The United States Standards for the Grades of Butter were developed to provide uniformity in product evaluation and grade determination. USDA, AMS, Dairy Program Grading Branch provides objective grading services with highly trained graders utilizing the United States Standards. View more information on grading programs and services.
Grades of Butter
- U.S. Grade AA. U.S. Grade AA butter conforms to the following: Possesses a fine and highly pleasing butter flavor. May possess a slight feed and a definite cooked flavor. It is made from sweet cream of low natural acid to which a culture (starter) may or may not have been added. The permitted total disratings in body, color, and salt characteristics are limited to one-half (½). For detailed specifications and classification of flavor characteristics see Table I, and for body, color, and salt characteristics and disratings see Table II.
- U.S. Grade A. U.S. Grade A butter conforms to the following: Possesses a pleasing and desirable butter flavor. May possess any of the following flavors to a slight degree: Acid, aged, bitter, coarse, flat, smothered, and storage. May possess feed flavor to a definite degree. The permitted total disratings in body, color, and salt characteristics are limited to one-half (½), except, when the flavor classification is AA, a disrating total of one (1) is permitted. For detailed specifications and classification of flavor characteristics see Table I, and for body, color, and salt characteristics and disratings see Table II.
- U.S. Grade B. U.S. Grade B butter conforms to the following: Possesses a fairly pleasing butter flavor. May possess any of the following flavors to a slight degree: Malty, musty, neutralizer, scorched, utensil, weed, and whey. May possess any of the following flavors to a definite degree: Acid, aged, bitter, smothered, storage, and old cream; feed flavor to a pronounced degree. The permitted total disratings in body, color, and salt characteristics are limited to one-half (½), except, when the flavor classification is AA, a disrating total of one and one-half (1½) is permitted and when the flavor classification is A, a disrating total on one (1) is permitted. For detailed specifications and classification of flavor characteristics see Table I, and for body, color, and salt characteristics and disratings see Table II.
- General. Butter of all U.S. grades shall be free of foreign materials and visible mold. Butter possessing a flavor rating of AA and workmanship disratings in excess of one and one-half (1½) shall be given a flavor rating only; butter possessing a flavor rating of A and workmanship disratings in excess of one (1) shall be given a flavor rating only; and butter possessing a flavor rating of B and workmanship disratings in excess of one-half (½) shall be given a flavor rating only.
Detailed standards, Inspection Instructions & Other Resources:
- U.S. Grade Standards for Butter (pdf)
- United States Sediment Standards for Milk and Milk Products (pdf)