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THE NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE
No. 11

1. In the opinion of the New Zealand Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, Class I will meet the minimum grade requirements of all countries to which New Zealand is likely to export plums.

2. Notwithstanding clause 1 of these notes, it is the ultimate responsibility of the exporter to ensure that produce exported meets the requirements of the importing country and the importer.

3. In order to certify produce fit for export an inspector may require information to the effect that the property on which the fruit was produced has been cleared to pack fruit for export inspection. It is the responsibility of the exporter to obtain this information from the Senior Horticultural Inspector, Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, for the district of origin. The most satisfactory way is to have the fruit inspected and passed for export in the district of origin, if at all possible.

4. To avoid delays in the entry of consignments to European markets, they should in addition to the plant health certificate, be accompanied by a control certificate which lists the details of the consignment including grade, and is signed by an authorised inspector.

Standard Grades for the Export of Apricots Notice 1977
(No. 1626 Ag. 12/2/14)

PURSUANT to regulation 13 of the New Zealand Grown Fruit and Vegetables Regulations 1975*, the Director-General of Agriculture and Fisheries hereby gives notice that the standard grades for the export of apricots shall be as set out in this notice.

NOTICE

1. Title—(1) This notice may be cited as the Standard Grades for the Export of Apricots Notice 1977.

(2) This notice shall come into force on the day after the date of its notification in the New Zealand Gazette.

2. Interpretation—Unless the context otherwise requires, terms and expressions used in this notice shall have the same meaning as in the New Zealand Grown Fruit and Vegetables Regulations 1975*. Certain of these terms and expressions as applicable to fruit are defined in the Schedule of this notice.

3. Application of notice—This notice determines the standard grades for the export of apricots from New Zealand.

4. Title and grades—The standard grade marks assigned to these standard grades shall be “Class I and Class II” (hereinafter referred to as “the grades”).

5. Definition of produce—The grades apply to apricots being fresh fruit grown from varieties of Prunus armeniaca L. to be supplied fresh to the consumer.

6. Quality requirements—

(a) The fruit in Class I and Class II must be—

(i) Intact—whole fruit;

(ii) Sound;

(iii) Clean;

(iv) Well formed—typical of the variety, though slight defects are permitted in shape, development and colouring;

(v) Free from abnormal external moisture; and

(vi) Free from foreign smell or taste.

(b) The apricots must have been carefully picked and of a similar degree of maturity and colouring in the same line of produce. They must have matured sufficiently to complete the ripening process, and in the opinion of an inspector, the stage of maturity must be suitable to withstand handling, storage, and transport to meet the market requirements at the place of destination.

(c) The apricots must be of good quality and have characteristics typical of the variety and be free of defects which:

(i) May significantly impair the general appearance or keeping quality of the fruit; or

(ii) Are likely to make the fruit unattractive to the purchaser.

(d) The flesh must be sound, but skin defects of the following types are permitted in both grades, provided the aggregate area of one or more defects does not exceed 0.5 square centimetres, and defects of an elongated nature do not exceed 1 centimetre in length—

(i) Skin defects of a superficial nature caused by leaf or limb rub, hail or similar causes;

(ii) Scattered spots or speckles of a superficial nature;

(iii) Healed shallow cracks or scars, or other elongated defects of a superficial nature.

(e) The apricots are to be free of pests, diseases and contamination with toxic materials.

7. Sizing—

(a) The sizing of apricots is determined by the maximum diameter of the equatorial section. The difference in diameter of apricots in the same package shall not exceed 5 mm.

(b) The minimum size of apricots for export shall be:

Class I ..... 40 mm
Class II ..... 30 mm

8. Packaging and presentation—

(a) The contents of each package must be uniform and contain only apricots—

(i) Grown in the same region;

(ii) Of similar quality;

(iii) Of one variety true to name; and

(iv) Of similar degree of maturity and colouring.

(b) The apricots shall not be deceptively packed or stacked, and must be packed in clean new packages suitable for transport and handling so that they will not be damaged in transit. Any paper or other material used inside the package must be new and harmless to human food. When printed material is used the printing must be on the outside only so as not to come into contact with the fruit. The fruit must be free of foreign bodies such as leaves and twigs.

9. Branding requirements—Each package must bear the following particulars legibly and indelibly branded on the outside—

(a) Identification—registered mark of grower or packing establishment and exporter’s identification;

(b) Nature of produce—kind and variety;

(c) Country of origin—New Zealand;

(d) Commercial specification—grade, count or size if packed, or size for loose-filled packages of 15 kg net weight or less;

(e) Official control mark—inspection stamp or similar identification if applicable; and

(f) Labels—if used must be of not less than 40 square centimetres.

SCHEDULE

DEFINITION OF TERMS

“Clean” means free from dirt, dust, insect stains, or other foreign substance or material;

“Count” means the number of fruit contained in any package;

“Inpector” means an inspector appointed under the Plants Act 1970;

“Mature”, in relation to fruit, means that in the opinion of an inspector the fruit will properly complete the ripening process, and is suitable for export;

“To pack” means to arrange fruit regularly and compactly in a package so that they are not loose or compressed to an extent likely to cause damage to the fruit during handling or transport;

“Sound” means free from decay, rots, overmaturity, breakdown, freezing injury, damage, and similar defects which may cause rapid loss of condition or rapid decay; and

“Storage defects” means decay, storage scald, fungal rots, wilt, or other injury to fruit as a result of storage.

Dated at Wellington this 17th day of January 1977.

M. L. CAMERON,
for Director-General of Agriculture and Fisheries.
*S.R. 1975/57

GENERAL INFORMATION

The following notes do not form part of these grade standards, but are presented for the information of growers/exporters.

1. In the opinion of the New Zealand Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, Class I will meet the minimum grade requirements of all countries to which New Zealand is likely to export apricots. Class II may only comply with the minimum requirements of, or its export be economically justified to, a restricted number of countries.

2. Notwithstanding clause 1 of these notes, it is the ultimate responsibility of the exporter to ensure that produce exported meets the requirements of the importing country and the importer.

3. In order to certify produce fit for export an inspector may require information to the effect that the property on which the fruit was produced has been cleared to pack fruit for export inspection. It is the responsibility of the exporter