Available display surface (ADS)
Reference information
Mathematical calculations for the area of some geometric forms
Image | Mathematical calculations |
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Rectangle: Area = length(L) x width(W) |
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Parallelogram: Area = base (B) x height (H) |
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Triangle: ![]() |
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Trapezoid: ![]() |
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Circle: Area =∏r2 |
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Cylinder (can):
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Sphere: Area = 4∏r2 |
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Cone: Total Area = Area of cone + Area of base
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Pyramid with a square base (4 sides): Total Area = Area of 4 triangles + Area of base
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Box: Total Area = (front and back) + (top and bottom) + (2 sides) = 2(Ll + Lh + hl) |
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Prism Total Area = ends (2 triangles) + sides (2 rectangles) + base
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Sides of Conical Frustum (e.g. sides of plastic yogurt tub): Area of sides = ∏[R1+R2] S
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Calculation methods for different packaging types
Note
The many examples of prepackaged products included in this section are there for the purposes of determining the ADS only.
Package type | Included in ADS | Excluded from ADS surfaces |
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Bacon packages |
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Bags – Flat, back central seam (e.g., chip bag) |
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Bags –With gathered ends (e.g., bread bag) |
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Bags – Cookie |
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Bags – Flat pouch without gussets |
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Bags – Stand-up with inset gusset |
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Bags – Stand-up pouch with flat bottom |
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Baked goods – Fresh, not baked & packaged at retail: rigid plastic containers (e.g., rigid plastic clear "clam shell" containers) |
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Bars – Foil wrapped (e.g., energy bar) |
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Bars – Paper label over foil wrap (e.g., chocolate bar) |
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Bottles/ jars – Regular cylindrical, glass & plastic (e.g., stubby bottles, not bottles with long necks) |
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Bottles/ jars – Non-uniform, sold by volume; glass or plastic | One of these formulas can be used:
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Bottles/ jars – Irregular, sold by weight; glass or plastic | empty container; measure volume and apply the appropriated formula:
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Cans – Metal cans with paper labels |
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Cans – Flat with print directly on can (e.g., sardine, herring, ham) |
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Cans – Cardboard or metal with plastic lid (e.g., hot chocolate) |
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Cardboard Cartons – Milk, cream or juice (e.g., milk, cream, juice) |
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Catch weight meat products of similar size and form e.g., pork hocks |
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Egg cartons |
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Frozen foods – Foil container, plastic or cardboard lid (e.g., frozen cake, frozen lasagna) |
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Frozen foods – Foil container, plastic or cardboard lid and overwrap (e.g., frozen cake) |
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Multi-pack with dropped units (plastic cups) (e.g., multi-pack of pudding, multi-pack of yogurt with common lid) |
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Multi-pack – Transparent cellophane wrapper over fully labelled individual units |
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Paper label inside clear packaging |
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Pillow packs |
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Available display surface for tags
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Tetra pak |
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Tubs – Printed plastic (e.g., yogurt, margarine) |
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Tubs – Plastic with paper label (e.g., deli tubs) |
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Tubs – Cardboard (e.g., ice cream) |
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Wrappers, tube shapes |
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Table notes
- Table note 1
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NFt should not be placed in this area.
- Table note 2
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ADS = area of largest rectangle that will fit on front or back panel, respectively, of 80% of the packages produced.
Bacon packages
The space equivalent to the length of the package by the width of a strip of bacon, that allows the customer to see the bacon, is excluded in the calculation of the ADS no matter what the size of the window is.


On this package of bacon, a transparent area the width of one bacon slice is provided on the back of the package, allowing the consumer to evaluate the lean/fat composition of the bacon. This area is not included in ADS.


In this package, the bacon is placed in such a way that the consumer may evaluate the fat/lean composition of the bacon from the front window of the package. Nevertheless, the area equivalent to the width of one bacon slice by the whole length of the package is still excluded from the ADS calculation.
Bags – Flat, back central seam


Bags with gathered ends

Sides: Side areas are measured from crust to crust in the case of bread bags, or from the end of the bag to where the gathering starts and obstructs reading of printed material.
End: ADS includes the whole end of the bag.
Note
For gathered bags other than bread bags, the suitability of the end of the bag as ADS must be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.
Bags – Cookie



Bottom: ADS does not include the seam and smaller bottom panel. The typical cookie bag is constructed in such a manner that the smaller bottom panel is very narrow. Very small continuous surfaces are not considered ADS.
Bags – Flat pouch without gussets
A gusset is a folded or pleated inset area at the bottom or sides of a bag.


Bags – Stand-up pouch with inset gusset
Note
The best way to evaluate whether the bottom of a bag with an inset gusset should be considered ADS, is to evaluate the product as sold, i.e., a full bag. The bottoms of some large bags flatten out to large flat areas of ADS that may support easy to read information when the bag has been filled. The bottoms of some small bags, on the other hand, may never be considered ADS because the area is small or because the bag retains the inset pleated shape even when the package is full.



The bottom of this large stand-up pouch would be considered ADS as it presents a large flat surface when the bag has been filled.



