Most consumers take for granted that they get what they pay for. Seldom does a Kansan question the quantity statement on a package, the scale at a checkout stand or the volume of the gas they put into their cars.

The Kansas Department of Agriculture takes its role in protecting consumers  seriously. Kansas Department of Agriculture Weights and Measures program inspectors test all kinds of commercial weighing and measuring devices. They test scales used in grocery stores, grain elevators, livestock barns, pawn shops and other locations. They test gas pumps and meters used to sell chemicals or propane. They check packages containing edible and inedible products to ensure that the consumer receives the quantity stated on the label. They even verify that in-store scanners produce correct prices.

“Essentially, all consumer goods are subject, in one way or another, to weights and measures laws,” said Kansas Department of Agriculture Weights and Measures Program Manager Tim Tyson. “We help ensure that consumers paying for a gallon of gas or pound of pasta get the same amount of product anywhere in Kansas that they would in other places across the United States.”

The theme of this year’s national weights and measures week, which is recognized from March 1-7, is taking measure of our worth.

“The investment in regulatory oversight varies among states, but, on average, is about 70 cents per resident per year,” said National Conference on Weights and Measures Chairman Kurt Floren, who is also the Director of Weights and Measures in Los Angeles County, Calif. “We have long been the invisible third party in every transaction, but that invisibility produces a lack of awareness of the critical value of our services. Businesses must demand a marketplace in which competitors are accountable.”

For more information on the Kansas Department of Agriculture Weights and Measures program visit http://ksda.gov/weights_measures/