where are comments on this proposal? Eugene Mechtly ________________________________ From: [email protected] [[email protected]] on behalf of mechtly, eugene a [[email protected]] Sent: Monday, May 26, 2014 10:34 AM To: U.S. Metric Association Cc: Kenneth Butcher; David Sefcik Subject: [USMA:53887] Guide for Unit Pricing
Best Practice Guide for Unit Pricing Monday, 2014 May 26 Unit Price is defined as “Price Per Unit of Measurement” of a consumer commodity which is offered for sale in a retail marketplace. Two Requirements of Best Practice for Unit Pricing are: 1. That most consumers are able to perceive relative values of competing packages by direct comparisons of Unit Prices of all package sizes, from all vendors offering that commodity for sale in a particular marketplace or in a neighboring marketplace. 2. A hand-held calculator is *not needed* to complete such comparisons of value for best-buy purchasing decisions. The numerator of Unit Price is *dollars* or *cents*, which can be interchanged easily in the minds of most consumers by simple mental arithmetic. The denominator of Unit Price is best expressed by a Unit of Measurement which is related to other Units of Measurement by a multiple of ten to enable evaluations by simple mental arithmetic. Thus, Best Practice requires expressions of Unit Prices such as: 1. Dollars per liter for bottled water. 2. Cents per milliliter for eye drop. 3. Cents per gram for super glue. 4. Dollars per kilogram, for meat. 5. Cents per meter for dental floss. 6. Dollars per liter for orange juice. 7. Dollars per liter for milk. 8. Dollars per kilogram for icecream. 9. Cents per gram for candy. 10. Cents per gram for tooth paste. 11. Dollars per liter for mouth wash. 12. Dollars per liter for house paint. 13. Dollars per square meter for fabricks.. 14. Cents per count of 100 for garden seeds. 15. Dollars per kilogram for garden mulch. 16. Cents per count of one for eggs. etc. In all cases of more (or less) of these amounts, the relative values are easily determined by simple mental arithmetic within the capabilities of most consumers. Note that units such as fluid ounce, pint, quart, gallon, pail, etc., which are *not* related by multiples of ten, do *not* facilitate easy comparisons of Unit Prices by simple mental arithmetic. The current Fair Packaging and Labeling Act requires both metric and not-metric units of measurement in the declarations of the *net amounts* inside packages and containers, but is silent on the Units of Measurement which may or must be used in the denominators of Unit Prices. However, several States *require* units of measurement that are not related by multiples of ten, in the denominators of Unit Prices. Such multiples are two, three, four, eight, twelve, sixteen, thirty two, etc. This requirement, for units not related by multiples of ten in the denominators of Unit Prices, precludes value comparisons by easy mental arithmetic, and must be avoided in Best-Practice of Unit Pricing.
