Growing for Wholesale: Grading and Packing Guidelines by Crop
Grading and packing guidelines are now available for 18 commonly grown specialty crops in NYS: romaine lettuce, acorn squash, broccoli crowns, Brussels sprouts, sweet corn, green peppers, cucumbers, green cabbage, red cabbage, savoy cabbage, cauliflower, eggplant, green beans, jalapenos, poblanos, Hungarian hot peppers, summer squash, and zucchini.
Acceptable quality standards and common defects that should be sorted out on the grading line are depicted in these resources, both visually and in outline form.
This resource was developed through the support of Cheryl Thayer of CCE Harvest NY, Dave Walczak of Eden Valley Growers, Angela (Parr) Ochterski and Robert Hadad of the CCE Cornell Vegetable Program, and Jim Monahan of Cornell Cooperative Extension. Further, development of this resource was made possible through grant funding from the USDA Local Food Promotion Program.
Additional sheets are being added. See the new Romaine Lettuce sheet (September 2019) and Acorn Squash sheet (2018). New sheets are created by Robert Hadad and Angela Ochterski of the CCE Cornell Vegetable Program.
Acorn Squash (pdf; 1397KB)
Broccoli Crowns (pdf; 1416KB)
Brussels Sprouts (pdf; 917KB)
Cabbage - Green (pdf; 1037KB)
Cabbage - Red (pdf; 1431KB)
Cabbage - Savory (pdf; 1087KB)
Cauliflower 9's (pdf; 1409KB)
Cucumbers - Select (pdf; 880KB)
Cucumbers - 24ct Super (pdf; 1143KB)
Cucumbers - 36ct Super (pdf; 1143KB)
Cucumbers - Super (pdf; 1142KB)
Eggplant (pdf; 1113KB)
Green Beans (pdf; 780KB)
Peppers - Choice Green (pdf; 743KB)
Peppers - Green Sweet Large (pdf; 875KB)
Peppers - Green Sweet Medium (pdf; 907KB)
Peppers - Hungarian Hot 1 1/9 (pdf; 660KB)
Peppers - Hungarian Hot 1/2 Bushel (pdf; 662KB)
Peppers - Jalapeno 1 1/9 (pdf; 824KB)
Peppers - Jalapeno 1/2 Bushel (pdf; 828KB)
Peppers - Pablano 1 1/9 (pdf; 753KB)
Peppers - Pablano 1/2 Bushel (pdf; 756KB)
Romaine Lettuce (pdf; 364KB)
Squash - Summer (pdf; 802KB)
Sweet Corn Boxes (pdf; 2089KB)
Zucchini (pdf; 1173KB)
Set of All Crop Sheets (pdf; 17316KB)
- Download this file if you wish to have 1 file containing all 26 crop sheets
Upcoming Events
2025 Finger Lakes Auction Winter Growers Meeting
January 2, 2025
Penn Yan, NY
At this grower-focused meeting, ag industry experts will discuss pest control in vegetables, weed management strategies and best practices, seed germination, an introduction to foliar nutrient uptake in vegetables, and grouping flowers by growth needs. Plus we'll hear from a grower panel from Kutztown Produce Auction, moderated with NYS specific pest control from Judson Reid.
2.25 DEC recertification credits will be offered in categories 10, 1a, 23, and 24.
2025 Ontario Produce Auction Winter Growers Meeting
January 15, 2025
Stanley, NY
This grower-focused meeting will include information about pesticide applicator recertification and record keeping requirements, disease control in cole crops and vine crops, and using biocontrols for insect management in greenhouses. Several seed and ag input companies will be on-hand to share product news.
2.75 DEC recertification credits will be offered in categories 10, 1a, 23 and 24. CORE credits (0.5) offered too!
Intro to Food Safety and GAPs Training
February 19, 2025
via Zoom,
This virtual workshop will serve two purposes:
- For produce farms just interested in learning about farm food safety, this program will introduce principles and best practices.
- For produce farms look for a GAPs (Good Agricultural Practices) training needed to meet buyer demands for audit/certification, this program will provide that as well.