§ 23.13. Weight, liquid measure or count terminology.
(a) General and combination terms. The declaration of the quantity of a particular commodity shall be expressed in terms of liquid measure if the commodity is liquid, or in terms of weight if the commodity is solid, semisolid, viscous or a mixture of solid and liquid, or in terms of numerical count. However, if a firmly established general consumer usage and trade custom exists with respect to the terms used in expressing a declaration of quantity of a particular commodity, the declaration of quantity may be expressed in its traditional terms, if the traditional declaration gives accurate and adequate information as to the quantity of the commodity. However, combination declarations may be as follows:
(1) Weight or measure. A declaration of quantity in terms of weight or measure shall be accompanied by a declaration of the count or size of the individual units of the commodity, unless a declaration of weight or measure alone is fully informative to the consumer. The declaration shall appear on the principal display panel.
(2) Count. A declaration of quantity in terms of count shall be accompanied by a declaration of the weight, measure or size of the individual units of the commodity, or of the total weight or measure of the commodity, unless a declaration of count alone is fully informative to the consumer. The declaration shall appear on the principal display panel.
(b) Weight and measure terms. A declaration of quantity of the following units shall be expressed as provided, except that in the case of a commodity packed for export shipment, the declaration of quantity may be in terms of the metric system of weight or measure:
(1) If in units of weight, it shall be in terms of the avoirdupois pound or ounce.
(2) If in units of liquid measure, it shall be in terms of the United States gallon of 231 cubic inches of liquid quart, liquid pint or fluid ounce subdivisions of the gallon, and shall express the volume at 68° F (20°C), except in the case of petroleum products, for which the declaration shall express the volume at 60°F (15.6°C), and except also in the case of a commodity that is normally sold and consumed while frozen, for which the declaration shall express the volume at the frozen temperature, and except also in the case of a commodity that is normally sold in the refrigerated state, for which the declaration shall express the volume at 40°F (4°C).
(3) If in units of linear measure it shall be in terms of the yard, foot or inch.
(4) If in units of area measure, it shall be in terms of the square yard, square foot or square inch.
(5) If in units of dry measure it shall be in terms of the United States bushel of 2,150.42 cubic inches or peck, dryquart and drypint subdivisions of the bushel.
(6) If in units of cubic measure it shall be in terms of the cubic yard, cubic foot or cubic inch.
(c) Abbreviations. Any of the following abbreviations, and none other, may be employed in the quantity statement on a package of commodity; however, there normally are no periods following, nor plural forms of, these abbreviations, as, for example, ‘‘oz’’ is the abbreviation for both ‘‘ounce’’ and ‘‘ounces’’:
Name Abbreviation avoirdupois avdp cubic cu feet or foot ft fluid fl gallon gal inch in liquid liq ounce oz pint pt pound lb quart qt square sq weight wt yard yd cubic centimeter cc gram g kilogram kg microgram mcg milligram mg milliliter ml (d) Units with two or more meanings. When the term ‘‘ounce’’ is employed in a declaration of liquid quantity, the declaration shall identify the particular meaning of the term by the use of the term ‘‘fluid’’; however, the distinction may be omitted when, by association of terms, the proper meaning is obvious as in, for example, ‘‘1 pint 4 ounces’’. Whenever the declaration of quantity is in terms of the dry pint or dry quart, the declaration shall include the word ‘‘dry’’.
(e) Prescribed units. If a particular unit is described by one of the following provisions, it shall be designated as follows, except that the quantity declaration appearing on a random package may be expressed in terms of decimal fractions of the largest appropriate unit, and the fraction carried out to not more than two decimal places:
(1) Less than 1 foot, square foot, pound or pint. If the unit is less than 1 foot, 1 square foot, 1 pound or 1 pint, the unit designation in the quantity declaration shall be as follows:
(i) Length measure less than 1 foot—inches and fractions of inches.
(ii) Area measure of less than 1 square foot—square inches and fractions of square inches.
