IS BULLETIN 1242, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 
A few local associations, or federations of local associations handling 
a sufficient volume of business to employ experienced sales managers 
throughout the year, have well-established market connections cover- 
ing the entire territory where their products are consumed. In some 
instances these business connections are of long standing; and. al- 
though they may have few or no salaried representatives in the 
markets, they are in a strong position from a marketing standpoint. 
It is obvious that a small association shipping for a few months or 
weeks only, can not well maintain such connections; and. furthermore, 
it can seldom afford to employ a man with the ability and experience 
necessary to market its products to the best advantage. 
PACKING, GRADING, AND SHIPPING. 
Trimming consists of removing outer leaves that are loose or 
damaged and discarding soft, puffy, or ''burst" heads and other de- 
fective stock. It is usually done in the field. Cabbage for kraut is 
commonly allowed to become well-matured; it is trimmed a little 
more closely and handled less carefully than market cabbage. 
Most markets desire a cabbage of medium size ranging from 2 to 4 
pounds for the early pointed type and 3 to 6 pounds for the late 
cabbage. Colorado, South Carolina, Texas, and Wisconsin have 
made the United States grades the official State standards. The 
specifications for U. S. No. 1 cabbage require that stock be fairly firm, 
free from soft, withered, puffy, or ''burst" heads, and free from seed 
stems and soft rot, as well as from damage caused by freezing, disease, 
or insects, and by mechanical or other means. The specifications of 
the United States grades are subject to change without notice and are 
therefore not included in detail. Copies of the grades may be ob- 
tained upon application to the Bureau of Agricultural Economics, 
United States Department of Agriculture, Washington, D. C. 
Cooperative associations of the southern Atlantic coast section 
often accept the pack of the individual growers, but employ inspectors, 
local or traveling, at the principal loading stations. Some cooperative 
shipping concerns in Florida and elsewhere have equipped one or 
more central packing houses with machinery and appliances for pack- 
ing and handling. This centralized method seems to be growing 
in favor. 
BULK AND CRATE SHIPMENTS. 
The greater part of the commercial crop is shipped in bulk, especially 
in the main-crop regions. Shipments sent long distances in warm 
weather, however, usually carry better if put up m packages. There- 
fore, in the early-shipping sections, except Texas, bulk shipment is 
not commonly practiced. Texas cabbage is often put up in crates 
by the receivers on arrival at city markets. Some Texas stock is 
shipped in crates ranging from 100 to 150 pounds, and the equivalent 
of several hundred carloads is shipped in crates in mixed carloads 
with other vegetables. Colorado stock is sold to some extent in bulk 
for near-by markets. In southern California the cabbage is usually 
cut and trimmed in the fields and hauled loose in wagons to the pack- 
ing houses to be crated, although some of it is packed in the field in 
crates of 90 or 120 pounds and hauled to the loading shed or car. 
