The 3 digit 'country of produce code' on the barcode label on groceries

Andy From Sligo · 04-09-2019 01:35PM #1

I heard that rumour about if you read the barcode label on your groceries that the first 3 digits starting on the barcode will tell you which country the product was produced in .

So I had a few things on the kitchen table and they were Supervalu items.

Tomato Ketchup , supervalu own brand, Supervalu own brand margarine.

Their barcode started with the digit '509'

Started to search more items and

Paracetamol (bought in Irish Chemist)were starting with 509

Bewleys Gold Roast instant coffee (which I would have thought were produced in Ireland was 509

and looked at Siucra Granulated Sugar (sounds Irish doesn't it?) - 501

so I looked on wikipedia (some people say its reliable, some say its not) and 3 digit code and it said products that start with 500 - 509 are produced in the United Kingdom.

and that Irish produced items start with 539 on the barcode label or GS1 restricted circulation from 200-299 at the start of the barcode .

So those items I picked up (and of course thats just only a fraction of the groceries we have in the kitchen) is that an accurate indication that they are produced in the UK? - and do you think these things could be affected with the Brexit thing?

I have also read that when you see a 'Guaranteed Irish' or Irish symbol on a pack of something it does not mean that it was produced in Ireland , even if it was produced in another country but packed in Ireland it can earn its symbol. Is that correct?

CJhaughey · 04-09-2019 02:15PM

What does the little producer oval code on the pack say?

Andy From Sligo · 04-09-2019 02:24PM

CJhaughey wrote: »

What does the little producer oval code on the pack say?

So, i have like the Supervalu tomato ketchup in my hand at the moment. The barcode starts with 509.... its got a recycle icon on it. and up the top it says specially produced in the E.U. - well UK is in the EU (at the moment)

rubberdungeon · 04-09-2019 02:25PM

I haven’t a notion but Googled it when I read your post and saw this

https://barcode1.ie/539-barcode-numbers/

539 Barcode Numbers

Barcode numbers beginning with 539 are the barcode numbers that come directly from GS1 Ireland. The ONLY legal way to get numbers starting with 539 is to join GS1-Ireland – this means completing their membership forms, and paying a joining fee and annual membership fees to GS1 – which is VERY expensive (GS1 only license the numbers to you – so you have to pay their annual fees every year for the rest of your product life).

Many people mistakenly believe that the first few digits of the barcode numbers show the country of origin of the product. However the barcode number says NOTHING accurate about the country of origin of the product. The only thing that these first few digits show is the country of origin of the number. So in reality, products that come from Ireland can have any barcode number on them.

If you want to demonstrate that your product is made in the Ireland, then the best way to do this is to print “Made in Ireland” or similar on the product. This is an advertising claim and must be provable if challenged. (Some manufacturers also print “Made in Ireland” directly above the barcode to help customers).

The myth of the barcode number showing the country of origin of the product is an old myth that has been thoroughly debunked. Please see this Snopes article on the origins of this myth as well as a debunking of it.

All barcodes and barcode systems are designed for international use, so there are virtually no restrictions based on the country of origin world wide. Any specific examples of stores placing any type of restrictions on barcodes can be seen here.

We are a member of an international network of barcode sellers that have customers in more than 120 countries using our barcodes without any problems.

odyssey06 · 04-09-2019 02:34PM

It can handy sometimes to check the export code (not barcode) to identify where an own brand product is coming from a branded producer e.g. Silver Hill Duck has IE 801 EC.
https://www.irishtimes.com/life-and-style/food-and-drink/irish-companies-have-their-confit-ducks-in-a-row-1.3930917

Andy From Sligo · 04-09-2019 02:40PM

rubberdungeon wrote: »

I haven’t a notion but Googled it when I read your post and saw this

https://barcode1.ie/539-barcode-numbers/

539 Barcode Numbers

Barcode numbers beginning with 539 are the barcode numbers that come directly from GS1 Ireland. The ONLY legal way to get numbers starting with 539 is to join GS1-Ireland – this means completing their membership forms, and paying a joining fee and annual membership fees to GS1 – which is VERY expensive (GS1 only license the numbers to you – so you have to pay their annual fees every year for the rest of your product life).

Many people mistakenly believe that the first few digits of the barcode numbers show the country of origin of the product. However the barcode number says NOTHING accurate about the country of origin of the product. The only thing that these first few digits show is the country of origin of the number. So in reality, products that come from Ireland can have any barcode number on them.

If you want to demonstrate that your product is made in the Ireland, then the best way to do this is to print “Made in Ireland” or similar on the product. This is an advertising claim and must be provable if challenged. (Some manufacturers also print “Made in Ireland” directly above the barcode to help customers).

The myth of the barcode number showing the country of origin of the product is an old myth that has been thoroughly debunked. Please see this Snopes article on the origins of this myth as well as a debunking of it.

All barcodes and barcode systems are designed for international use, so there are virtually no restrictions based on the country of origin world wide. Any specific examples of stores placing any type of restrictions on barcodes can be seen here.

We are a member of an international network of barcode sellers that have customers in more than 120 countries using our barcodes without any problems.

Oh right thank you for finding that info and relaying it

The 3 digit 'country of produce code' on the barcode label on groceries

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