DEAS 332: 2021  
ICS 67.080  
 
© EAC 2021                                                                                                                              second  Edition 
2021  
 DRAFT EAST AFRICAN STANDARD  
Fresh c hilli peppers  — Specification  
EAST AFRICAN COMMUNITY  
 DEAS 332: 2021  
ii © EAC  2021– All rights reserved  
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Violators may be pr osecuted . DEAS 332: 2021  
© EAC 2021– All rights reserved  iii 
 Contents  Page 
Foreword  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ............................  iv 
1 Scope  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ......................  1 
2 Normative references  ................................ ................................ ................................ ............................  1 
3 Terms and definitions  ................................ ................................ ................................ ...........................  1 
4 Classification  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ .........  2 
4.1 General  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ...................  2 
4.2 Extra Class  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ .............  2 
4.3 Class I  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ .....................  2 
4.4 Class II  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ....................  2 
5 Requirements  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ .........  3 
5.1 Minimum Requirements  ................................ ................................ ................................ ........................  3 
5.2 Maturity Requirements ................................ ................................ ................................ ..........................  3 
6 Sizing  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ......................  3 
7 Tolerances  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ..............  4 
7.1 General  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ...................  4 
7.2 Quality tolerances  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ . 4 
7.3 Size tolerances  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ...... 4 
8 Contaminants  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ .........  4 
8.1 Heavy metals  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ..........  4 
8.2 Pesticide residues  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ . 4 
9 Hygiene  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ...................  5 
10 Packaging  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ...............  5 
11 Labelling  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ .................  5 
12 Sampling  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................  5 
Annex A (informative) Classification of defects  ................................ ................................ .............................  6 
ANNEX B (informative)  Levels of pungency of chilli peppers  ................................ ................................ ...... 7 
Bibliography  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ........................  8 
. DEAS 332: 2021  
iv © EAC  2021– All rights reserved  
 Foreword  
Development of the East African S tandards has been necessitated by the need for harmonizing requirements 
governing quality of products and services in the East African Community. It is envisaged that through 
harmonized standardization, trade barriers that are encountered when goods and se rvices are exchanged 
within the Community will be removed.  
The Community has established an East African Standards Committee  (EASC)  mandated to develop and 
issue East African Standards  (EAS) . The Committee is composed of representatives of the National 
Standards Bodies in Partner States, together with the representatives from the public and private sector 
organizations  in the community .  
East African Standards are developed through  Technical Committees that are representative of key 
stakeholders including government, academia, consumer groups, private sector and other interested parties. 
Draft East African Standards are circulated to stakeholders through the National Standards Bodies in the 
Partner States. The comments received are discussed and incorporate d before finalization of standards, in 
accordance with the Principles and procedures for development of East African Standards. XXXXXX.  
East African Standards are subject to review, to keep pace with technological advances. Users of the East 
African Standa rds are therefore expected to ensure that they always have the latest versions of the standards 
they are implementing .  
The committee responsible for this document is Technical Committee EASC/TC 016 Fresh Fruits, vegetables 
and Tuber  
This second  edition ca ncels and replaces the first edition (EAS 332:2002 ), which has been technically revised.  
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be subject of patent 
rights. EAC shall not be held responsible for identifying any  or all such patent rights.  
 DRAFT EAST AFRICAN STANDARD  DEAS 332: 2021 
 
