Since May, 34,000 “ghost scales” have been seized across the country. Let’s take a look at the rectification situation →

Ensuring the accuracy of electronic weighing scales directly impacts the interests of the public. The State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) has been intensifying its efforts to rectify the market order concerning electronic weighing devices. Recently, officials were dispatched to various locations to investigate the progress of these initiatives.

Flea markets are popular destinations for residents looking to purchase agricultural products and daily consumer goods, making them key areas for the use of electronic scales. At the Dongshan Agricultural Market in Hangzhou, officials from SAMR, along with local market regulators, conducted random checks on the electronic scales in use.

**Shan Haiwen, Manager of Dongshan Agricultural Market:** “We have a unified system for purchasing, rigorous testing, and maintenance for our electronic scales. Each scale is tagged, which includes a compliance label demonstrating it has passed our annual testing. We also feature a ‘Zhejiang Product Code’ that allows customers to scan and see exactly when the scale was purchased and last tested.”

The newly upgraded electronic scales feature screens on both sides, making the information displayed—like price and weight—clear for consumers. This data is also transmitted to a backend management system.

**Shan Haiwen, Manager of Dongshan Agricultural Market:** “For example, if a scale suddenly starts recording unusually high weights, we can immediately check the scale on-site to determine what might be wrong.”

Statistics reveal that to combat the issue of fraudulent scales, over 460 flea markets in Zhejiang have implemented a standardized weight distribution system, which represents approximately one-quarter of the total markets.

**Zhang Kehe, Director of the Measurement Department of Zhejiang Market Supervision Bureau:** “We aim to tailor our approach to local conditions, eliminating fraudulent scales without imposing extra burdens on local businesses and vendors.”

Since May of this year, authorities have seized 34,000 non-compliant electronic weighing scales nationwide.

According to data from SAMR, since the commencement of the comprehensive market rectification campaign in May, a total of 2.578 million electronic scales have been inspected across the country, resulting in the seizure of 34,000 non-compliant units and the initiation of 16,000 cases related to illegal measurement practices.