The U.S. Department of Agriculture is revising the U.S. Standards for Grades of Sweet Peppers.

The revisions will provide for mixed varieties and/or colors to be certified, allow decay of the stems to be scored as serious damage, make optional the requirement to designate peppers that fail the color requirements and finally delete the “Unclassified” section. These standards were last revised in 1989.

A description of the revision will appear in the Oct. 18, 2005, Federal Register and become effective Nov. 17, 2005. Questions can be directed to Cheri Emery, Standardization Section, Fresh Products Branch, Fruit and Vegetable Programs, Agricultural Marketing Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW, Room 1661 South Building, STOP 0240, Washington, D.C. 20250-0240, or by sending an E-mail to Cheri.Emery@usda.gov.

The revised United States Standards for Grades of Sweet Peppers will be available either through the address cited above or by accessing the AMS, Fresh Products Branch website at: http://www.ams.usda.gov/standards/stanfrfv.htm.  

AMS works with industry representatives and others to establish or revise U.S. standards for nearly 240 agricultural products. Industry uses the standards in the marketplace to specify the quality of commodities. Standards facilitate commerce by providing a common language for trade and a means of measuring value in the marketing of agricultural products.