NET QUANTITY OF PREPACKAGED FOODSTUFFS REGULATIONS

NET QUANTITY OF PREPACKAGED FOODSTUFFS

SUBSIDIARY LEGISLATION 454.14

NET QUANTITY OF PREPACKAGED FOODSTUFFS

REGULATIONS

1st October, 2003 *

LEGAL NOTICE 255 of 2003.

1. The title of these regulations is the Net Quantity of

Prepackaged Foodstuffs Regulations.

1. These regulations shall apply to prepackaged foodstuffs as

defined by regulation 3.1(b) of the Labelling, Presentation and

Advertising of Foodstuffs Regulations.

2.2. These regulations shall not apply to prepackaged

foodstuffs which have been legally placed on the market within the

European Economic Area † .

2.3. These regulations shall not apply to foodstuffs intended

exclusively for export.

1. The net quantity of prepackaged foodstuffs shall be

expressed

-

in units of volume in the case of liquids,

-

in units of mass in the case of other products, using the

litre, centilitre, millilitre, kilogram or gram, as

appropriate.

3.2. Where the indication of a certain type of quantity (e.g.

nominal quantity, minimum quantity, average quantity) is required

by other regulations, this quantity shall be regarded as the net

quantity for the purposes of these regulations.

3.3. Other regulations may, for certain specified foodstuffs

classified by quantity in categories, require other indications of

quantity.

3.4. Where a prepackaged item consists of two or more

individual prepackaged items containing the same quantity of the

same product, the net quantity shall be indicated by mentioning the

net quantity contained in each individual package and the total

number of such packages. Indication of these particulars shall not,

however, be compulsory where the total number of individual

packages can be clearly seen and easily counted from the outside

and where at least one indication of the net quantity contained in

each individual package can be clearly seen from the outside.

3.5. Where a prepackaged item consists of two or more

individual packages which are not regarded as units of sale, the net

quantity shall be given by indicating the total net quantity and the

total number of individual packages. Other regulations may, in the

case of certain foodstuffs, not require indication of the total number

*See regulation 1.2 of these regulations as originally promulgated.

†European Community, Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein.

NET QUANTITY OF PREPACKAGED FOODSTUFFS

of individual packages.

3.6. In the case of foodstuffs normally sold by number, the

indication of the net quantity shall not be required provided that the

number of items can clearly be seen and easily counted from the

outside or, if not, is indicated on the labelling.

For the purposes of this regulation, the following shall be

regarded as foodstuffs normally sold by number

fruit preservative tablets,

rennet tablets,

saccharin tablets,

sweetening tablets,

vanilla pods,

capsule and tablet foods,

shell eggs.

3.7. Where a solid foodstuff is presented in a liquid medium,

the drained net weight of the foodstuff shall also be indicated on

the labelling. For the purposes of this paragraph, "liquid medium"

shall mean the following products, possibly in mixtures and also

where frozen or quick-frozen, provided that the liquid is merely an

adjunct to the essential elements of that preparation and is thus not

a decisive factor for the purchase: water, aqueous solutions of salts,

brine, aqueous solutions of food acids, vinegar, aqueous solutions

of sugars, aqueous solutions of other sweetening substances, fruit

or vegetable juices in the case of fruit or vegetables.

3.8. It shall not be compulsory to indicate the net quantity in

the case of foodstuffs

(a) which are subject to considerable losses in their

volume or mass and which are sold by number or

weighed in the presence of the purchaser;

(b) the net quantity of which is less than 5 g or 5 ml;

however, this provision shall not apply to spices and

herbs.

3.9. The indication of net quantity shall appear on the

prepackaging or on a label attached thereto.

3.10. Notwithstanding

regulation

3.9,

where

prepackaged

foodstuffs are -

-

intended for the ultimate consumer but marketed at a

stage prior to sale to the ultimate consumer and where

sale to a mass caterer is not involved at that stage, or

-

intended for supply to mass caterers for preparation,

processing, splitting or cutting up,

the indication of net weight need appear only on the commercial

documents referring to the foodstuffs where it can be guaranteed

that such documents, containing all the labelling information,

either accompany the foodstuffs to which they refer or were sent

before or at the same time as delivery.

NET QUANTITY OF PREPACKAGED FOODSTUFFS

3.11. The indication of net quantity shall be marked in a

conspicuous place in such a way as to be easily visible, clearly

legible and indelible. It shall not in any way be hidden, obscured or

interrupted by other written or pictorial matter.

3.12. The indication of net quantity shall appear in the same

field of vision as the particulars listed in regulation 14.5 of the

Labelling, Presentation and Advertising of Foodstuffs Regulations.