© EAC 2021– All rights reserved  1 
 Fresh c hilli peppers  — Specification  
1 Scope   
This Draft East African S tandard specifies requirements for  fresh chilli peppers  of varieties (cultivars) grown 
from Capsicum annuum, C. baccatum, C. chinense, C. frutescens and C. pubescens , to be supplied fresh to 
the consumer .  
This standard does not cover requirements for chilli peppers  for industrial processing.  
Note  Chilli peppers with a minimum pungency of 900 on the Scoville Index. For levels of pungency see the  Annex B  
2 Normative references   
The following documents are referred to in the text in such a way that some or all of their content constitutes 
requirements of this document. For dated references, only the edition cited applies. For undated references, 
the latest edit ion of the referenced document (including any amendments) applies.  
CAC/RCP 44, Code of practice for packaging and transport of fresh fruit and vegetables  
CAC /RCP 53 , Code of hygienic practice  for fresh fruits and vegetables   
CODEX STAN 193,  General standar d for contaminants and toxins in food and feed  
EAS 38, Labelling of pre -packaged foods — General requirements  
ISO 874, Fresh fruits and vegetables — Sampling  
3 Terms and definitions   
For the purposes of this document, the following terms and definitions ap ply. 
ISO and IEC maintain terminological databases for use in standardization at the following addresses:  
— ISO Online browsing platform: available at http://www.iso.org/obp  
3.1  
chilli pepper  fruit 
fruit of plants f rom the genus  Capsicum , of Solanaceae  family  
3.2 
damage  
defect, or any combination of defects, which materially or seriously  detracts from the appearance or the edible 
or marketing quality of the chilli pepper   
2 © EAC  2021– All rights reserved  
 3.3 
sound/whole  
free from disease and physiological deterioration (such as but not limited to decay, breakdown, freezing 
damage) or adulteration/contamination, that appre ciably affects their appearance, edibility, the keeping quality 
of the produce or market value  
3.4 
length  
the greatest distance from the proximal to the distal end of the pod  
4 Classification  
4.1 General  
Chilli peppers  may be classified in three classes, namely:  
 Extra Class;  
 Class I; and  
 Class II.  
Note  Defects are classified in Annex A  
4.2 Extra Class  
Chilli peppers shall be of superior quality. They shall be well developed and have all the characteristic and 
colouring typical of the variety  and/or commerc ial type . 
They shall be free of defects, with the exception of very slight superficial defects affecting an area of up to 0.5 
% of the produce surface, provided these do not affect the general appearance of the produce, the quality, the 
keeping quality and  presentation in the package.  
4.3 Class I  
Chilli peppers  shall be of good keeping quality. They shall be characteristic of the variety or commercial type. 
The following slight defects, however, may be allowed, provided they do not affect the general appear ance of 
the produce, the quality, the keeping quality and presentation in the package : 
a) slight defects in shape;  
b) slight defects in colouring, including sunspots;  
c) slight skin defects (that is, scratches, scars, scrapes and blemishes) not exceeding 2 % of the  total 
surface area.  
The defects shall not, in any case, affect the pericarp of the capsicum fruits.  
4.4 Class II  
Class II includes chilli peppers  which do not qualify for inclusion in the higher class, but satisfy the 
requirements specified in 5. The foll owing defects may be allowed, provided the chilli peppers  may retain their 
essential characteristics as regards the quality, the keeping quality and presentation in the package:  
a) defects in shape;   
© EAC 2021– All rights reserved  3 
 b) defects in colouring, including sunspots; and  
c) skin defects ( that is, scratches, scars, scrapes, bruises and blemishes) not exceeding 3 % of the total 
surface area.  
The defects shall not, in any case, affect the pericarp of the c hilli pepper  fruits  
5 Requirements  
5.1 Minimum Requirements  
Chilli pepper shall be of a colour, flavour and taste characteristic of the species.  
In all classes, subject to the special provisions for each class and the tolerances allowed, the fresh chilli 
peppers shall be:  
a) whole;  
b) fresh in appearance;  
c) firm; 
d) clean and practically free from any v isible foreign matter;  
e) sound; produce affected by rotting or deterioration such as to make it unfit for consumption is 
excluded;  
f) practically free of pests and damage caused by them affecting the general appearance of the 
produce ; 
g) free of abnormal external  moisture, excluding condensation following removal from cold storage;  
h) free of any foreign smell and/or taste;  
i) free of damage caused by low and/or high temperature; and  
j) free of sunburns;  
 
5.2 Maturity Requirements  
The chilli peppers shall be carefully pick ed and have reached an appropriate degree of maturity in accordance 
with criteria and market requirements proper to the variety. The degree of maturity and condition of the chilli 
peppers shall be such as to enable them:  
a) withstand transportation and handli ng; and  
b) arrive in satisfactory condition at the place of destination.  
6 Sizing  
Size is determ ined by the length of the c hilli pepper  fruit as indicated in Table 1   
4 © EAC  2021– All rights reserved  
 Table 1 — Sizing chilli pepper fruit  according to length  
Size code  Length  of fruit , (cm) 
1 ≤ 4 
2 4 < 8  
3 8 < 12  
4 12 < 16  
5 ≥ 16 
 
