How to Read a Barcode Country of Origin
The claim: Bar code prefixes reveal where a product was made
As false claims nearly where products are made take increased amongst the COVID-xix pandemic, an onetime rumor has resurfaced on Facebook suggesting that a barcode can reveal the country of origin of an item.
One claim went viral afterward it was posted in 2022 by Facebook user Dave Aston; it has at present been shared over 746,000 times. "This is our correct to know, simply the government and related departments never educate the public, therefore we accept to RESCUE ourselves."
"Buy U.s. & CANADIAN Made by watching for '0' at the beginning of the number," the postal service reads, claiming that if a barcode starts with zero then information technology was made in the U.South. or Canada.
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That claim continues to find an audience on social media, even 5 years later.
In June, a like post appeared from user David Shannon who wrote, "A friend of mine sent an interesting email recently. He said a lot of people are interested in knowing where products are fabricated earlier they decide if they wanted to buy or not," along with a photo of a barcode.
The mail so goes on to merits that the starting time 3 digits on a barcode tin can tell a customer where the product was fabricated and lists different countries with a set of numbers next to them, the same every bit the 2022 mail service.
U.s. TODAY reached out to Aston and Shannon for annotate.
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Global Trade Particular Number
The set of numbers below a black-and-white barcode is called a Global Merchandise Item Number, which identifies the manufacturer of a production.
"The GTIN is a globally unique xiv-digit number used to identify trade items, products or services. GTIN is also an umbrella term that refers to the entire family unit of UCC.EAN data structure," GTIN's site explains, referring to Compatible Code Quango and European Article Numbers.
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GS1, a nonprofit system that provides manufacturers with a fix of numbers for barcodes, states on its site that a GTIN "tin be used by a company to uniquely identify all of its merchandise items."
GS1's site further states that Universal Product Codes and European Article Numbers are "printed on almost every product in the world" and are the "longest-established and widely-used of all GS1 barcodes."
Under oft asked questions, the company states that the prefix, or offset two to three digits of a barcode, practise non show the product'southward country of origin.
"An EAN-13 barcode number e'er starts with the GS1 Prefix of the GS1 Member Arrangement that allocated the barcode number," the site reads. "The GS1 Prefix does not indicate that the product was manufactured in a specific state or by a specific manufacturer; it may have been produced anywhere in the world."
International Barcodes also explains on its site that the claim that a barcode tin can show where an item is made is an erstwhile myth.
"Many people mistakenly believe that the beginning few digits of the barcode numbers show the state of origin of the production. Withal, the barcode number says NOTHING accurate well-nigh the state of origin of the product," the site reads.
Barcodes can show other information
While the set up of numbers nether a barcode don't bear witness where a production is made, the numbers represent other information.
According to Biz Fluent, the first digit of a 12-digit barcode identifies the numbering organisation, and the adjacent 5 digits identify the manufacturer. The last five digits identify the product.
The site also notes that while the numbers don't identify the product's state of origin, it can show which country issued the barcode number.
Nationwide Barcode, a company similar to GS1 that provides UPC and EAN barcodes to businesses, states that the digits under a barcode permit retailers to track sales of a product and manage inventory.
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Our ruling: False
The prefix of the fix of digits under a barcode does not testify what country a product was made in, therefore we rate this claim FALSE, based on our enquiry. While the prefix can show the country of the manufacturer of a product, it is fake to say that the company manufactured the production in that land.
Our fact-check sources:
- GTIN site
- GS1, Global Trade Item Number (GTIN)
- GS1, Frequently Asked Questions
- International Barcodes, Country Code Prefix
- Biz Fluent, What Practice the Numbers on a Barcode Hateful?
- Nationwide Barcode Site
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Source: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2020/07/23/fact-check-bar-codes-digits-dont-reveal-products-nation-origin/5465239002/