United States

Department of

Agriculture

Agricultural 

Marketing

Service

Fruit and

Vegetable

Division

Fresh

Products

Branch

United States Standards

for Grades of

Cantaloups

Effective June 30, 1968

(Reprinted - January 1997)
 Compliance with the provisions of these standards shall not excuse failure to comply with the provisions of the 1

Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, or with applicable State laws and regulations.

1

United States Standards for Grades of Cantaloups1

Grades 

51.475 U.S. Fancy. 

51.476 U.S. No. 1. 

51.477 U.S. Commercial. 

51.478 U.S. No. 2. 

Unclassified

51.479 Unclassified. 

Application of Tolerances 

51.480 Application of tolerances. 

Definitions 

51.481 Very good internal quality. 

51.482 Uniform appearance. 

51.483 One type. 

51.484 Mature. 

51.485 Good internal quality. 

51.486 Soft. 

51.487 Wilted. 

51.488 Well formed. 

51.489 Well netted. 

51.490 Decay. 

51.491 Wet slip. 

51.492 Sunscald. 

51.493 Damage. 

51.494 Serious damage. 

51.494a Permanent defects. 

51.494b Fairly well netted. 

51.494c Condition defects. 

Grades

§51.475 U.S. Fancy. 

"U.S. Fancy'' consists of cantaloups which meet the requirements of U.S. No. 1 grade except that

the cantaloups have very good internal quality and have uniform appearance. 

(a) Tolerances. In order to allow for variations incident to proper grading and handling the

following tolerances, by count, shall be permitted, except that these tolerances shall not apply to

the requirements relating to internal quality and uniformity of appearance: 
 Shipping point, as used in these standards, means the point of origin of the shipment in producing area or at port of 2

loading for ship stores or overseas Shipping point, as shipment, or, in the case of shipments from outside the continental

United States, the port of entry into the United States.

2

(1) At shipping point. 8 percent for cantaloups in any lot which fail to meet the requirements of 2

this grade: Provided, That included in this amount not more than 4 percent shall be allowed for

defects causing serious damage, including in this latter amount not more than one-half of 1

percent for cantaloups which are affected by decay or mold. 

(2) En route or at destination. 12 percent for cantaloups in any lot which fail to meet the

requirements of this grade: Provided, That included in this amount not more than the following

percentages shall be allowed for defects listed: 

(i) 8 percent for cantaloups which fail to meet the requirements of this grade because of

permanent defects; or, 

(ii) 6 percent for cantaloups which are seriously damaged, including therein not more than 4

percent for cantaloups which are seriously damaged by permanent defects and not more than 2

percent for cantaloups which are affected by decay. (See §51.480.) 

§51.476 U.S. No. 1. 

"U.S. No. 1'' consists of cantaloups of one type which are mature and have good internal quality

but are not overripe or soft or wilted, which are well formed, well netted, and free from decay,

wet slip and sunscald, and free from damage caused by liquid in the seed cavity, sunburn, hail,

dirt, surface mold or other disease, aphis or other insects, scars, cracks, sunken areas, ground

spot, bruises, or mechanical or other means. 

(a) Tolerances. In order to allow for variations incident to proper grading and handling the

following tolerances, by count, shall be permitted, except that these tolerances shall not apply to

the requirement relating to internal quality. 

(1) At shipping point. 8 percent for cantaloups in any lot which fail to meet the requirements of 2

this grade: Provided, That included in this amount not more than 4 percent shall be allowed for

defects causing serious damage, including in this latter amount not more than one-half of 1

percent for cantaloups which are affected by decay or mold. 

(2) En route or at destination. 12 percent for cantaloups in any lot which fail to meet the

requirements of this grade: Provided, That included in this amount not more than the following

percentages shall be allowed for defects listed: 

(i) 8 percent for cantaloups which fail to meet the requirements of this grade because of

permanent defects; or, 

(ii) 6 percent for cantaloups which are seriously damaged, including therein not more than 4

percent for cantaloups which are seriously damaged by permanent defects and not more than 2

percent for cantaloups which are affected by decay. (See §51.480.) 

§51.477 U.S. Commercial. 

"U.S. Commercial'' consists of cantaloups of one type which are mature but not overripe or soft

or wilted, which are well formed and fairly well netted, and free from decay, wet slip and

sunscald, and free from damage caused by liquid in the seed cavity, sunburn, hail, dirt, surface

mold or other disease, aphis or other insects, scars, cracks, sunken areas, ground spot, bruises, or

mechanical or other means. 
3

(a) Tolerances. In order to allow for variations incident to proper grading and handling the

following tolerances, by count, shall be permitted: 

(1) At shipping point. 16 percent for cantaloups in any lot which fail to meet the requirements 2

of this grade: Provided, That included in this amount not more than the following percentages

shall be allowed for defects listed: 

(i) 12 percent for cantaloups which fail to meet the requirements of this grade because of

condition defects; 

(ii) 4 percent for cantaloups which are seriously damaged, including therein not more than

one-half of 1 percent for cantaloups affected by decay or mold. 