(iii) Weight less than 1 pound—ounces and fractions of ounces.
(iv) Fluid measure less than 1 pint—ounces and fractions of ounces.
(2) More than 4 feet, square feet, pounds or 1 gallon. If the unit is equal to, or greater than, 4 feet, 4 square feet, 4 pounds or 1 gallon, the unit designation in the quantity declaration shall be as follows:
(i) In the case of length measure of 4 feet or more, the declaration of quantity shall be expressed in terms of feet, followed in parentheses by a declaration of yards and common or decimal fractions of the yard, or in terms of feet followed in parentheses by a declaration of yards with any remainder in terms of feet and inches.
(ii) In the case of area measure of 4 square feet or more, weight of 4 pounds or more or fluid measure of 1 gallon or more, the declaration of quantity shall be expressed in terms of the largest whole unit.
(f) Dual quantity declarations. If a particular unit is described by one of the following paragraphs, it shall be expressed in a dual quantity declaration, and designated as follows:
(1) Weight. On packages containing 1 pound or more but less than 4 pounds, the declaration shall be expressed in ounces and, in addition, shall be followed by a declaration in parentheses, expressed in terms of the largest whole unit. However, the quantity declaration appearing on a random package may be expressed in terms of pounds and decimal fractions of the pound carried out to not more than two decimal places.
(2) Fluid measure. On packages containing 1 pint or more but less than 1 gallon, the declaration shall be expressed in ounces and, in addition, shall be followed by a declaration in parentheses, expressed in terms of the largest whole unit.
(3) Length measure. On packages containing 1 foot but less than 4 feet, the declaration shall be expressed in inches and, in addition, shall be followed by a declaration in parentheses, expressed in terms of the largest whole unit.
(4) Area measure. On packages containing 1 square foot but less than 4 square feet, the declaration shall be expressed in square inches and, in addition, shall be followed by a declaration in parentheses, expressed in terms of the largest whole unit.
(g) Bidimensional commodities. For bidimensional commodities including roll-type commodities, the quantity declaration shall be expressed as follows:
(1) If less than 1 square foot, in terms of linear inches and fractions of linear inches.
(2) If at least 1 square foot but less than 4 square feet, in terms of square inches followed in parentheses by a declaration of both the length and width, each being in terms of the largest whole unit, except in the following cases:
(i) No square inch declaration is required for a bidimensional commodity of 4 inches width or less.
(ii) A dimension of less than 2 feet may be stated in inches within the parenthetical.
(iii) Commodities consisting of usable individual units, except roll-type commodities with individual usable units created by perforations as provided in subsection (h), require a declaration of unit area but not a declaration of total area of all units.
(3) If 4 square feet or more, in terms of square feet followed in parentheses by a declaration of the length and width in terms of the largest whole unit, except in the following cases:
(i) No declaration in square feet is required for a bidimensional commodity with a width of four inches or less.
(ii) A dimension of less than 2 feet may be stated in inches within the parenthetical.
(iii) No declaration in square feet is required for commodities for which the length and width measurements are critical in terms of end use, such as tablecloths or bedsheets, if the commodities clearly present the length and width measurements on the label.
(h) Ply count. If the commodity is in individually usable units of one or more components or ply, the quantity declaration shall, in addition to complying with other applicable quantity declaration requirements of this chapter, include the number of ply and the total number of usable units. Roll-type commodities, when perforated so as to identify individual usable units, are not deemed to be made up of usable units; however, the roll-type commodities shall be labeled in the following terms:
(1) Total area measurement.
(2) Number of ply.
(3) Count of usable units.
(4) Dimensions of a single usable unit.
