Overview
- The Department of Consumer Affairs is formally examining industry proposals after a stakeholder meeting chaired by the consumer affairs secretary on 20 May that included associations representing roughly 90% of the edible-oil sector.
- Industry groups recommended a set of standard sizes covering common retail quantities, including 200 ml, 500 ml, 1 litre, 2 litres, 3 litres, 4 litres, 5 litres, 15 litres/15 kg and 20 litres/20 kg.
- Proposals would exempt packs below 200 ml and some minor oils and would give manufacturers an estimated transition window of about three months to change packaging and supply chains.
- Officials and industry observers warn the change could impose short-term costs for packaging redesign, machine recalibration and logistics and would affect major edible-oil and FMCG firms, while rules would apply equally to imports.
- The move would roll back part of the 2022 Legal Metrology change that removed mandatory standard quantities and responds to growing edible-oil consumption and rising imports that have made price transparency a greater consumer issue.