On Grading work of Kaki (Diospyros Kaki L. cv. Fuyu) (3)

Properties of producers, distributors and consumers on criterion of judgments for grading

Abstract

It is said that gradings of fruits and vegetables are mainly sorted by judgments of the appearances and the accuracies of the gradings are not so high. In this paper, therefore, the properties of the judgments for grading of Kaki (Diospyros Kaki L. cv. Fuyu) were investigated on the sorting persons in the six main producing districts, the brokers and the auctioneers in the biggest wholesale market in Japan and consumers. The results were follows:
1. The grade judgments differed among the individuals, and everybody had the fluctuation of judgment. That seemed to be due to the judgment by the sense, and to be the cause that present gradings had little reproducibility.
2. Weights for factors making the grading judgments by the sorting persons in every district, the brokers, the auctioneers and consumers were characteristics of the groups. That seemed the cause of the differences among the producing districts and individuals.
3. Weighing for factors was almost the same between the group of the sorting persons of the district shipping fruits of the highest price and the group of brokers having a great influence on the knockdown price.
4. Consumers had the severest critical values of every factors calculated by discriminant functions. The values of a surface color for the first grade, as expressed in a/b by Hunter's color system, were 0.53 by consumers, 0.32 by brokers, 0.28 by auctioneers and 0.30-0.38 by sorting persons.
5. The factor analysis on the sorting of fruits by discriminant analysis seemed to be useful for improvement on the method of the sorting.