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- Industry Innovation and Science Australia
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- Optical astronomy in Australia
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- Promoting innovation precincts
- Science in our department
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Northern Australia
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Resources
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- Applying to export uranium and controlled ores
- Offshore mineral exploration and mining
- Offshore oil and gas exploration and development
- Offshore petroleum exploration acreage release process
- Regulating offshore oil and gas in Australian Commonwealth waters
- Regulating the Ranger Uranium Mine
- Taxes and royalties on minerals and petroleum
Measurement
Trade
Space industry
Building industry
Business support
- Funding and incentives
Emissions reduction
Industry innovation and science
- Australian Square Kilometre Array Fellowships Programme
- Business Research and Innovation Initiative
- Business-research collaboration
- Collaborating with Asia-Pacific on science, research and innovation
- Collaborating with China on science and research
- Collaborating with India on science and research
- Cooperative research centres
- Enabling international space investment
- Industry 4.0
- Inspiring Australia: Science engagement in Australia
- International research collaboration
- Moon to Mars: opportunities for Australian businesses
- Prime Minister's Prizes for Science
- Research and Development Tax Incentive
- Supporting advanced manufacturing
- Supporting business and innovation
- Supporting space infrastructure growth
- Transitioning Australia’s automotive manufacturing industry
- Venture capital
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- Measurement
- Buying and selling goods and services by weight and other measurements
- Selling fruit and vegetables
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Selling fruit and vegetables

Trade measurement laws regulate the retail and wholesale sale of fruit and vegetables.
Selling by weight
When you sell fruits and vegetables by weight you must ensure the measurement is accurate.
Using scales
If you use a scale to weigh and sell fruit and vegetables that aren’t pre-packaged, you must ensure that:
- the National Measurement Institute (NMI) has approved your type of scales and any attached modules (i.e. point of sale system)
- a servicing licensee has verified your scales and any attached modules
- you and your staff use them in the correct manner (e.g. level and indicating zero before use)
- you position them so that the customer can easily see the weighing process (if not, you must provide a written statement of the weight)
- you keep them clean and in good working order
- a servicing licensee verifies them after each repair or adjustment
It is your responsibility to make sure your scale is correct at all times.
We recommend that you have all your scales checked regularly by a technician licensed by NMI (servicing licensee). For a list of servicing licensees, email tmlicensees@measurement.gov.au.
Pre-packaged fruit and vegetables
If you sell pre-packaged fruit and vegetables in bags, trays or any other form of packaging, you must make sure that you:
- label each package with the weight of the fruit or vegetables
- label each package with the name and address of the packer (unless you pack them on the same premises where you sell them)
- only display the net weight of the fruit or vegetables (do not include the weight of any packaging)
- allow for any reduction in weight due to moisture-loss so the package displays an accurate weight at the time of sale
You should print weight statements either on labels attached to the package or directly on the package itself. When you pack and sell fruit and vegetables on the same premises, you can hand-write the statement.
The weight statement must be:
- clear to read, at least 2 mm from the edge of the principal display panel and at least 2 mm from other graphics
- in the same direction as the brand or product name
- in a colour that provides a distinct contrast with the colour of the background
In addition, if the packages are not all the same weight, you must mark the total price and price per kilogram either:
- on the package in the same format as the weight statement
- immediately adjacent to the package in characters at least 10 mm high
Read the Guide to the sale of pre-packaged goods to find out more.
You may sell some pre-packaged produce by number or bunch. If you sell fruit and vegetables by number, you must mark the packaging with the accurate count except when the package:
- is transparent
- contains less than 9 items
The specific fruits and vegetables that can be sold by number when pre-packaged are listed in the Approval for the sale of products by number or linear or area measurement.
Regulating the sale of fruit and vegetables
The National Measurement Act 1960 and the National Trade Measurement Regulations 2009 regulate how fruit and vegetables can be sold by measurement.
NMI employs trade measurement inspectors throughout Australia. We regularly inspect fruit and vegetables being sold to ensure that sellers are following the correct process.
If an inspector finds that you are short-measuring your customers, you could be fined up to $222,000 per offence.
Read more
- Find out more about selling pre-packaged products
- Find out about what to do if you get a visit from a trade measurement inspector
Contact us
To find out more about trade measurement laws or report a suspected breach contact the trade measurement helpline:
- Email infotm@measurement.gov.au
- Phone 1300 686 664

- National Measurement Institute
Last updated: 8 December 2020
Content ID: 52553