Sale of Food (Weights and Measures) Act 1926
Sale of Food (Weights and Measures) Act, 1926
(16 & 17 Geo. 5.) CHAPTER 63.
An Act to provide for the better protection of the public in relation to the sale of food, including agricultural and horticultural produce.
[15th December 1926]
Be it enacted by the King's most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:—
1 Prohibition of giving of short weight, measure or number.
1. A person shall not, in selling any article of food by weight, measure or number, deliver or cause to be delivered to the purchaser a less weight, measure or number, as the case may be, than is purported to be sold.
2 Statements as to weight or measure on pre-packed articles.
2. A statement as to the weight or measure of a pre-packed article of food shall be deemed to be a statement as to the net weight or measure thereof unless otherwise specified.
3 Misrepresentation.
3. A person shall not on or in connection with the sale of any article of food, or in exposing or offering any article of food for sale, make any misrepresentation either by word of mouth or otherwise, or commit any other act calculated to mislead the purchaser or prospective purchaser, as to the weight or measure of the article, or, if any articles are being sold or offered for sale by number, as to the number of articles sold or offered for sale.
4 Provisions applicable to the sale of certain articles of common consumption.
(1) A person shall not sell any article of any of the kinds of food set forth in the First Schedule to this Act otherwise than by net weight except that, in the case of articles specified in Part II and Part III of that Schedule, where the article is weighed for sale in a wrapper or container the weight purported to be sold may include the weight of the wrapper or container if the weight of the wrapper or container does not exceed—
(a ) in the case of an article specified in Part II of the Schedule two and a half drams; and
(b ) in the case of an article specified in Part III of the Schedule for a parcel not exceeding three pounds in weight four and a half drams, for a parcel exceeding three pounds but not exceeding seven pounds in weight three and a half drams, and for a parcel exceeding seven pounds in weight three drams,
per pound of the article sold.
(2) A person shall not sell or have in his possession for sale any pre-packed article of food of any of the kinds set forth in the First Schedule to this Act, unless—
(a ) the article is made up for sale in quantities of two ounces, or in multiples of two ounces up to a limit of eight ounces, in multiples of a quarter of a pound up to a limit of two pounds, in multiples of half a pound up to a limit of four pounds, or in multiples of one pound; and
(b ) the wrapper or container bears thereon, or on a label securely attached thereto, a true statement in plain characters of the minimum net weight of the article contained therein, or, in any case where the weight of the wrapper or container is permitted by the preceding subsection to be included in the weight purported to be sold, of the minimum weight of the article with its wrapper or container:
Provided that, in the case where the article is made up for sale on the premises where it is sold or kept for sale by a retailer and is made up in quantities of two ounces, four ounces, eight ounces, one pound, or a multiple of one pound, it shall not be necessary that such a statement as aforesaid should be borne on or attached to the wrapper or container.
(3) Any such statement as aforesaid shall not be deemed to be untrue if it is shown that it was true at the time of packing or of importation, whichever was the later, and the original wrapper or container has remained intact.
(4) A person shall not sell any article (not being a pre-packed article) of any of the kinds of food set forth in the First Schedule to this Act in quantities other than two ounces, four ounces, eight ounces, one pound, or multiples of one pound unless—
(a ) the article is weighed in the presence of the purchaser and forthwith delivered to him; or
(b ) the article is delivered to the purchaser accompanied by a legible statement of its weight.
(5) It shall be lawful to print on any wrapper or container in which any pre-packed article is contained a statement of weight notwithstanding anything in any other Act to the contrary.
(6) This section shall not apply in the case of any article which is proved to have been sold for shipment to a place outside Great Britain or to be intended to be so sold.
5 Provisions applicable to the sale of butchers' meat.
(1) A person shall not sell any butchers' meat otherwise that by net weight.
(2) A person shall not deliver or cause to be delivered to a purchaser any butchers' meat without a legible statement of the net weight on which the purchase price is based unless delivery is made to the purchaser on or at the premises of the seller immediately after the meat has been weighed in the presence of the purchaser:
Provided that where at the request of the purchaser the meat is boned, trimmed, or subjected to any other process involving loss of weight before delivery, and the bones or other material thus removed are not delivered with the meat, or where at the request of the purchaser delivery of the meat is deferred, such statement as aforesaid shall include a statement of the net weight of the meat as sent out for delivery as well as the net weight on which the purchase price is based.
6 Provisions applicable to the sale of bread.
(1) A person shall not sell or offer for sale any bread otherwise than by net weight.
(2) A person shall not sell or have in his possession for sale or delivery under a contract of sale any loaf of bread unless its net weight is one pound or an integral number of pounds:
Provided that this subsection shall not apply to loaves supplied under contract where the contract provides for the supply for consumption on the premises of the purchaser of not less than half a hundredweight of bread at a time, and for the weighing of the bread on delivery.
(3) The foregoing provisions of this section shall not apply to fancy bread or to loaves not exceeding twelve ounces in weight:
Provided that the foregoing provisions shall apply to pan loaves, French loaves, and loaves of a similar character, with this modification, that in Scotland any such loaf of the net weight of one-and-three-quarter pounds may be sold or delivered for sale if the weight is clearly marked either by an impression made in baking or on any printed hand or wrapper surrounding or containing the loaf.
(4) Every person selling bread, or having in his possession any bread for the purpose of sale, shall provide and keep in some conspicuous part of his shop or premises a correct weighing instrument of a pattern suitable for weighing bread, and shall, if so required by the purchaser, or by an inspector of weights and measures, weigh the bread in the presence of the person so requiring, or, if the person so requiring is such an inspector as aforesaid, shall permit the inspector to weigh the bread.
(5) Every person carrying bread for sale or delivery to a purchaser shall, if so required by an inspector of weights and measures, permit the inspector to weigh the bread.
7 Provisions applicable to the sale of milk.
(1) A person shall not sell any milk, or have in his possession for sale or delivery on sale any pre-packed milk, except in quantities of half a pint or multiples of half a pint.
(2) This section shall extend to skimmed and separated milk and pasteurised milk and to milk which has been subjected to any other process, except that it shall not apply to dried or condensed milk.
8 Savings.
8. Nothing contained in the last four foregoing sections of this Act shall apply to the sale or offering for sale of any article of food for consumption on or at the premises of the seller, or to sales in petty amounts.
9 Power of Board of Trade to make regulations.
(1) The Board of Trade, after consultation with the Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries and such interests as appear to them to be concerned, may make regulations for the purpose—
(a ) of making additions to or removals from or otherwise varying the list of articles set forth in the First Schedule to this Act;
(b ) of requiring any articles of food other than those required by this Act to be sold by weight or by measure to be sold only by weight or by measure, and of applying to any such articles any of the provisions of this Act, either without modification or subject to such modifications as may be specified in the regulations;
(c ) of requiring any pre-packed articles of food other than those mentioned in the First Schedule to this Act to be labelled with an indication of their weight or measure;
(d ) of prescribing the manner in which indications of weight or measure are to be marked on pre-packed articles required by or under this Act to be marked with such indications, and the manner of re-sealing wrappers and containers broken open under this Act;
and where the First Schedule is varied by the regulations this Act shall have effect as if the...
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