FINANCIAL TIMES 4/7/95, pag.1

By Emma Tucker In Brussels

A new European Commission law proposes to make it easier for consumers to compare the prices of packaged goods such as jam, ice cream and soap by obliging shopowners to mark prices per unit of measurement, such as by weight or volume.

The draft law, which is expec. ted to be adopted by the Commission next week, has provoked an angry response from retailers across the European Union, who argue that it will impose heavy costs on small businesses.

The plans were welcomed by consumer organisations, which want greater clarity in pricing. However, the retail industry says they are unfair to smaller enter. prises which do not have the technology to provide full information for goods whose prices are constantly changing.

Brussels argues that existing legislation is unwieldy and fails to give consumers enough infor. mation to enable them to com. pare prices.

However, the new law will allow member states to exempt certain goods if they consider that using the new system would be meaningless. As an example, most member states are expected to exempt items of clothing.

EU states will be able to decide how the rules should apply. For example, Italian retailers will still be allowed to sell cucumbers by weight, while Belgium will continue to sell them by number. In Denmark, eggs will still be sold by weight, unlike in many other EU countries where they are sold by number.

"The Commission is not trying to force people to do things with this directive, it is simply trying to protect consumers," said a Brussels-based diplomat.

Under existing legislation, where a product was sold in an agreed size of container such as a standard 75cl bottle of wine, retailers did not have to supply a price per litre.

However, according to the Commission this led to the absurd situation whereby a 300g tub of ice cream did not have to display a price per gramme but a 25Og tub did.

In the case of preserved fruit or vegetables, the price per kilo or litre had to be indicated for quantities of 250g, 50Og or I litre, but not if the can or jar had a differ. ent capacity.

The new proposals cut across this confusion by requiring a unit price for all goods, whether they come in a standard size or not. This proposal has irritated larger retailers, many of whom invested in standard ranges for own-brand products seven years ago when the first directives on unit pricing were introduced.

Retailers also argue that the four-year breathing space proposed for small shopkeepers to adopt the new system is not enough.

However, consumer groups were delighted. "All consumer organisations in all member states think there is a need for compulsory unit pricing," said BEUC, the pan-EU consumer organisation.