(2) En route or at destination. 24 percent for cantaloups in any lot which fail to meet the

requirements of this grade: Provided, That included in this amount not more than the following

percentages shall be allowed for defects listed: 

(i) 16 percent for cantaloups which fail to meet the requirements of this grade because of

permanent defects; 

(ii) 12 percent for cantaloups which fail to meet the requirements of this grade because of

condition defects; or, 

(iii) 8 percent for cantaloups which are seriously damaged, including therein not more than 4

percent for cantaloups which are seriously damaged by permanent defects and not more than 2

percent for cantaloups which are affected by decay. (See §51.480.) 

§51.478 U.S. No. 2. 

"U.S. No. 2'' consists of cantaloups of one type which are mature but not overripe or soft or

wilted, which are fairly well formed and fairly well netted, which are free from decay, wet slip and

sunscald, and free from serious damage caused by liquid in the seed cavity, sunburn, hail, dirt,

surface mold or other disease, aphis or other insects, scars, cracks, sunken areas, bruises, or

mechanical or other means. 

(a) Tolerances. In order to allow for variations incident to proper grading and handling the

following tolerances, by count, shall be permitted: 

(1) At shipping point. 8 percent for cantaloups in any lot which fail to meet the requirements of 2

this grade including therein not more than one-half of 1 percent for cantaloups which are affected

by decay or mold. 

(2) En route or at destination. 12 percent for cantaloups in any lot which fail to meet the

requirements of this grade: Provided, That included in this amount not more than the following

percentages shall be allowed for the defects listed: 

(i) 8 percent for cantaloups which fail to meet the requirements of this grade because of defects of

a permanent nature; or, 

(ii) 2 percent for cantaloups which are affected by decay. (See §51.480.) 

Unclassified 

§51.479 Unclassified. 

"Unclassified'' consists of cantaloups which have not been classified in accordance with any of the

foregoing grades. The term "unclassified'' is not a grade within the meaning of these standards but

is provided as a designation to show that no grade has been applied to the lot. 

Application of Tolerances 

§51.480 Application of tolerances. 
4

The contents of individual packages are subject to the following limitation: Provided, That the

averages for the entire lot are within the tolerances specified for the grade: 

(a) A package may contain not more than double any specified tolerance except that at least two

defective specimens may be permitted in any package. 

Definitions 

§51.481 Very good internal quality. 

"Very good internal quality" means that the combined juice from the edible portion of a sample of

cantaloups selected at random contains not less than 11 percent soluble solids as determined by an

approved hand refractometer. 

§51.482 Uniform in appearance. 

"Uniform in appearance" means that not more than one-tenth of the packages in any lot contain

cantaloups which show sufficient variation in shape, size, ground color or netting to materially

detract from the appearance of the contents of the individual packages, or which are not packed

according to the approved and recognized methods for the package. 

§51.483 One type. 

"One type" means that the cantaloups in any container are similar in color of flesh and are not

decidedly different in shape, character of netting and prominence of ribbing. 

§51.484 Mature. 

"Mature" means that the cantaloup has reached the stage of maturity which will insure the proper

completion of the normal ripening process. 

§51.485 Good internal quality. 

"Good internal quality" means that the combined juice from the edible portion of a sample of

cantaloups selected at random contains not less than 9 percent soluble solids as determined by an

approved hand refractometer. 

§51.486 Soft. 

"Soft" means that the cantaloup yields readily to slight pressure. 

§51.487 Wilted. 

"Wilted" means that the cantaloup lacks turgidity and is somewhat flabby, spongy and pliable

under moderate pressure. 

§51.488 Well formed. 

"Well formed" means that the cantaloup has the normal shape characteristic of the variety. 

§51.489 Well netted. 

"Well netted" means that to an extent characteristic of the variety the cantaloup is well covered

with fully developed, well raised netting, some portion of which is well rounded with practically

no crease. 

§51.490 Decay. 

"Decay" means breakdown, disintegration or fermentation of the flesh or rind of the cantaloup

caused by bacteria or fungi. 

§51.491 Wet slip. 

"Wet slip" means a condition present at time of packing in which the stem scar is abnormally

large, excessively wet and slippery, yields to slight pressure, and is frequently accompanied by

fresh radial growth cracks at the edge of the stem scar. 
5

§51.492 Sunscald. 

