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Apr 7, 2010 18:58
14 yrs ago
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Spanish term

calibre

Spanish to English Social Sciences Food & Drink EU classification of fruit and vegetables
Hi there,
I am working on a leaflet for a well-known hypermarket, and in the leaflet we have photos of the fruit and veg on offer, with their "cat." or category, variety, etc.
"cal" or calibre refers to the size or caliber (?), but there is surprisingly little information available on how these categories work in English: either that, or I am looking in the wrong places. I am finding far too much conflicting information.

I am unsure as to whether I should use "size" or "caliber", and while I would tend to go for size, my main issue is that sometimes this category refers to the fact that there are two in a pack, for example.

I am not coming up with anything definite on EU websites and the like, and am still unsure after consulting the kudos archives also, and am feeling a little stumped. Your help would be appreciated.

Thanks in advance. UK Eng. Cheers.
Proposed translations (English)
3 +1 calibre / caliber
4 +1 format
4 Type
2 +1 grade
3 size (equatorial diameter); (alternatively) weight

Discussion

Bubo Coroman (X) Apr 8, 2010:
45 for potatoes = 45 millimetres e.g. Lady Rosetta Potatoes
Size: 45mm to 85mm
(presumably the diameter measured at the equator)
http://www.alibaba.com/product-free/109340480/Lady_Rosetta_P...
Christine Walsh Apr 8, 2010:
It varies As far as I can make out, calibre is defined in different ways according to the product. eg: oranges by size, mangoes by weight. There are also specifications that have to be complied with when there are 2 or more to a pack. My guess is that the right word is 'calibre', plain and simple??


http://www.infoagro.com/instrumentos_medida/medidor.asp?id=3...

http://www.mercafruit.com/infofruit/func.htm

http://www.codexalimentarius.net/download/standards/315/CXS_...

http://ec.europa.eu/food/fs/ifsi/eupositions/ccffv/archives/...

http://www.grupoagrojugos.com.pe/productos/pdf/prod6o.pdf

http://www.aytub.com/turunc/images/pdf/00001.pdf
Bubo Coroman (X) Apr 8, 2010:
width of orange in cm? apparently an Emperor Mandarin for example is 6.5 cm wide
http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/morton/mandarin_orange.ht...
Taña Dalglish Apr 8, 2010:
Toughie! What is confusing, given the further context provided is: potatoes with "cal.: 45 y +", kiwis "cal.: 33", oranges "cal.: 7/8"; Surely, if it referred to calibre (size), then what does 7/8 mean in relation to the size of oranges?
Christine Walsh Apr 7, 2010:
Calibre If you google 'fruit calibre' you'll get plenty of hits. Here are 2:

http://www.proz.com/kudoz/spanish_to_english/agriculture/199...

http://www.philoseed.es/en/verde-pinton/ABM-132
Kate Major Patience (asker) Apr 7, 2010:
Hi Phil: various possibilities: in the case I mentioned above, the item is lettuce "cal.: 2 piezas" or two in a pack (there's also a photo). In other cases it's a number... I should've posted more examples above. We have potatoes with "cal.: 45 y +", kiwis "cal.: 33", oranges "cal.: 7/8"... All of these items also have a variety and category, and the weight of the bag/ box is also specified, except in the case of the lettuces. Hope that helps to clarify.
philgoddard Apr 7, 2010:
What does it say after calibre? A size in centimetres, or something else?

Proposed translations

+1
3 hrs
Selected

calibre / caliber

I work in an Argentine Poultry firm, and I've seen that we and our clients (English clients) buy the products as "calibrated" (in Spanish we call it calibrada) when it concerns to "weight" but "graded" when it concerns to "quality". E.g: "a calibrated breast (130)" is a breast that weights 130g +/-10g, but a "grade A chicken" is one which has no broken bones, bruises, blodspots, etc.
Maybe you'll need different words in English for the same word in Spanish if it refers to different classification ... Hope it helps!
Peer comment(s):
agree Christine Walsh : I think that with fruit the expression applies more to size
1 hr
Something went wrong...
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer. Comment: "I'm still not totally happy with this mysterious term: it's still giving me problems. But calibre seems to be the only option, since the term covers all manner of characteristics, like a general description, almost. Thank you all so much for your help, all of you. Cheers."
18 mins

Type

"Calibre" can also simply mean "type". Just a suggestion.
Note from asker:
Hi Margaret: as I specified above, I'm looking for some help with EU fruit and veg classification, and really need something a bit more specific. Any particular reason why "type" would work in my context? I haven't come across this on UK fruit and veg, for example, as far as I remember...
Something went wrong...
+1
17 mins

grade

What about grade?

http://www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/getfile?dDocName=STELDEV3049...
Other: This section is used for reporting non-defective factors of size, quality or condition. These nondestructive
factors include size ranges, defect and decay description, and other factors, which do not
affect grade but customarily have been reported on certificates because of their importance to applicants.
This area is not to be used to report quality or condition defects, which are not serious enough to score.

http://europa.eu/legislation_summaries/agriculture/agricultu...

Unless I am as confused as you? hee..hee.

HTH!

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 23 mins (2010-04-07 19:21:20 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

Calibre usually refers to "quality":
http://www.audioenglish.net/dictionary/calibre.htm

Sense 1 calibre
Meaning:
A degree or grade of excellence or worth
Classified under:
Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects
Synonyms:
caliber; calibre; quality
Context examples:
the quality of students has risen / an executive of low caliber
Hypernyms ("calibre" is a kind of...):
degree; grade; level (a position on a scale of intensity or amount or quality)
Attribute:
superior (of high or superior quality or performance)
inferior (of low or inferior quality)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "calibre"):
high quality; superiority (the quality of being superior)
inferiority; low quality (an inferior quality)
Note from asker:
Hi there Taña. My intial thought was "quality", but in the case I mention above it seems to refer to the fact that there are 2 in the pack "2 piezas". It seems to cover all sorts of things... :S
Peer comment(s):
agree traductorchile
13 mins
Thank you. traductorchile. Given additional context, cal. 45, cal. 33, cal. 7/8, it would appear that "size" appears to the most appropriate. Again, thanks for your vote of confidence.
Something went wrong...
22 mins

size (equatorial diameter); (alternatively) weight

it can mean both things:

El calibre se determina por el diámetro máximo de la sección ecuatorial o por peso de fruto.
ftp://ftp.fao.org/codex/ccffv15/ff15_04s.pdf

If you have to put only one word then "size".
http://www.proz.com/kudoz/spanish_to_english/agriculture/199...

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 26 mins (2010-04-07 19:24:34 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

the "weight" meaning would cover the case of "two in a pack".

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Note added at 26 mins (2010-04-07 19:25:07 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

although in fact, two in a pack would be "count: 2".
Something went wrong...
+1
42 mins

format

Now that the asker has posted more context, I think it's clear that it refers to how the items are packaged (eg two lettuces in a pack).

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 1 hr (2010-04-07 20:08:21 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

As Kate says below, it can refer to different things depending on the product, such as the quantity, weight or size, but "format" covers all of these.
Note from asker:
Hi Phil, As I mentioned, there's also weight and such specified for each item. I'm not sure that this refers only to how many come in a pack, since in the case of the potatoes, for example, we have the mysterious "cal: 45 y +".... Thanks for your help though. It's not a straightforward term, evidently!
I've also just come across a few being sold by weight (loose). Although it just occurred to me that "45 y +" is "45 +" (ie "and over"), and therefore refers perhaps to size. It seems to me that it can refer to quite a few different characteristics. :S
Peer comment(s):
agree Dr. Andrew Frankland
1 hr
Something went wrong...
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