Dubai: In a bid to protect consumers, Dubai Municipality has launched an initiative to ensure that all supermarkets and food outlets adopt standardised weighing devices that use the metric system.

At this stage, DM is carrying out inspections on supermarkets, hypermarkets, sweet shops, cooperatives, butcheries, restaurants, fish and vegetable markets, cargo companies and airports. Last October, all jewellery and gold outlets were instructed to convert to the metric system.

“The legal calibration in the future will include all legal measuring instruments, including but not limited to, medical devices, taxi meters and pre-packaged containers,” said Hawa Bastaki, Director of Dubai Central Laboratory (DCL).

As of next year, the textile market is also set to convert its weighing method to the metric system instead of yards.

“A verified measuring system is fundamental to a sustainable trading economy, and the concept of sale and purchase cannot exist without them. In our everyday lives, people make many purchases that rely on their confidence in the system that ensures correct measurements, and likewise, businesses need to know they are trading in a fair marketplace where no one has an unfair competitive advantage,” said Hawa.

“The initiative comes as part of our aim to provide the best services for the community so that everyone can buy any sort of product without any type of manipulation in the market,” she said.

The Emirates Authority for Standardisation and Metrology (Esma) began to impose the metric system of measurement across all sectors of the industry following a cabinet order, and has so far successfully converted the usage of feet to metres in land measurement and gallons to litres in petrol pumps and other markets of liquid commodity.

Fareed Mohammad Esmail, an engineer at DCL, explained that Esma has granted them authority to carry out inspections, and check that electronic balances are verified.

“This is to ensure that measuring instruments used in businesses are giving accurate measurements and operate within the acceptable limits, based on the applicable international standards,” he said.

Scales that have been inspected by DCL will receive a sticker, stating whether they are verified or rejected.

“Retailers or wholesalers that continue to use rejected scales or try to tamper with government seals will be considered as breaching the federal law of the UAE that will incur legal action,” explained Esmail.

He added that retailers have to make sure that the scale is stable and the level indicator is always at the centre, while re-setting the scale to zero before taking any new measurements.