CHOICE reveals true meaning of small detail on supermarket items: 'Be mindful'

While browsing the supermarket aisles, most people notice a small symbol included on several different types of product packaging.

The small "e" symbol, or “e-mark”, is displayed after the stated weight on pre-packaged food products, such as meat, honey, butter, chips, sugar, cereal, and cheese.

“Once you start to notice it, you’ll realise just how many of the products you buy from the supermarket carry the ‘e’ symbol next to the weight,” consumer advocacy group CHOICE said.

“But do you know what it actually means?”

Margaret Rafferty from CHOICE said many Australian shoppers “mistakenly believe” the symbol means “estimated amount”.

However, it actually signifies that the product complies with the Average Quantity System (AQS).

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What is the Average Quantity System?

The AQS is an internationally agreed method of determining the size or quantity of pre-packed articles with a “constant nominal content”, according to the National Measurement Institute.

The system provides a 97.5 per cent assurance that goods are the correct quantity.

To comply with the AQS, products need to adhere to the following three rules:

• The average net content of a sample from the production run of pre-packed articles must not be less than the quantity stated on the packages.

• Allowance is made for a small number of packages to exceed a “tolerable deficiency”.

• None of the packages in the sample can exceed twice the prescribed tolerable deficiency.

The “tolerable deficiency” depends on the size of the product itself.

Not all packaged products use the “e-mark” average quantity system.

Some items, like meat and cheese sold by weight, fall under a random weight system, where products must never contain less than the amount listed on the label.

Others use the non-average quantity system (non-AQS), where products are packed to a set quantity without the e-mark.

Inspectors check that the average of at least six packages meets the labelled amount, and that no single package is more than 5 per cent underfilled.

In 2020, a woman posted a picture of beef mince she purchased from Woolworths, complaining that, while the package stated 500g, it weighed 262g on a scale.

“I paid $7.50 for 500 grams and got this,” she wrote on Facebook.

Underneath the post, a Woolworths representative said it was “very disappointing to see”.

Can you check the weight at home?

The experts at CHOICE shared some helpful recommendations to check the weight of a product at home.

“While it can be helpful to check a product’s weight yourself, you need to take a few things into account,” CHOICE wrote.

When whipping out your kitchen scales, be mindful that the scale itself can vary in accuracy and should be used only as a guide.

“You also need to be mindful that it is the product’s net weight that needs to be measured, and this includes anything that is naturally part of the product,” CHOICE explained.

“For example, in mince meat, the blood contained within the soaker pad is considered part of the net weight.”

However, shrinkage and dehydration aren’t accounted for, as the NMI expects the net quantity to remain within legal limits throughout the product’s shelf life.

If you have any concerns, contact the NMI by calling 1300 686 664.

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