36 BEEEETEX. 1044. U. S. DEFABTMEXE OE AGEICELTURE. 
easily injured, are heavy and bulky in relation to value, and since 
they must in most cases be carried by the purchaser, they constitute 
more of a problem under self-service. Potatoes, however, are prac- 
tically a necessity in the average American household, and in spite 
of the drawback of bulkiness considerable quantities are sold through 
self-service stores. 
A great deal of difficulty in the handling of fresh fruits and 
vegetables under the self-serve plan can be overcome by careful 
buying. The buyer should have in mind the problems arising from 
the handling of such products and do his buying accordingly. He 
should buy only those commodities which have been very carefully 
graded and only those grades which can not be readily confused. 
Take, for example, oranges, which usually come 96. 100, 126. 150, 176, 
200. 216. 252. 288. 300. or 324 to the box. It would be an unwise 
policy on the buyer's part to choose the sizes 176. 200, and 216 for 
sale at different prices according to the size of the oranges, because 
it would be almost impossible for the cashier or checker to distinguish 
the size and make proper charge for those oranges. It would be 
much better, if he wished to have three sizes, to buy one size around 
100. one around 200, and one around the 300 size, so that the cashiers 
and checkers would be able to distinguish readily the different sizes. 
Special attention also should be paid to obtaining a uniform 
quality throughout any particular grade. The more uniform the 
quality, the less the customers will handle or pick over the mer- 
chandise, which will, of course, reduce the loss through spoilage or 
necessary price reductions. 
The grading of fresh fruits and velegtables can be done in the 
store after they have been purchased, but the proper selection of 
these products at the time they are bought will help considerably. 
If little attention is paid to the buying, the products will lack uni- 
formity, and in regrading at the store it may be difficult to sort 
them into distinct classes. Unless this can be done loss is likely to 
occur, either through the unnecessary handling of the product by the 
customers or the mistaking of the grade by the cashiers and checkers. 
DISPLAY. 
After the merchandise has been properly graded it should be dis- 
played in such a manner as to attract the attention of the customers 
and at the same time to meet the special requirements of the product. 
Probably the most effective display is by the use of tables or similar 
unit fixtures, the tops of which may be divided into bins for display 
of more than one kind of article on the same table. In some instances 
fresh fruits and vegetables have been put into packages and a sample 
of the content- displayed. This has proved unsatisfactory, as cus- 
