“Extra” Class

Cucumbers in this class must be of superior quality. They must have all the typical characteristics and colouring of the variety and/or commercial type.
Cucumbers must be very carefully presented.
They must be:
- well developed.
- well shaped and practically straight (maximum height of the inner arc: 10 mm per 10 cm of length of the cucumber).
  - For all classes, the crookedness of the cucumber is determined by measuring the length of the cucumber and the height of the inner arc. The length of the cucumber is measured by taking the shortest distance between the flower-scar and the implant of the stalk. The height of the inner arc is the length of the largest distance between the line from flower-scar to stalk-implant and the inner arc of the cucumber.
They must be free from defects, including all deformations and particularly those caused by seed formation, with the exception of very slight superficial defects, provided these do not affect the general appearance of the produce, the quality, the keeping quality and presentation in the package.
- Very slight superficial defects may appear during cultivation, harvest, storage, packaging or transportation.

Class I

Cucumbers in this class must be of good quality. They must be characteristic of the variety and/or commercial type.
- Although the Class I quality requirements are less strict than for “Extra” Class, Class I
  cucumbers must, nevertheless, be carefully selected and presented.
They must be:
- reasonably developed.
- reasonably well-shaped and practically straight (maximum height of the inner arc: 10 mm per 10 cm of length of the cucumber).
The following slight defects, however, may be allowed provided these do not affect the general appearance of the produce, the quality, the keeping quality and presentation in the package:
a slight defect in shape, but excluding that caused by seed development.
slight defects in colouring, but the light-colored part of the cucumber, where it touched the ground during growth, is not considered a defect.
- Slight defects in colouring may occur where a leaf covering parts of the cucumber.
slight skin defects, provided they are not progressive.
- light skin defects due to rubbing, thrips damage, or healed cracks are allowed. Growth cracks may be linked to shape defects and appear mainly on the inner curve of the cucumbers as the outer curve is growing faster than the inner curve.

This class includes cucumbers that do not qualify for inclusion in the higher classes but satisfy the minimum requirements specified above.
Cucumbers in this class must be of marketable quality, suitably presented and suitable for human consumption.
The following defects may be allowed, provided the cucumbers retain their essential characteristics as regards the quality, the keeping quality and presentation:
defects in shape, but excluding those by serious seed development; slightly crooked cucumbers having a maximum height of the inner arc of 20 mm per 10 cm of length are allowed.
defects in colouring up to one–third of the surface, but the light-coloured part of the cucumber, where it touched the ground during growth, is not considered a defect.
skin defects, provided they are not progressive.
Crooked cucumbers having a height of the inner arc of more than 20 mm per 10 cm of length are allowed, provided they have no more than slight defects in colouring and have no defects or deformation other than crookedness, and they are separately packed.
- In the packages containing those crooked cucumbers, cucumbers showing severe shape defects are considered to be crooked cucumbers too.