What do you know about UK weight legislation?

Hi all,

I was reviewing the 2006 legislation today and wondering how bread roll manufacturers get away without declaring weight (I couldn't see it explicitly written anywhere) and it made me think; there are a lot of small but important details in the legislation (somewhere) that people seem to be unaware of and I have seen illegal packs sold. I thought it would be good to collate them.

So... you might not be aware that confectionery does not need to have a weight declaration if it weighs less than 50g
The "e mark" is only required for export to the rest of the EU
The weight must be in view in the normal presentation of the product (this one I've seen companies flout freely but it is the law) ie if the back is not in view on shelf, you can't hide the weight declaration there

Any more?

I've chosen a very unsexy subject here methinks...

I know nothing about UK weight legislation.

At least you now know why I'm not answering.

Does anybody else know nothing about this subject, if so please let us know.

On a similar topic how come a lot of Aldi products do not have a best before date?

Regards,
Simon

There is a drive I believe to get rid of BBD (ie non food safety related dates) but there are quality implications for some products but it is meaningless to have a BBD on sugar for example.

Hi GMO,

do you mean this regulation?

http://webarchive.na...kgoodssi06.pdf/

I've chosen a very unsexy subject here methinks...

I no nothing too, but AFAIK all local legislations of EU Memeber states have to relate to the EU legislation. I dug a little and found something, probably not what you expect and not sexy at all but I'll put it here anyway:

http://eur-lex.europ...1:EN:HTML<br />
cocoa and chockolate products:

http://eur-lex.europ...6:EN:HTML<br />
Labeling directive:

http://eur-lex.europ...00L0013:EN:HTML

Normally I try to find guidelines to the law text, they make things look more clear.

So, at least I did something for this topic

Yep but I find that the guidance documents are still difficult to understand and even reference the packers guide (which is out of print) so it can be useful just to have a crib sheet.

Hello All,

I think bread rolls are packed by number as are a number of other products and are exempt from weights and measures legislation, this is all under the following I beleive ( I don't have a copy of the dcoument itself so if anyone has a copy please post it!)

“Weights and Measures Act 1963 (Cheese, Fish, Fresh Fruits and Vegetables, Meat and Poultry) Order 1984.”

Hello All,

I think bread rolls are packed by number as are a number of other products and are exempt from weights and measures legislation, this is all under the following I beleive ( I don't have a copy of the dcoument itself so if anyone has a copy please post it!)

“Weights and Measures Act 1963 (Cheese, Fish, Fresh Fruits and Vegetables, Meat and Poultry) Order 1984.”

I think that's been superseded by the 2006 legislation

I've chosen a very unsexy subject here methinks...

Hello GMO,
I do not know why (and how) I could have missed this topic.

......The "e mark" is only required for export to the rest of the EU

Can you please explain why the e-mark is only for export to other european countries?
the e-mark implicates IMO that average weight is applied and that the company was approved by the authorities to do this.
How is average weight applied in UK?

Hello GMO,
I do not know why (and how) I could have missed this topic.



Can you please explain why the e-mark is only for export to other european countries?
the e-mark implicates IMO that average weight is applied and that the company was approved by the authorities to do this.
How is average weight applied in UK?

This was explained to us in a lecture and I have no reference for it so sorry people if I get this wrong. Now the 'e' mark is to display that european weight legislation law has been applied. Personally I would always put it on a product if the average weight legislation had been used but I was told in this training that it wasn't actually specifically required unless exporting to the EU, however, the legislation in the UK regarding average weight control I believe is identical to the rest of the EU. I suspect in mainland Europe (not islands like the UK) it's possibly more vague over whether a product crosses a border or not than it is in the UK so people would put it on anyway just in case (although I suspect this is becoming the case in the UK too.)

Dear Madam A.D-tor,

the e-mark implicates IMO that average weight is applied and that the company was approved by the authorities to do this

This is a deceptively simple statement, eg

http://www.food.gov....ide/sflgpart13/

http://www.reading.a...w/label/i-1.htm


Rgds / Charles.C

"The E-mark, when placed on a package, is a declaration by the packer that the contents comply with the average system Directives (Directive 75/106/EEC and Directive 76/211/EEC). As such, it acts as a metrological passport throughout the EEA, assuring free access, so far as metrological requirements are concerned, to all EEA markets. There is no requirement for packages to be labelled with the E-mark, which is entirely optional for the packer. But the Regulations prohibit its use on packages which do not meet certain criteria."