Wonder if the Government of Canada is ever going to undo Mulroney's foot-dragging and finish the job by declaring that food and other things be advertised in metric terms only.
cm _____ From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Stephen Gallagher Sent: Sunday, March 11, 2007 09:53 To: U.S. Metric Association Subject: [USMA:38137] Re: Anti-metric bias in schools When I was in Canada some years ago, I encountered pound pricing only on goods that were prepackaged, like apples and potatoes. You couldn't ask for specific pound amounts and even though the "per pound" price was displayed on an advertisement, the products were not sold that way. However, where you had to ask for a weighed amount, it was in grams and kilograms and the advertising was per 100 grams. They'll definitely be weighed in g or kg. I may have not been clear, but I was referring to packaged goods, such as apples and potatoes in prepackaged sacks, some imported from the US That's absolutely correct. Potatoes are a great example. Even the ones grown and sold in Canada are packaged and sold here in 2.26 kg and 4.53 kg bags, because Canadian growers want to also sell them in US stores, which are used to 5 lb and 10 lb sized bags. But in many stores, the language across the counter is still imperial. Before I moved to Toronto I would buy my meat in a butcher shop. They had no problem if you asked for a metric amount of something, but I'd have to say that 90% of the requests for things were in pounds. The same being true at vegetable stands. The question then is how does the consumer know he is getting what he/she asked for? Since they weigh it out in grams and the consumer sees grams, then how are they assured they get the imperial amount they requested? For example, if someone asked for a pound of something and the clerk weighed out 480 g, would the consumer know if that was what he/she requested? It's mostly visual clues. People who cook know how many hamburgers they'll get out of 1 pound of ground beef, or how big a 2 pound roast should be. And, I'm sure that there are some customers who know that 1 pound is approximately 450 g, so they'll be happy with anything in the range of 450 g to 500 g. I've even seen a few supermarkets that have an imperial based scale next to their meat displays to that customers can check the weight in pounds. Where you do tend to see items requested in metric seems to be at the deli counters. People request their sliced ham, roast beef, and cheese in grams, most of the time. In a typical shopping experience, is a consumer more apt to buy things he/she has to ask for in metric or in imperial? Would they ask for more things at the deli counter in grams Most items at the deli counter in supermarket are displayed with the price per 100 g, sometimes accompanied with the price per pound, and most people order deli items in grams, with some older people asking for 1/4, 1/2, or 1 pound of whatever. If the supermarket were to have a meat counter, those same people who just asked for their deli meats in grams would more likely ask for their beef in pounds. Produce is primarily packaged and weighed by the shopper and there is usually a scale with dual display. Of course, the produce aisles are also dual priced, with the price per pound being the more prominent price, and the price per kilogram displayed, but in smaller print, or at the "other" counter in non-metric? Deli is the major exception. Other than deli, the requests are mostly non-metric. I remember getting a funny look when I had to order a special cut from the meat counter and when they asked me how much, I replied "two kilograms". The person serving me, who seemed to be in his early 20s, asked if I meant two pounds, and I told him "No, I want two kilograms." The look was almost one of him thinking "Why is this weirdo ordering in metric?" Anyway I did get my 2 kg. I shopped at a butcher near where I used to live, and even though they were a little more expensive I would go there because they had good meat AND because the signs in the window display and in the counters were in metric only. There was no non-metric pricing in the store (but 80 - 90% of the requests from customers were for non-metric amounts).. About four years ago, the window signs started appearing in dual sizes, although both prices were the same size print and metric was listed first. Why the change? A new supermarket opened across the street. Their adverts listed meat prices with the price per pound being emphasized. The counter displays remained metric only. I believe property deeds in Canada are all metric unless they are really old, as surveying is 100 % metric. If you have your property surveyed it will be done in metres and officially recorded that way. If your home was built after metrication, then the deed and survey will be metric. When I bought my house, it was advertised as being on 40' x 100' lot, but the deed itself showed it as being 12.10 m x 30.50 m Do you know what the accepted accuracy of the measurement is? The lot seems small. Mine is 20 m (w) x 50 m (d). Not a surveyed amount, but one I measured with a metric tape measure. This is a 1000 m^2 lot compared to your 369 m^2. It is a small lot, and those distances are directly off the land survey attached to my old deed, so they are professionally done. Despite all the land in Canada, homes have been built very close together. My house, or should I say my previous house, was built in 1998 in a newly built neighbourhood, and the building code required that the house be 1 m from the side property line, so it's filled with lots that are 12.10 m wide and houses that are 2 m apart.
