Overview
- A customer weighed a purchased half-loaf and found it 10 grams short, and that complaint in September last year led to an official inspection of Bäckerei Breitner.
- Weeks after the complaint the local Eichamt ordered the bakery to stop selling halved loaves at the counter unless each piece is weighed on a certified precision scale and priced by weight under the Fertigpackungsverordnung and the Eichgesetz.
- Owner Matthias Breitner retrofitted nine certified precision scales, updated POS software and trained staff across six outlets at an estimated total cost of about €15,000.
- The new grams‑accurate process has slowed transactions, produced cent-level price swings for loaves, increased handling of one- and two-cent coins, and stirred customer frustration during busy times.
- Regulators say the rule aims to ensure correct pricing for cut portions, but small bakeries face uneven burdens and some shops briefly stopped selling halves or now change where loaves are cut to avoid repeated weighing.