IN THE NOVEMBER ISSUE WE ASKED "CAN YOU READ A BAR CODE?"

Thanks to the keen attention of some of our readers we learned that there were some inaccurancies in what we printed.  One reader, in particular, offered a much appreciated descriptive of where the information is a "mixture of the true and false." 

Just letting you know that the info provided in the November issue is misleading and wrong.
Below in blue font is an excerpt from an About.com article (urban legends).  Almost identical information is available on Snopes.com, which also labels this information as a mixture of true and false.

In Addition, I could not find a single correct correlation with the list you printed on any of the first 5 items I randomly picked up in my kitchen:
                        
 Frozen tilapia clearly labeled as from China : 778
 Purina veterinary diet canned cat food made in Canada : 381
 Cat treats, also made in Canada : 584
 Pomegranate juice produced in Ajerbaijan: 056
Shout laundry stain removing gel, manufactured in Racine, Wi: 465

The information above is misleading and unreliable, on two counts:

1. There"s more than one kind of bar code in use around the world.  UPC bar codes, the type most commonly used in the United States, do not typically contain a country identifier.  A different type of bar code known as EAN-13 does contain a country identifier, but it's more commonly used in Europe and other countries outside the U.S.
2. Even in the case of EAN-13 bar codes, the digits associated with country of origin don't necessarily specify where the product was manufactured, but rather where the bar code itself was registered.  So, for example, a product manufactured in China and sold in France could have an EAN-13 bar code identifying it as a French product.

Looking for a "Made in XYZ" label is generally more helpful, but, particularly with regard to foods and beverages, there's no sure-fire way to determine in every case where a product or its components originated.  The U.S. Food and Drug Administration mandates country-of-origin labeling on many food products, but there are exceptions, most notably the entire category of "processed foods."  Consumer groups are currently advocating the closure of these loopholes.