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United States Standards

for Grades of

Florida Tangerines

Effective February 20, 1997

(Reprinted - February 1997)
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United States Standards for Grades of Florida Tangerines

Grades 

51.1810 U.S. Fancy.

51.1811 U.S. No. 1 Bright.

51.1812 U.S. No. 1.

51.1813 U.S. No. 1 Golden.

51.1814 U.S. No. 1 Bronze.

51.1815 U.S. No. 1 Russet.

51.1816 U.S. No. 2 Bright.

51.1817 U.S. No. 2.

51.1818 U.S. No. 2 Russet.

51.1819 U.S. No. 3.

Tolerances

51.1820 Tolerances.

Application of Tolerances

51.1821 Application of tolerances.

Size

51.1822 Size.

Definitions

51.1823 Mature.

51.1824 Firm.

51.1825 Well formed.

51.1826 Damage.

51.1827 Highly colored.

51.1828 Discoloration.

51.1829 Well colored.

51.1830 Fairly well colored.

51.1831 Fairly firm.

51.1832 Fairly well formed.

51.1833 Serious damage.

51.1834 Reasonably well colored.

51.1835 Very serious damage.

51.1836 Diameter.

51.1837 Classification of defects.

Grades

§51.1810 U.S. Fancy.

"U.S. Fancy" consists of tangerines which meet the following requirements:

(a) Basic requirements:

(1) Discoloration: Not more than one-tenth of the surface, in the aggregate, may be affected by

discoloration. (See §51.1828.);
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(2) Firm;

(3) Highly colored;

(4) Mature; and,

(5) Well formed.

(b) Free from:

(1) Caked melanose;

(2) Decay;

(3) Unhealed skin breaks; and,

(4) Wormy fruit.

(c) Free from damage caused by:

(1) Ammoniation;

(2) Bruises;

(3) Buckskin;

(4) Creasing;

(5) Dirt or other foreign material;

(6) Dryness or mushy condition;

(7) Disease;

(8) Green spots;

(9) Hail;

(10) Insects;

(11) Oil spots;

(12) Scab;

(13) Scale;

(14) Scars;

(15) Skin breakdown;

(16) Sprayburn;

(17) Sunburn; and,

(18) Other means.

(d) For tolerances see §51.1820.

§51.1811 U.S. No. 1 Bright.

The requirements for this grade are the same as for U.S. No. 1 except that fruit shall have not

more than one-fifth of its surface, in the aggregate, affected by discoloration. For tolerances see

§51.1820.

§51.1812 U.S. No. 1.

"U.S. No. 1" consists of tangerines which meet the following requirements:

(a) Basic requirements:

(1) Discoloration: Not more than one-third of the surface, in the aggregate, may be affected by

discoloration. (See §51.1828.);

(2) Fairly well colored;

(3) Firm;

(4) Mature; and,

(5) Well formed.

(b) Free from:

(1) Decay;
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(2) Unhealed skin breaks; and,

(3) Wormy fruit.

(c) Free from damage caused by:

(1) Ammoniation;

(2) Bruises;

(3) Buckskin;

(4) Caked melanose;

(5) Creasing;

(6) Dirt or other foreign material;

(7) Disease;

(8) Dryness or mushy condition;

(9) Green spots;

(10) Hail;

(11) Insects;

(12) Oil spots;

(13) Scab;

(14) Scale;

(15) Scars;

(16) Skin breakdown;

(17) Sprayburn;

(18) Sunburn; and,

(19) Other means.

(d) For tolerances see §51.1820.

§51.1813 U.S. No. 1 Golden.

The requirements for this grade are the same as for U.S. No. 1 except that not more than 30

percent, by count, of the fruit shall have more than one-third of their surface, in the aggregate,

affected by discoloration. For tolerances see §51.1820.

§51.1814 U.S. No. 1 Bronze.

The requirements for this grade are the same as for U.S. No. 1 except that at least 30 percent, by

count, of the fruit shall have more than one-third of their surface, in the aggregate, affected by

discoloration. The predominating discoloration on each fruit shall be of rust mite type. For

tolerances see §51.1820.

§51.1815 U.S. No. 1 Russet.

The requirements for this grade are the same as for U.S. No. 1 except that at least 30 percent, by

count, of the fruit shall have more than one-third of their surface, in the aggregate, affected by

any type of discoloration. For tolerances see §51.1820.

§51.1816 U.S. No. 2 Bright.

The requirements for this grade are the same as for U.S. No. 2 except that fruit shall have more

not than one-fifth of its surface, in the aggregate, affected by discoloration. For tolerances see

§51.1820.

§51.1817 U.S. No. 2.

