I know the USDA has been busy working on important issues within the fresh produce industry, like U.S. Grade Standards for Cultivated Ginseng, but I wish they would concentrate their efforts on improving the scoring guidelines for scoring insect and worm damage on lettuce. As I teach inspection classes across the country I always hear questions and confusion about these […]
Lemons, as with all citrus, have a requirement for texture. For the US No. 1 Grade, lemons must have at least a fairly smooth texture. Texture refers to smoothness or roughness of the skin. The USDA states, “Coarse pebbling is an indication of good keeping quality and is not objectionable.” Although I am not completely sold […]
I am sure you have heard of the defects; sunburn and sunscald, but can you properly identify them? Do you understand the difference? As their name implies, these defects are caused by overexposure to the sun. When a fruit or vegetable is overly exposed to the sun they take on different characteristics. Most specimens will […]
There are a few commonly found defects you will find when inspecting broccoli; bruising, flowering bud clusters and yellow and discolored bud clusters. Only one defect, flowering bud clusters has a USDA defined scoring guideline. Flowering bud clusters is scored as a defect when more than 3 buds are obviously open. The USDA does state […]
You may receive peaches packed in cells, or a place pack, or they may be volume filled, or a jumble pack. Either way, you must still be on the lookout for peaches with soft, bruised spots, or peaches that exhibit surface discoloration. Surface discoloration may take on different looks, ranging from small rubs to extremely […]
There has been a noticeable increase in training requests, with wholesalers asking about training certification. International Produce Training does provide training certification to all attendees that successfully complete their training program. Some of the inspection procedure training objectives include: To read and understand U.S. Grade Standards and defect tolerances Defect identification Defect scoring guidelines Proper inspection procedures, […]
A few of you may have encountered some strange circles affecting the rinds of watermelons. The circles may vary in size and the area affected, but they still usually materially affect the appearance. This defect is caused by a virus, named the papaya ring spot virus. These images show the classic symptoms of the virus; […]
With the hot humid weather stretching across the United States one defect to keep your eye out for, when inspecting onions, is Black Mold. You will find this defect on all types of onions, northern grown onions, Texas onions, yellow onions, red onions, jumbo onions or pre-pack onions. The USDA Inspection Instructions state: The indication […]
When inspecting apricots there are a few defects you should always keep an eye out for. Bruising, surface discoloration, soft and decay are the most common defects, along with sunken discolored areas. Sunken discolored areas can be caused a few ways, but it always is due to some kind of injury to apricot, where upon […]
Inspecting watermelons can be challenging, especially when you encounter a load of watermelons with maturity problems, or pink to light red color. There are a few external indicators to look for to determine if a watermelon is mature. You would want to see a creamy or yellow color on the ground side of the melon; a filled out […]