The bottom of this small stand-up pouch would not be considered ADS as the area is very small and the gusset retains its inset pleated shape when the package is full.
Bags – Stand-up pouch with flat bottom



Baked goods – Fresh, not packaged at retail: rigid plastic containers
e.g., "clam shells"
Baked goods are generally fragile and many will be damaged if turned upside down to view labelling information on the bottom of the container. When evaluating whether the bottom of the container should be considered as ADS, it should be taken into consideration that the product may be handled by many consumers and repeatedly turned upside down before purchase.


Top: ADS includes the area that can support a label, e.g., raised panels.
Sides: The tightly repeated ridging on the sides of plastic containers will usually support a paper label.
Bars – Foil wrapped or wrapped in similar material



These bars are usually wrapped in foil or similar packaging material, with end and central seams.
Manufacturers often use the flap to provide labelling information. When labelling information is present, this area is considered part of the ADS. In some cases, one side of the central seam/flap contains printed information while the other side has the eye spot. The seam side with printed information is considered ADS, while the other side is not.
Bars – Paper label over foil wrap

Bottles and jars – Regular cylindrical glass and plastic
Bottles and jars – Non-uniform, sold by volume; glass and plastic

Cans – Metal cans with paper labels


ADS includes the area of the sides of a can but does not include the top or bottom of the can unless the top or bottom has been labelled with information other than coding or the UPC symbol. In these cases, the area with labelling information is also included in the calculation of ADS.
Cans – Flat with print directly on can



Areas with keys make the space unavailable for labelling.


Note
When a flat can is further packaged in a box or overwrap, then the outer packaging is the label. The inner can is no longer considered the label or the ADS.
Cans – Cardboard or metal with plastic lid

Cardboard cartons – Milk, cream or juice
The bottom of the carton is not included in the ADS for a number of reasons. Milk and cream cartons are delivered flat to the dairy. The top and bottom seams are formed and heat-sealed during the filling process. The bottom is an area where many seams come together and is consequently bumpy, which is not conducive to clear labelling.
Catch weight meat products of similar size and form

These products are individually shrink wrapped. In some cases the label is printed directly on the packaging material, while in other cases paper labels are applied. These products are similar but not uniform in size and shape. This does not apply to products that are highly variable in size such as frozen turkeys.
Egg cartons


For egg cartons (flat top cartons made of pulp, foam or clear plastic), the NFt may be printed on the inside of the lid. There is no requirement for the producer to indicate on the outer surface that the NFt appears on the inside of the carton. When the inside of the lid contains any written material, mandatory or promotional, the inside of the lid is considered part of the ADS calculation.
Frozen foods – Foil container, plastic or cardboard lid

A foil container is excluded from the ADS calculation because a paper label will not adhere to the foil due to the condensation in the frozen environment.
Frozen foods – Foil container, plastic or cardboard lid and overwrap


If the UPC is located on a non-ADS surface (i.e., foil container), the area of the UPC is not subtracted in the ADS calculation.
Multi-pack with dropped units (plastic cups)
Yogurt multi-pack

Common top: The entire top of the yogurt multi-pack is considered ADS. However, it is not considered a single continuous surface, as the top is broken into smaller units as it is consumed. Each individual lid is considered a continuous surface.

Common top – Box: ADS includes both the top and sides of the box, but not the ends if the ends are absent (i.e., if the box is open ended).
Multi-pack – Transparent cellophane wrapper over fully labelled individual units
Fully prepackaged units are sometimes sold in a variety of formats. For example, single-serving units of juice in tetra pak containers may be sold individually and the same product may also be sold in multi-packs of 3, 5, or 10 units, etc.
When product is sold both individually and in multi-packs, special consideration is given to the labelling of the multi-packs with transparent outer packaging, as each individual unit is already required to be fully labelled with a NFt and is visible through the outer packaging material. Two options exist:
The NFt may appear on the outer cellophane wrapper. In this case, the ADS includes total outer package. The choice of format and version (size) of format may be based on the ADS of this surface.
The NFt may appear on the individual units providing that all mandatory information is visible at the time of purchase (including: common name, ingredients, Nutrition Facts table, dealer identification, etc.). The choice of format and version (size) of format may be based on the ADS of the individual unit.
Pillow packs


The sides of the pillow package on the left would be considered ADS as they are greater than 4 cm, while the sides of the pillow package on the right would not be included in the ADS calculation.
Tetra pak



Tetra Pak packaging is available in a number of sizes (volumes) and shapes including rectangular box shapes and octagonal box shapes.
Tubs – Printed plastic

Sides: When calculating the ADS of the sides of a plastic tub, do not include the bottom curve (if any), the ridges at the top of the tub and the area covered by the lip of the lid.


To calculate the area of the sides of a tub, use the mathematical formula for the area of a conical frustum (refer to Mathematical calculations for the area of some geometric forms).
Tubs – Plastic with paper label


Tubs – Cardboard


Lid: It is impossible to print on some of the plastics used in the construction of these lid rims. As it is difficult to determine the type of plastic used, plastic rims are not considered ADS unless printed material is present in this area. However, if the rim is constructed of cardboard, it is considered ADS.
Sides: To calculate the area of the sides of a round tub, use the mathematical formula for the area of a conical frustum (refer to Mathematical calculations for the area of some geometric forms). Include only the area visible at the time of purchase (i.e., do not include the area covered by the rim of the lid.)
Wrappers, tube shapes



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