, 
D.C. A check list showing the products for which such standards have been 
issued and their effective dates is also available from the same source. 
Before U. S. standards for raw products for processing were issued, it was the 
usual practice for canners and processors to purchase their supplies at a certain 
flat rate per unit. Under such a system, they often experienced great difficulty 
in getting the quality of product necessary to pack a high-quality finished 
product. Processors must have ripe fruit and tender vegetables in order to 
make the best quality of finished products. Under the flat-rate system of pay- 
ment, many growers were not particularly careful about bringing in their crops 
at the time they were at the most desirable stage of maturity for processing. 
For example, tomato growers often delivered tomatoes that were not red-ripe, 
and corn growers sometimes let the ears get overmature before harvesting, 
in the belief that they would get more weight. The establishment of standard 
grades has largely corrected these practices. 
U. S. standards for raw products for processing are designed to do away 
with the outmoded flat-rate method of purchase. This was done by providing 
two or more grades in each set of standards. In the correct application of 
the standards, processors pay premium prices for the percentage of a delivery 
that will meet requirements of the highest grade and correspondingly lower 
prices for the percentages which meet requirements of the lower grades. 
Usually no money is paid for culls. Such a system of payment for produce 
provides an incentive for the grower to deliver the highest percentage possible 
of the higher grades, as this gives him greater returns per unit of delivery. 
The system benefits the processor by enabling him to keep his production costs 
at a minimum, because less labor is required to prepare the product, his yield 
per unit purchase is greater, and finally, he is able to pack a higher quality of 
finished product for which he receives greater returns. Even the consumer 
benefits under such a system by being able to purchase a better quality of 
processed products. 
Many fruits and vegetables are being processed for which U. S. standards 
have not yet been developed. Dehydration and quick-freezing of fruits and 
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