"U.S. No. 2" consists of tangerines which meet the following requirements:

(a) Basic requirements:
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(1) Discoloration: Not more than one-half of the surface, in the aggregate, may be affected by

discoloration. (See §51.1828.);

(2) Fairly firm;

(3) Fairly well formed;

(4) Mature; and,

(5) Reasonably well colored.

(b) Free from:

(1) Decay;

(2) Unhealed skin breaks; and,

(3) Wormy fruit.

(c) Free from serious damage caused by:

(1) Ammoniation;

(2) Bruises;

(3) Buckskin;

(4) Caked melanose;

(5) Creasing;

(6) Dirt or other foreign material;

(7) Disease;

(8) Dryness or mushy condition;

(9) Green spots;

(10) Hail;

(11) Insects;

(12) Oil spots;

(13) Scab;

(14) Scale;

(15) Scars;

(16) Skin breakdown;

(17) Sprayburn;

(18) Sunburn; and,

(19) Other means.

(d) For tolerances see §51.1820.

§51.1818 U.S. No. 2 Russet.

The requirements for this grade are the same as for U.S. No. 2 except that at least 10 percent of

the fruit shall have more than one-half of their surface, in the aggregate, affected by any type of

discoloration. For tolerances see §51.1820.

§51.1819 U.S. No. 3.

"U.S. No. 3" consists of tangerines which meet the following requirements:

(a) Basic requirements:

(1) Mature;

(2) Not flabby; and,

(3) Not seriously lumpy.

(b) Free from:

(1) Decay;

(2) Unhealed skin breaks; and,
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Shipping point, as used in these standards, means the point of origin of the shipment in the producing area

or at port of loading for ship stores or overseas shipment, or, in the case of shipments from outside the continental

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

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(3) Wormy fruit.

(c) Free from very serious damage caused by:

(1) Ammoniation;

(2) Bruises;

(3) Caked melanose;

(4) Creasing;

(5) Dirt or other foreign material;

(6) Disease;

(7) Dryness or mushy condition;

(8) Hail;

(9) Insects;

(10) Scab;

(11) Scale;

(12) Scars;

(13) Skin breakdown;

(14) Sprayburn;

(15) Sunburn; and,

(16) Other means.

(d) For tolerances see §51.1820.

Tolerances

§51.1820 Tolerances.

In order to allow for variations incident to proper grading and handling in each of the foregoing

grades, the following tolerances, by count, based on a minimum 25 count sample, are provided

as specified:

(a) Defects.

(1) U.S. Fancy, U.S. No. 1 Bright, U.S. No. 1, U.S. No. 1 Golden, U.S. No. 1 Bronze, U.S. No.

1 Russet, U.S. No. 2 Bright, U.S. No. 2, and U.S. No. 2 Russet grades.

(i) For defects at shipping point1

. Not more than 10 percent of the fruit in any lot may fail to

meet the requirements of the specified grade: Provided, that included in this amount not more

than 5 percent shall be allowed for defects causing very serious damage, including in this latter

amount not more than 1 percent for decay or wormy fruit.

(ii) For defects en route or at destination. Not more than 12 percent of the fruit which fail to

meet the requirements of the specified grade: Provided, that included in this amount not more

than the following percentages shall be allowed for defects listed:

(A) 10 percent for fruit having permanent defects; or,

(B) 7 percent for defects causing very serious damage, including therein not more than 5 percent

for very serious damage by permanent defects and not more than 3 percent for decay or wormy

fruit.

(2) U.S. No. 3.

(i) For defects at shipping point1

. Not more than 10 percent of the fruit in any lot may fail to
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meet the requirements of the grade: Provided, that included in this amount not more than 1

percent shall be for decay or wormy fruit.

(ii) For defects en route or at destination. Not more than 12 percent of the fruit which fail to

meet the requirements of the grade: Provided, that included in this amount not more than the

following percentages shall be allowed for defects listed:

(A) 10 percent for fruit having permanent defects; or,

(B) 3 percent for decay or wormy fruit.

(b) Discoloration.

(1) U.S. No. 1 Bright, U.S. No. 1, U.S. No. 2 Bright, and U.S. No. 2. Not more than 10

percent of the fruit in any lot may fail to meet the requirements relating to discoloration as

specified in each grade. No sample may have more than 20 percent of the fruit with excessive

discoloration: And provided further, that the entire lot averages within the percentage

specified.

(2) U.S. No. 1 Golden. Not more than 30 percent of the fruit shall have in excess of one-third

of their surface, in the aggregate, affected by discoloration, and no part of any tolerance shall be

allowed to increase this percentage. No sample may have more than 40 percent of the fruit with

excessive discoloration: And provided further, that the entire lot averages within the

percentage specified.