7 Tolerances  
7.1 General  
Due to the nature of the produce, variations will occur even with proper grading and handling. Variations in 
quality and size may be tolerated by count as provided in 7.2 and 7.3  
7.2 Quali ty tolerances  
7.2.1  Extra Class  
Extra Class may have not more than 5 % by number or weight of chilli peppers  not satisfying the requirements 
of the class, but meeting those of Class I or, exceptionally, coming within the tolerances of Class 1.  
7.2.2  Class  I 
Class I may have not more than 10 % by number or weight of  chilli peppers  not satisfying the requirements of 
the class, but meeting those of Class II or, exceptionally, coming within the tolerances of that Class. 
7.2.3  Class II  
Class II may have not mo re than 15 % by number or weight of fresh chilli peppers  not satisfying the 
requirements of the class but meeting the minimum requirements.  
7.3 Size tolerances  
For all classes, chilli peppers  may have not more than 10 % by number or weight of chilli pepper s 
corresponding to the size immediately above /or below that indicated on the package.  
8 Contaminants  
8.1 Heavy metals  
Chilli pepper  shall comply with those maximum levels for heavy metals established by the Codex Alimentarius 
Commission .in accordance with  CODEX STAN 193  
8.2 Pesticide residues  
Chilli pepper  shall conform to those Maximum Residue Limits (MRLs) for pesticides residue established by the 
Codex Alimentarius Commission    
© EAC 2021– All rights reserved  5 
 9 Hygiene  
9.1 Chilli pepper shall be produced and handled in accordance with the appropriate sections of CAC/RCP 53.  
9.2 Chilli peppers  shall be free from parasites, microorganisms or substances originating from them in 
amounts which may present a hazard to human health  
10 Packaging  
10.1 The c hilli pepper  shall be packaged in food grade packaging material that will safeguard the hygienic, 
safety, nutritional, technological and organoleptic qualities of the produce in accordance with CAC/RCP 44 to 
avoid causing any external or internal damage to the produce.  
10.2 The use of materials , particularly of paper or stamps bearing trade specifications may be allowed, 
provided the printing or labelling has been done with food class non -toxic ink or glue.  
10.3 The contents of each package shall be uniform and contain only chilli peppers  of the  same origin, 
variety or commercial type, quality, size (if sized) and, in the case of Extra Class and Class I, of appreciably 
the same degree of ripeness and colouring.  
10.4 A mixture of c hilli peppers  of different colours may be packed provided the orig in, variety or 
commercial type, quality and size (if sized) are uniform.  
10.5 The visible part of the contents of the package shall be representative of the entire contents. Miniature 
chilli peppers  shall be reasonably uniform in size.  
11 Labelling  
Chilli pepper  shall be labelled with the following provisions in accordance with  EAS 38 . In addition the 
following specific provisions shall appear legibly and indelibly:  
a) name and address of exporter, packer and/or dispatcher;  
b) name of the produce shall be “Fre sh chilli pepper s” if the contents are not visible from the outside;  
c) name of the variety or commercial type;  
d) name of country of origin;  
e) storage conditions;  
f) date of harvest; and  
g) class 
h) GMO status  
i) level of pungency indicated as “mild”, “medium”, “hot” or “e xtra hot”, as  appropriate.  
Note  Size identification code may also be included on the labelling   
12 Sampling  
Sampling shall be carried out in accordance with ISO 874.   
6 © EAC  2021– All rights reserved  
 Annex  A 
(informative)  
Classification of defects  
Group of defects  Description  
Mechanical  Mechanical cracks are fissures on the fruit’s pericarp caused by handling and 
mechanical actions.  
Scratches are lesions on the pericarp of the fruit caused by a violent rubbing.  
Bruises are soft areas or spots in the pericarp or in the skin caused by knoc ks or 
compressions.  
Biological and 
Entomological  Scars are caused by some pests that scratch or bore into the surface of the fruit, 
thrips among them.  
Fractures are caused by some worms that feed from the fruit’s pericarp.  
Stings and/or punctures are wou nds that can be more or less deep, carried out 
by pests and birds, mainly.  
Microbiological  Spots and dots of rotting caused by fungus, bacteria or virus: one of the most 
common diseases is the anthracnose, fungus disease that by attacking the fruits 
cause s typical brown necrotic lesions, sometimes darker that can cover wide 
surfaces. It is caused by fungus belonging to the genres Colletotrichum 
(Glomerella), Gloeosporium, Gnomonia, Marssonina, Mycosphaerella, 
Neofabrae and Pseudopeziza . 
Rot of the peduncul ar extreme:  is caused by fungus or bacteria that attack the 
fruit in the base of the peduncle and, in many cases, permeates to the flesh and 
the seeds.  
“Fumagina ”:  is caused by the fixation, in film form, of the fungus mycelium 
Capnodium spP., which for ms spots with the appearance of layers of soot. It 
affects the surface of the fruit.  
Meteorological and climate 
related  Sunburns: is the change of colour of some areas in the surface of the fruit 
caused by excessive exposure to the sun.  
Genetic -physiolo gical Deformations: alterations of the fruits form in relation to the ones corresponding 
to their specie or variety.  
Physiological crack are fissures on the pericarp of the fruit caused by the effect 
of the ripen ing process.  
Softening: the softening of th e fruit mainly caused by the advanced state of the 
ripeness process or because the fruit is harvested before its physiological 
maturity (tender).  
  
© EAC 2021– All rights reserved  7 
 ANNEX  B 
(informative)  
 
Levels of pungency of chilli pepp ers 
Levels of pungency  Scoville units  Total capsaici noids 
(microg/gm dry weight)  Test method  
MILD  900 – 1,999  60 - 133 ISO 3513  
MEDIUM  2,000 - 19,999  134 - 1,333  
HOT  20,000 - 100,000  1,334 - 6,600  
EXTRA HOT  > 100,000  > 6,600  
NOTE  15 Scoville heat units is equal to 1 µg/g (dry weight).  
  
8 © EAC  2021– All rights reserved  
 Bibliography  
[1] ISO 3513:1995, Chillies — Determination of Scoville index  
[2] US 999:2013, Fresh chilli pepper — Specification  
[3] EAS 332:2002, Fresh capsicums — Specification  
[4] UNECE STANDARD FFV -61,Chilli peppers  2017 edition  
[5] CODEXSTAN 307 -2011,  Standard for chilli peppers  
 DEAS 332: 2021   
 
© EAC 2021 – All rights reserved