Weights and measures: the law
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1. Units of measurement
You must use metric measurements (grams, kilograms, millilitres or litres) when selling packaged or loose goods in England, Scotland or Wales.
There are
The only products you can sell in imperial measures are:
- draught beer or cider by pint
- milk in returnable containers by pint
- precious metals by troy ounce
You can display an imperial measurement alongside the metric measurement but it cannot stand out more than the metric measurement.
2. Specified quantities
Some goods must be sold in fixed sizes known as 鈥榮pecified quantities鈥�.
Alcohol
There are different rules depending on whether you鈥檙e selling by the glass or bottle.
By the glass
| Measures | |
|---|---|
| Still wine | 125ml, 175ml, multiples of 125ml and 175ml |
| Port, sherry or other fortified wine | 50ml, 70ml, multiples of 50ml or 70ml |
| Gin, rum, vodka and whisky | Either 25ml and multiples of 25ml, or 35ml and multiples of 35ml (not both on the same premises) |
| Draught beer and cider | Third, half, two-thirds of a pint and multiples of half a pint |
There are no specified quantities for sparkling wine or yellow wine by the glass or spirits other than gin, rum, vodka and whisky.
Packaged in bottles, boxes or similar
| Volume by millilitre (ml) | |
|---|---|
| Still wine | 100, 187, 200, 250, 375, 500, 568, 750, 1000, 1500 |
| Yellow wine | 620 |
| Sparkling wine | 125, 200, 375, 500, 568, 750, 1500 |
| Fortified wine | 100, 200, 375, 500, 750, 1000, 1500 |
| Spirit drinks | 100, 200, 350, 500, 700, 1000, 1500, 1750, 2000 |
You can sell packaged alcohol in any volume if it鈥檚 below the minimum or above the maximum allowed for specified quantities.
| Minimum (ml) | Maximum (ml) | |
|---|---|---|
| Still wine | 100 | 1500 |
| Yellow wine | 100 | 1500 |
| Sparkling wine | 125 | 1500 |
| Fortified wine | 100 | 1500 |
| Spirit drinks | 100 | 2000 |
There are no specified quantities for packaged beer or cider.
Solid fuel
You can sell sealed bags of solid fuel in any size you wish but if you鈥檙e selling it loose, you can only sell it in quantities of:
- 25kg
- 50kg
- multiples of 50kg
3. Packaged goods
Packaged goods are products that are all of these:
- sold sealed
- between 5g and 25kg or 5ml and 25 litres
- the same weight or volume as other products of the same type
There are 2 ways to pack your products.
Minimum system
You can pack your products so that they contain at least the quantity displayed on the label. The packages can contain more than the label says, but not less.
Average system
You can pack your products to an average measurement that is on the label. You must check your packages to make sure a random sample is packed to meet all these rules - known as the 鈥榯hree packers鈥� rules鈥�:
- the contents of the packages must not be less, on average, than the weight on the label
- only a small number can fall below a certain margin of error, known as the 鈥榯olerable negative error鈥� (TNE)
- no package can be underweight by more than twice the TNE
| Quantity in grams and millilitres | TNE as % of quantity | TNE in grams or millilitres |
|---|---|---|
| 5 to 50 | 9 | n/a |
| 50 to 100 | n/a | 4.5 |
| 100 to 200 | 4.5 | n/a |
| 200 to 300 | n/a | 9 |
| 300 to 500 | 3 | n/a |
| 500 to 1,000 | n/a | 15 |
| 1,000 to 10,000 | 1.5 | n/a |
| 10,000 to 15,000 | n/a | 150 |
| more than 15,000 | 1 | n/a |
If you鈥檙e calculating the TNE as a percentage of the quantity, you must round up the weight or volume to the nearest 0.10 of a gram or millilitre.
Contact your local Trading Standards office for help with packing to the average system.
Read the 鈥榃eights and Measures (Packaged Goods) 2006鈥� guidance for business for more information.
You must make sure packaged goods you鈥檙e producing or importing are packed and labelled correctly.
You can be fined or sent to prison if you break the rules.
4. Equipment and records
Equipment for packaged goods
The equipment you use to weigh or measure your packaged goods has to be suitable. There are no hard and fast rules about what equipment you should use but you cannot use domestic scales to weigh goods you intend to sell.
Your local Trading Standards office will tell you what is suitable equipment for your business sector.
Trading Standards will check the weights and measures of your goods on your production line to make sure the equipment is accurate.
Records
You must keep records if you pack your products using the average system. You must record the results of your sample batches and show that they meet the 鈥榯hree packers鈥� rules.
You do not have to keep records if you measure every package or you use the minimum system to pack your products.
You must keep your records for at least one year from either the date you ship the packages or the 鈥榰se by鈥� date on the package - whichever is shorter.
Your local Trading Standards office can advise you about how to keep records.
5. Labelling packaged goods
You must put the weight or volume of your packaged goods on the label.
The quantity marking must be:
- permanent
- easy to see
- meet a minimum height requirement
You can display an imperial measurement alongside the metric measurement but it cannot stand out more than the metric measurement.
Food
Read the rules about what you must show on packaged food labels.
Exporting packaged goods
You must meet the rules for packaged goods in the country you鈥檙e exporting to.