"Sunscald" means discolored or bleached, sunken areas of the surface having tough epidermis

with underlying flesh leathery and usually off-color. 

§51.493 Damage. 

"Damage" means any specific defect described in this section; or an equally objectionable variation

of any one of these defects, any other defect, or any combination of defects, which materially

detracts from the appearance, or the edible or shipping quality of the cantaloup. The following

specific defects shall be considered as damage: 

(a) Liquid in the seed cavity under the following circumstances: 

(1) At shipping point when more than a slight amount of liquid is present in the seed cavity; or, 

(2) En route or at destination when an objectionably large amount of liquid is present in the seed

cavity, or when the flesh of the cavity wall is mushy or noticeably discolored; 

(b) Sunburn when the color of the flesh is materially changed; when the rind is hard, tough, thin,

or definitely flattened; when distinct flattening of the netting or dark yellow surface discoloration

affects an aggregate area exceeding 20 percent of the surface of the cantaloup; or when brown,

gray, purple or dark green surface discoloration detracts from the appearance of the cantaloup to

a greater extent than the area of dark yellow discoloration permitted; 

(c) Hail when the injury is unhealed or deep; 

(d) Surface mold under the following circumstances: 

(1) At shipping point when any surface mold is visible; or, 

(2) En route or at destination when the color, character, or location of the mold materially

detracts from the appearance or marketing quality of the cantaloup; 

(e) Aphis when aphis honeydew is more than slightly sticky, or when resulting discoloration more

than slightly detracts from the appearance of the cantaloup; 

(f) Scars when healed, shallow, smooth and light colored and the aggregate area affected exceeds

5 percent of the surface of the cantaloup; or when deep, rough or dark colored and detracting

from the appearance to a greater extent than the area of healed, shallow, smooth and light colored

scars permitted. Smooth scarring at the blossom end and coalesced netting should not be

considered in determining damage caused by scarring unless materially detracting from the

appearance of the cantaloup; 

(g) Cracks when deep or not dry. Slight, dry cracks at the ends or in the sutures of the cantaloup

shall not be considered damage; 

(h) Ground spot when the rind of the affected area is thin or weak, or when the size or color of

the affected area or the character of netting on the area in relation to the remainder of the surface

of the cantaloup materially detracts from the appearance of the cantaloup; 

(i) Bruises when the surface of the cantaloup is definitely flattened or indented, or when the

underlying flesh is noticeably discolored; and, 

(j) Mechanical means when cuts or gouges are deep or when any skin break is unhealed. 

§51.494 Serious damage. 

"Serious damage" means any specific defect described in this section; or an equally objectionable

variation of any one of these defects, any other defect, or any combination of defects, which

seriously detracts from the appearance, or the edible or shipping quality of the cantaloup. The

following specific defects shall be considered as serious damage: 
6

(a) Liquid in the seed cavity under the following circumstances: 

(1) At shipping point when a large amount of liquid is present in the seed cavity or the flesh of the

cavity wall is noticeably soft or discolored or when any fermentation is present; or, 

(2) En route or at destination when there is any fermentation of the liquid in the seed cavity, or

when the flesh of the cavity wall shows fermentation or is badly discolored; 

(b) Sunburn when the flesh is seriously discolored, when causing cracking of the rind, or when

causing flattening of the rind which seriously detracts from the appearance of the cantaloup; 

(c) Hail when the injury is unhealed; 

(d) Surface mold under the following circumstances: 

(1) At shipping point when any surface mold is visible; or, 

(2) En route or at destination when the color, character, or location of the mold seriously detracts

from the appearance or marketing quality of the cantaloup; 

(e) Cracks when fresh and deep; 

(f) Bruises when the surface of the cantaloup is seriously flattened or indented or when a material

portion of the underlying flesh is broken down; and, 

(g) Mechanical means when fresh cuts or gouges extend into the edible portion of the cantaloup. 

§51.494a Permanent defects. 

"Permanent defects" means defects which are not subject to change during shipping or storage;

including, but not limited to factors of shape, netting, scarring, sunscald, sunburn and injury

caused by hail or insects, and mechanical injury which is so located as to indicate that it occurred

prior to shipment.

§51.494b Fairly well netted. 

"Fairly well netted" means that to an extent characteristic of the variety the cantaloup is fairly well

covered with fairly good netting.

§51.494c Condition defects. 

Condition defects means defects which may develop or change during shipment or storage;

including, but not limited to decayed or soft cantaloups and such factors as liquid in the seed

cavity, surface mold, sunken areas, fresh cracks, and bruising which is so located as to indicate

that it occurred after packing.