(3) U.S. No. 1 Bronze, and U.S. No. 1 Russet. At least 30 percent of the fruit shall have in

excess of one-third of the surface, in the aggregate, affected by discoloration, and no part of any

tolerance shall be allowed to reduce this percentage. No sample may have less than 20 percent

of the fruit with required discoloration: And provided further, that the entire lot averages

within the percentage specified.

(4) U.S. No. 2 Russet. At least 10 percent of the fruit shall have in excess of one-half of the

surface, in the aggregate, affected by discoloration, and no part of any tolerance shall be allowed

to reduce this percentage: And provided further, that the entire lot averages within the

percentage specified.

Application of Tolerances

§51.1821 Application of tolerances.

Individual samples are subject to the following limitations, unless otherwise specified in

§51.1820. Individual samples shall have not more than one and one-half times a specified

tolerance of 10 percent or more, and not more than double a specified tolerances of less than 10

percent: Provided, that at least one decayed or wormy fruit may be permitted in any sample: 

1

Shipping point, as used in these standards, means the point of origin of the shipment in the producing area

or at port of loading for ship stores or overseas shipment, or, in the case of shipments from outside the continental

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

And provided further, that the averages for the entire lot are within the tolerances specified for

the grade.

Size

§51.1822 Size.

(a) Fruits shall be fairly uniform in size and shall be packed in containers according to approved
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and recognized methods.

(b) "Fairly uniform in size" means that not more than 10 percent of the tangerines per sample

may vary more than one-half inch in diameter.

(c) In order to allow for variations incident to proper sizing, not more than 10 percent of the

samples in any lot may fail to meet the requirements of size.

Definitions

§51.1823 Mature.

"Mature" shall have the same meaning assigned the term in the Florida Citrus Code, Chapter

601, 1995 Edition, and the Official Rules Affecting the Florida Citrus Industry, in effect as of

February 12, 1995. These tangerine maturity requirements are contained in the Florida Citrus

Code, Chapter 601, Florida Statutes, Sections 601.21, and 601.22, 1995 Edition, and the State of

Florida Department of Citrus Official Rules Affecting the Florida Citrus Industry, Part 1,

Chapter 20-13 Market Classification, Maturity Standards and Processing or Packing Restrictions

for Hybrids in effect as of February 12, 1995. This incorporation by reference was approved by

the Director of the Federal Register in accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552(a) and 1 CFR Part 51. 

Copies may be obtained from, Florida Department of Citrus, Post Office Box 148, Lakeland,

Florida 33802 or copies of both regulations may be inspected at USDA, AMS, F&VD, FPB,

Standardization Section, Room 2065-S, 14th and Independence Ave., Washington, DC 20250 or

at the Office of the Federal Register, Suite 700, 800 North Capitol Street, Washington, DC.

§51.1824 Firm.

"Firm" means that the flesh is not soft and the fruit is not badly puffy and that the skin has not

become materially separated from the flesh of the tangerine.

§51.1825 Well formed.

"Well formed" means that the fruit has the characteristic tangerine shape and is not deformed.

§51.1826 Damage.

"Damage" means any specific defect described in §51.1837, Table I; 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 marketing quality of the fruit.

§51.1827 Highly colored.

"Highly colored" means that the ground color of each fruit is a deep tangerine color, or

characteristic color for the variety, with practically no trace of yellow color.

§51.1828 Discoloration.

"Discoloration" means russeting of a light shade of golden brown caused by rust mite or other

means. Lighter shades of discoloration caused by smooth or fairly smooth superficial scars or

other means may be allowed on a greater area, or darker shades may be allowed on a lesser area,

provided no discoloration caused by speck type melanose or other means may detract from the

appearance of the fruit to a greater extent than the shade and amount of discoloration allowed in

the grade.

§51.1829 Well colored.

"Well colored" means that a good yellow or better ground color predominates over the green

color on the entire fruit surface with no distinct green color present, and that some portion of the

surface has a reddish tangerine blush, or characteristic color for the variety.

§51.1830 Fairly well colored.

"Fairly well colored" means that the surface of the fruit may have green color which does not
8

exceed the aggregate area of a circle 1-1/4 inches (31.8 mm) in diameter and that the remainder

of the surface has a yellow or better ground color with some portion of the surface showing

reddish tangerine blush, or characteristic color for the variety.

§51.1831 Fairly firm.

"Fairly firm" means that the flesh may be slightly soft but is not bruised or badly puffy, and that

the skin has not become seriously separated from the flesh of the tangerine.

§51.1832 Fairly well formed.

"Fairly well formed" means that the fruit may not have the shape characteristic of the variety but

that it is not badly deformed.

