Grades and Requirements for Sweet Corn
Application
138. The grade and the requirements set out in sections 139 and 140
apply to sweet corn varieties grown from Zea mays var. rugosa.
Grade and Grade Name
139. The grade and grade name for sweet corn is Canada No. 1.
Canada No. 1 Grade Requirements
140. (1) Subject to the general tolerances set out in section 141, sweet
corn graded Canada No. 1 must
• (a) be properly packaged;
• (b) have similar varietal characteristics;
• (c) be well covered with fresh, unbroken green husks or, if the husks
have been removed, are protected by transparent wrappers;
• (d) have no ears that are misshapen or stunted in growth;
• (e) have ears with kernels that are tender, plump and milky;
• (f) have ears on which
o (i) the rows of kernels are of fairly uniform development,
o (ii) the undeveloped ends do not exceed one-quarter of the
length of the ear, and
o (iii) the appearance and quality of the edible portion are not
affected by poorly developed rows;
• (g) have, when measured lengthwise,
o (i) a minimum of 102 mm (4 inches) of edible kernels of corn
on each ear, or
o (ii) a minimum of 102 mm (4 inches) and a maximum of 152
mm (6 inches) of edible kernels of corn on each ear and are
labelled with the size designation “Small”;
• (h) be free from decay; and
• (i) be free from any other damage, defect or combination of damage
and defects that materially affects the appearance, edibility or
shipping quality of the sweet corn.
(2) Subject to paragraph (1)(g), ears of sweet corn graded Canada No. 1
may be trimmed at the tassel end, if the trimming does not remove all
evidence of tapering of the ear.
General Tolerances
141. (1) In the grading of sweet corn, the requirements set out in section
140 are considered to be met if
• (a) not more than 10%, by count, of the ears in a lot inspected at the
time of shipping or repacking, have defects including not more than
o (i) 1% that are affected by decay, and
o (ii) 5% that have the same defect other than decay;
• (b) not more than 10%, by count, of the ears in a lot inspected at a
time other than at the time of shipping or repacking, have defects
including not more than 5% that have the same permanent defect;
and
• (c) in either of the cases referred to in paragraphs (a) and (b), not
more than
o (i) 15%, by count, of the ears in the lot exceed the maximum
length set out in subparagraph 140(1)(g)(ii),
o (ii) 5%, by count, of the ears in the lot are shorter than the
minimum length set out in paragraph 140(1)(g),
o (iii) 10% of the packages in the lot that contain less than 36
ears have one ear more or less than the number of ears
labelled on the packages, and
o (iv) 10% of the packages in the lot that contain 36 ears or
more have two ears more or less than the number of ears
labelled on the packages thereon.
(2) Condition defects apply against the grade of a lot of sweet corn only
when the lot is inspected at the time of shipping or repacking.