(i) Container-type commodities. The measurement of container-type commodities shall be expressed as follows:
(1) General. Commodities designed and sold at retail to be used as containers for other materials or objects, such as bags, cups, boxes and pans, shall be labeled with the declaration of net quantity as follows:
(i) For bag-type commodities, in terms of count followed by linear dimensions of the bag, whether packaged in a perforated roll or otherwise, as follows:
(A) When the unit bag is characterized by two dimensions because of the absence of a gusset, the width and length shall be expressed in inches, except that a dimension of 2 feet or more shall be expressed in feet with any remainder in terms of inches or common or decimal fractions of the foot; for example, ‘‘25 bags, 17 in x 20 in,’’ or ‘‘100 bags, 20 in x 2 ft 6 in’’ or 50 bags, 20 in x 2 1/2 ft.’’
(B) When the unit bag is gusseted, the dimensions shall be expressed as width, depth and length, in terms of inches, except that a dimension of 2 feet or more shall be expressed in feet with a remainder in terms of inches or the common or decimal fractions of the foot; for example, ‘‘25 bags, 17 in x 4 in x 20 in’’ or ‘‘100 bags, 20 in x 12 in x 2 1/2 ft.’’
(ii) For other square, oblong, rectangular or similarly shaped containers, in terms of count followed by length, width and depth, except depth need not be listed if less than 2 inches; for example, ‘‘2 cake pans, 8 in x 8 in’’ or ‘‘roasting pan, 12 in x 8 in x 3 in.’’
(iii) For circular or other generally round-shaped containers, except cups, and the like, in terms of count followed by diameter and depth, except depth need not be listed if less than 2 inches; for example: ‘‘4 pie pans, 8 in diameter’’ or ‘‘2 cake pans, 8 in diameter x 4 in.’’
(2) Capacity. When the functional use of the container is related by label references in standard terms of measure to the capability of holding a specific quantity of substance or class of substances the references shall be part of the net quantity statement and shall specify capacity as follows:
(i) Liquid measure for containers which are intended to be used for liquids, semisolids, viscous materials or mixtures of solids and liquids. The expressed capacity shall be stated in terms of the largest whole unit of gallon, quart, pint, ounce, with a remainder in terms of the common or decimal fraction of that unit; for example, freezer boxes—‘‘4 boxes, 1-qt capacity, 5 in x 4 in x 3 in.’’
(ii) Dry measure for containers which are intended to be used for solids. The expressed capacity shall be stated in terms of the largest whole unit of bushel or peck, with any remainder in terms of the common or decimal fraction of that unit; for example, leaf bags—‘‘8 bags, 6-bushel capacity, 3 ft X 5 ft.’’
(iii) If containers are used as liners for other more permanent containers, in the same terms as are normally used to express the capacity of the more permanent container; for example, garbage can liners—‘‘10 liners, 2 ft 6 in x 3 ft 9 in, fits up to 30-gallon cans.’’
(3) Exceptions. Notwithstanding the requirements of paragraphs (1) and (2) the net quantity statement for containers such as cups shall be listed in terms of count and liquid capacity per unit; for example: ‘‘24 cups, 6 fl oz capacity.’’ For purposes of this subsection, the use of the terms ‘‘capacity,’’ ‘‘diameter’’ and ‘‘fluid’’ is optional.
Source The provisions of this § 23.13 adopted October 21, 1970, effective October 22, 1970, 1 Pa.B. 44.
Cross References This section cited in 70 Pa. Code § 23.12 (relating to net quantity); 70 Pa. Code § 23.102 (relating to textile products, threads and yarns); 70 Pa. Code § 23.110a (relating to polyethylene sheeting); 70 Pa. Code § 25.12 (relating to weight, liquid measure or count terminology); 70 Pa. Code § 27.8 (relating to labeling required by Federal law); 70 Pa. Code § 27.9 (relating to fluid dairy products and frozen desserts); 70 Pa. Code § 27.10 (relating to real and imitation fruit juice beverages and drinking water); 70 Pa. Code § 27.13 (relating to butter); 70 Pa. Code § 27.15 (relating to flour); 70 Pa. Code § 27.20 (relating to margarine); 70 Pa. Code § 27.24 (relating to paint and kindred products); 70 Pa. Code § 27.25 (relating to automotive antifreeze); and 70 Pa. Code § 27.26 (relating to motor oils).
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