Ever wondered if the Plums you are receiving from California are the proper size? The USDA Grades do not require that plums meet a certain minimum size, or diameter. If the plums are packaged in one or two layer container, you should make sure the fruit are the proper size for the pack, meaning they are not [...]
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Were you wondering what the defect “Auxiliary Ears” is? When inspecting sweet corn, either white, yellow, or bi-color corn, you may come across an ear of corn that has an extra ear attached. Many times these tag-alongs will not be fully developed ears, but will be smaller in size than the regular ears and the [...]
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In collaboration with Southeast Produce Council, International Produce Training recently completed a produce inspection training class, from May 19-20, 2010. This two day class was the first of a four day training event. The second part of the training class is scheduled for October 6-7, 2010.
The participants were comprised of a cross-section of the produce industry, representing growers, [...]
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You receive a load of cantaloups and notice a few of them have sunken spots or sunken areas scattered over the surface.
Don’t confuse these sunken areas with bruising, as bruising will show flattened areas, will be soft to the touch, and most likely will show a watersoaked/translucent appearance to the underlying flesh. These sunken areas may [...]
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There are a few defects you should be looking for on asparagus, but spreading tips is the most common you will find. The U.S. Grade Standards require that asparagus spears must be fairly compact. Spreading tips could be caused by over-maturity, as the spears were harvested just past their prime. The USDA classifies this defect [...]
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Have you ever noticed these small, circular red spots on nectarines, peaches or apples? The defect is called “Scale” or “San Jose Scale” and is caused by an insect.
When you come across this defect, you do not see the insect, but the effects caused by its feeding. The scale insect leaves this very distinguishable red [...]
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When inspecting Table Grapes there are quite a few defects you should be on the look out for. The most serious defects are decay and split berries. Scarred berries and bunches weighing less than a quarter of a pound are very commonly found. But there are a few others; some commonly found and some you [...]
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When inspecting kiwifruit you will usually only encounter a few defects. Some of the common defects you may find are: shriveling, bruising, soft and decay. If the kiwi has been in storage you may also come across kiwi which has sunken areas or pitted areas. This is due to moisture loss of the fruit.
You can see the [...]
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On April 10th, all seedless grapes being imported into the United States from Chile will have to meet U.S. Import Requirements. What exactly does this mean?
The United States has import requirements that are effective on April 10th of each year. These import requirements offer protection for California grape growers from having competing countries export below quality grapes into the U.S [...]
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Take a look at this picture below, of Romaine, and see if you can identify the three defects circled.
Defect #1 is Downy Mildew,
Defect #2 is Marginal Discoloration, and
Defect #3 is Bruising.
Now if you found this leaf on a plant of romaine, would the plant be considered a defect? If you reviewed the USDA Grade Standards for [...]
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