§51.1833 Serious damage.

"Serious damage" means any specific defect described in §51.1837, Table I; 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 marketing quality of the

fruit.

§51.1834 Reasonably well colored.

"Reasonably well colored" means that a good yellow or reddish tangerine color shall

predominate over the green color on at least one-half of the fruit surface in the aggregate, and

that each fruit shall show practically no lemon color.

§51.1835 Very serious damage.

"Very serious damage" means any specific defect described in §51.1837, Table I; or an equally

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

defects, which very seriously detracts from the appearance, or the edible or marketing quality of

the fruit.

§51.1836 Diameter.

"Diameter" means the greatest dimension measured at right angles to a line from stem to

blossom end.
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§51.1837 Classification of defects.

Table I

Factor Damage Serious Damage Very 

Ammoniation Not occurring as light speck type, or

detracts more than discolorationpermitted in the grade.

Scars are cracked or dark andaggregating more than a circle 5/8inch (15.9 mm) in diameter.

Aggregating of the surfac

Bruises Segment walls are collapsed, or rag

is ruptured and juice sacs areruptured.

Segment walls are collapsed, or ragis ruptured and juice sacs areruptured.

Fruit is split watersoakedjuice sacs armushy condsegments mmm) at bruiequivalent ovolume, whone area on 

Buckskin Aggregating more than a circle 3/4

inch (19.1 mm) in diameter.

Aggregating more than 25 percent ofthe surface.

Aggregating of the surfac

Caked melanose Aggregating more than a circle 3/8

inch (9.5 mm) in diameter.

Aggregating more than a circle 5/8inch (15.9 mm) in diameter.

Aggregating of the surfac

Creasing Materially weakens the skin, or

extends over more than one-third ofthe surface.

Seriously weakens the skin, orextends over more than one-half ofthe surface.

Very seriouis distributeentire surfac

Dryness or mushy condition Affecting all segments more than 1/8

inch (3.2 mm) at stem end, or theequivalent of this amount, byvolume, when occurring in otherportions of the fruit.

Affecting all segments more than 1/4inch (6.4 mm) at stem end, or theequivalent of this amount, byvolume, when occurring in otherportions of the fruit.

Affecting al1/2 inch (12the equivalevolume, whportions of t

Green spots Aggregating more than a circle 1/2

inch (12.7 mm) in diameter.

Aggregating more than a circle 5/8inch (15.9 mm) in diameter.

Aggregating of the surfac
10

Oil spots Aggregating more than a circle 1/2

inch (12.7 mm) in diameter.

Aggregating more than a circle 3/4inch (19.1 mm) in diameter.

Aggregating of the surfac

Scab Materially detracts from the shape or

texture, or aggregating more than acircle 3/8 inch (9.5 mm) in diameter.

Seriously detracts from the shape ortexture, or aggregating more than acircle 5/8 inch (15.9 mm) indiameter.

Aggregating of the surfac

Scale Aggregating more than a circle 3/8

inch (9.5 mm) in diameter

Aggregating more than a circle 5/8inch (15.9 mm) in diameter.

Aggregating of the surfac

Scars, Hail, and Thorn scratches[For smooth or fairly smoothsuperficial scars see §51.1828.]

Deep or rough aggregating morethan a circle 1/4 inch (6.4 mm) indiameter; slightly rough with slightdepth aggregating more than a circle3/4 inch (19.1 mm) in diameter;smooth or fairly smooth with slightdepth aggregating more than a circle1-1/8 inches (28.6 mm) in diameter.

Deep or rough aggregating morethan a circle 1/2 inch (12.7 mm) indiameter; slightly rough with slightdepth aggregating more than a circle1-1/8 inches (28.6 mm) in diameter;smooth or fairly smooth with slightdepth aggregating more than 10percent of fruit surface.

Deep or rouappearance affected.

Skin breakdown Aggregating more than a circle 1/2

inch (12.7 mm) in diameter.

 Aggregating more than a circle 3/4inch (19.1 mm) in diameter.

Aggregating of the surfac

Sprayburn Skin is hard and aggregating more

than a circle 3/4 inch (19.1 mm) indiameter.

Skin is hard and aggregating morethan a circle 1-1/4 inches (31.8 mm)in diameter.

Aggregating of the surfac

Sunburn Skin is flattened, dry, darkened, or

hard and the affected area exceeds25 percent of the surface.

Skin is hard and affects more thanone-third of the surface.

Aggregating of the surfac

Note: All references to area or aggregate area, or length in this standard are based on a tangerine 2-1/2 inches (63.5 mm) in diameter, agreater areas on larger fruit and lesser areas on smaller fruit.