Category Archives: Consumer affairs

A juicy story

A slogan appearing on the label of a bottle of apple juice leaves some of us guessing about its intended message.

Posted in Consumer affairs, General, Law | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

Eggs by the kilo

There has been some media excitement over a suggestion that eggs could be sold by weight. MetricViews asked its cookery correspondent for a quick comment, and this is what she said:

Posted in Consumer affairs, Recipes | Tagged | 15 Comments

Could a future Government reverse metrication?

A recent correspondent expressed the wish “Let’s hope the new (Conservative) government puts a stop to metrication as far as is practically possible.” Naturally, we disagree with this sentiment – but, whoever wins the election, what could they actually do … Continue reading

Posted in Consumer affairs, General, Law | Tagged , , | 12 Comments

Joules on the menu, please

The very worthy proposal of the Food Standards Agency (FSA) that menus should state energy values is undermined by its failure to use proper measurement units.  UKMA has responded by advocating joules rather than so-called “calories” (whatever they may be).

Posted in Consumer affairs, General, Health, Media, Technical | Tagged , , , , , , | 13 Comments

Will the European Commission challenge US labelling rules?

A recent posting by NIST (the National Institute of Standards and Technology) has prompted this question: Are American labelling requirements now illegal under WTO rules?

Posted in Consumer affairs, General, Law | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Tory spokesman supports centilitres of alcohol

In a commendable outbreak of common sense, Conservative health spokesman, Andrew Lansley has proposed that, in order to clarify the amount of alcohol being consumed, bottles and cans should be labelled with the quantity of pure alcohol in centilitres rather … Continue reading

Posted in Consumer affairs, General, Health | Tagged , , , , | 17 Comments

Electric cars – an opportunity for SI, or a threat?

The arrival of electric cars on our streets will draw attention to measures for comparing performance.

Posted in Consumer affairs, Technical, Transport | Tagged , , | 12 Comments

Milk pricing – is there method in the supermarket muddle?

The pricing of milk should be simple and clear, for milk is a staple item in every household. In reality, confusion often reigns.

Posted in Consumer affairs | Tagged , , | 8 Comments

BIS sticks with pints of beer (but only on draught)

As expected the Business Department has refused to permit sales of draught beer and cider in convenient metric measures – but its reasoning is bizarre.

Posted in Consumer affairs, General, Health, Law | Tagged , , , | 9 Comments

The English language – not to be taken for granted

Martin Vlietstra suggests a possible threat to our prosperity resulting from our resistance to change.

Posted in Consumer affairs, Education, General, Views from abroad | 5 Comments