Are there regulations for packaged firewood in Tennessee?
There are indeed some little-known regulations for packaged firewood products
in Tennessee. The regulatory oversight applies to packaged natural wood, fireplace and stove wood
and is provided by the Tennessee Department of Agriculture, Regulatory Services Division, Weights
and Measures Program. Packaged wood comes under the program for "Miscellaneous Items in Commerce."
The primary contact point with the Department of Agriculture is the Standards Administrator for the
Weights & Measures Program (615-837-5109).
There is no pre-registration, no pre-certification, no pre-approval and no pre-licensing required.
The only two applicable regulatory concerns that must be on the package are:
- Name and address of the packer/supplier
- Product amount
The product amount must be expressed in cubic measures, in both customary and metric.
That is, the product package must indicate the amount of wood in cubic feet or cubic yards (customary)
and in cubic meters (metric). Listing the product weight is not required and if it is
included it is not a sufficient indication of product amount.
There are no regulatory requirements for package handles or a product name.
However, an additional package feature that may be helpful to the consumer is identification of
the species of wood in the package (such as oak, hickory, mixed hardwoods or mixed species).
While the weights and measures inspectors are not routinely pulling these types
of products and looking for violations . . . the most common investigations will result from a
consumer complaint to the department or from an inspector who happens to notice that a product
does not meet the packaging requirements. A "warning and suggested modification" is the
normal response to a first violation.
Additional information on the regulation is available from the weights and
measures program of the Tennessee Department of Agriculture <http://www.state.tn.us/agriculture/regulate/weights/index.html >
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