§ 25-5-419 — Packaging and labeling of consumer commodities

(1) All labels
of consumer commodities, as defined in section 25-5-402 (4), shall conform with
the requirements for the declaration of net quantity of contents of the federal Fair
Packaging and Labeling Act (15 U.S.C. sec. 1453) and the regulations promulgated
pursuant thereto; but consumer commodities exempted from such requirements of
the federal Fair Packaging and Labeling Act (15 U.S.C. secs. 1451-1461) shall also
be exempt from this subsection (1).

(2) The label of any package of a consumer commodity which bears a
representation as to the number of servings of such commodity contained in such
package shall bear a statement of the net quantity (in terms of weight, measure, or
numerical count) of each such serving.

(3) No person shall distribute or cause to be distributed in commerce any
packaged consumer commodity if any qualifying words or phrases appear in
conjunction with the separate statement of the net quantity of contents required by
subsection (1) of this section, but nothing in this subsection (3) shall prohibit
supplemental statements, at other places on the package, describing in
nondeceptive terms the net quantity of contents; but such supplemental
statements of net quantity of contents shall not include any term qualifying a unit
of weight, measure, or count that tends to exaggerate the amount of the
commodity contained in the package.

(4) (a) Whenever the department determines that regulations containing
prohibitions or requirements other than those prescribed by subsection (1) of this
section are necessary to prevent the deception of consumers or to facilitate value
comparisons as to any consumer commodity, the department shall promulgate with
respect to that commodity regulations effective to:

(I) Establish and define standards for the characterization of the size of a
package enclosing any consumer commodity, which may be used to supplement the
label statement of net quantity of contents of packages containing such consumer
commodity, but this subparagraph (I) shall not be construed as authorizing any
limitation on the size, shape, weight, dimensions, or number of packages which may
be used to enclose any consumer commodity;

(II) Regulate the placement upon any package containing any consumer
commodity, or upon any label affixed to such consumer commodity, of any printed
matter stating or representing by implication that such consumer commodity is
offered for retail sale at a price lower than the ordinary and customary retail sale
price or that a retail sale price advantage is accorded to purchasers thereof by
reason of the size of that package or the quantity of its contents;

(III) Require that the label on each package of a consumer commodity bear
the common or usual name of such consumer commodity, if any, and, in case such
consumer commodity consists of two or more ingredients, the common or usual
name of each such ingredient listed in order of decreasing predominance, and, with
respect to any confectionery containing alcohol in excess of one-half of one
percent by volume, but within the limits prescribed by section 25-5-410 (1)(i)(II), a
statement that the content of alcohol does not exceed six and twenty-five
hundredths percent by volume or five percent by weight, and that the product is
unlawful for any person under twenty-one years of age, but nothing in this
subparagraph (III) shall be deemed to require that any trade secret be divulged; or

(IV) Prevent the nonfunctional slack-fill of packages containing consumer
commodities.

(b) For the purposes of subparagraph (IV) of paragraph (a) of this subsection
(4), a package shall be deemed to be nonfunctionally slack-filled if it is filled to
substantially less than its capacity for reasons other than protection of the
contents of such package or the requirements of machines used for enclosing the
contents in such package; except that the department may adopt any regulations
promulgated pursuant to the federal Fair Packaging and Labeling Act (15 U.S.C.
secs. 1451-1461) which shall have the force and effect of law in this state.

Legislative History

Source: L. 70: p. 212, � 16. C.R.S. 1963: � 66-20-25. L. 89: (4)(a)(III) amended, p. 709, � 6, effective July 1.