16 BULLETIN 1206, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 
Buyers do not want poor quality, even at lower prices. They 
prefer to handle the better standardized product of the northeastern 
producing States and are willing, in many instances, to pay twice as 
much for it. The degree of standardization attained in these States 
is, to a considerable extent, responsible for the demand for their 
varieties, for their successful distribution, large amount of f. o. b. 
selling, and comparatively high prices. The possiblity of competition 
from the South is one reason given in New Jersey for the improve- 
ment in grading and packing which occurred a few years ago. 
At the present time most shipments of southern varieties are sold 
on the basis of the United States grades. In many instances, how- 
ever, the shipments barely meet the minimum-grade requirements. 
Fig. (>.— U. S. grade No. 1 sweet potatoes. Properly graded sweet potatoes are uniform in size, shape, 
and color. 
Although conformity to grade requirements will facilitate marketing 
by wire sales to distant markets, shippers should not be satisfied to 
conform to minimum requirements. As a rule they should ship to 
distant markets only U. S. No. 1 stock which has been carefully 
handled, and selected for uniformity in size, shape, and color. 
The moist, sugary varieties shipped from the South are not so at- 
tractive in appearance as the more uniform Jersey group varieties, 
and to obtain uniformity in size it is necessary to sort out many 
irregular, odd-shaped potatoes which otherwise conform to grade 
specifications. Extremes in size should be avoided. The U. S. 
grades were developed for all varieties and all sections and they 
necessarily permit considerable variation. Desirable market types, 
as shown in Figures 4 and 5, should be selected. The variation in 
size and shape in any one package should not be greater than is 
shown in Figure 6. 
