Barcode country of origin myth

Here in Australia, the most common barcode type used by retailers is GS1 (which was previously called EAN-13).

There is no truth to the wives tale, that barcode numbers in Australia include the country of origin.

When a manufacturer buys barcode numbers, they typically buy 1000 at a time. And when this happens, the first nine digits are the registrar and company number, the following three digits are the item reference, and the last digit is a check digit. There are no country of origin digits in Australian GS1 barcodes.

Country of origin

But it is law here in Australia, that the country of origin must appear – but it is complicated.

Grown in is generally used for fresh food but can also apply to other products and means the product was grown in the stated country though it may have been packaged or processed elsewhere
Product of means that the product was grown/caught/raised and processed in that country
Made in means the product was made in the stated country with at least half of the production cost incurred there even if it was simply packed or the ingredients were sourced elsewhere

It’s important to note that each significant ingredient and the majority of processing must have occurred in the country of origin in order to use “grown in” or “product of”.

Here are the detailed country of origin guidelines as stipulated by the ACCC (the official regulatory body in Australia).

More barcode information

Here’s more barcode standards information, such as:

Do I need a barcode on my packaging?
What barcode type do I need?
What do barcode numbers mean?
What is a barcode check digit?
Where to buy barcodes?
How do I allocate my item reference numbers?
How do I get the barcode image for my artwork?
Barcode formats
Barcode testing
Barcode sizes for point-of-sale use
Barcode location on packaging
Barcode colours for POS