申請產品條碼須知！何時需為產品應用新的香港489條碼？

Are you looking to get GS1 barcodes starting with “489” for your products? GS1 Hong Kong is the only organisation authorised by GS1 to issue GS1 barcodes (GTINs) in Hong Kong. Each barcode is globally unique, helping you list your products more easily on retail shelves and online platforms, while also enabling real-time inventory management.

But it’s not just new products that require a barcode. There are other scenarios where assigning a new GS1 barcode is necessary — and understanding when to do so is key to keeping your supply chain running smoothly. Learn more about when you need a new barcode, how the “489” prefix works for Hong Kong products, and how to get your products to market faster with our guide.

After purchasing products for checkout at supermarkets, the staff will scan GS1 barcode on products with a barcode scanner. The retail POS system can thereby obtain accurate product information and product price, offering consumers with accurate and convenient shopping experiences. Let’s take a look on products with GS1 barcodes around you, you will find the following features of barcodes:

Get GS1 Barcode

• Quiet zones(clear spaces before the first bar and after the last bar)  
  signal barcode readers when to start and stop decoding.
• GS1 Prefix (i.e. the first 3 digits of barcodes) 
  assigned by the GS1 member organisation that allocated the barcode number. GS1 barcodes can only be issued by GS1 Hong Kong in Hong Kong, and start with “489”.
• GS1 Company Number and Item Reference  
  - Companies with less than 1,000 trade items: assigned a 6-digit GS1 Company Number
  - Companies with 1,001 - 10,000 trade items: assigned a 5-digit GS1 Company Number
  - Companies with more than 10,000 trade items: assigned a 4-digit GS1 Company Number
• Check digit  
  Ensure the data integrity of barcode number, so the barcodes can be scanned and data can be captured accurately.

A unique product barcode must be assigned when launching new products. Additionally, you need to assign a new GS1 “489” product barcode to existing products in the following situations:

1. Change in Ingredients/ Components

If there is a change in the ingredients or formulation, a new “489” product barcode is required. For example, if a product’s sugar content is reduced by about 50%, and became a “low-sugar” food, another product barcode is needed.

2. Change in Dimensional or Net Content

Any changes (increase or decrease) on the dimensions of a trade item or the weight, volume, or quantity, a new “489” product barcode needs to be assigned. For example, if the product packaging material is changed from a transparent plastic bottle to glass bottle, resulting in a 20% increase in weight, or if the net weight of a packet of biscuits increases from 600 grams to 690 grams, or if a toothbrush pack quantity reduces from 6 to 5.

3. Same Style but in Different Colors/Sizes

If a clothing item of the same style is produced in different sizes and colors, each variation in style, color, or size is considered a different product. Therefore, a different GS1 489 product barcode is required.

4. Change in Packaging for a Promotional Product

If there’s change in product packaging in seasonal events such as special holiday promotions, or limited-time offers,  such as featuring a Christmas tree design, adding promotional messages, or with complimentary items, a new product barcode must be assigned.

5. Change in the Printed Product Price on Packaging

If a brand prints the product’s price on the packaging and the printed price changes, a new product barcode is needed for the product. Therefore, it is not recommended to print the retail price directly on the packaging.

For inquiries about the application and allocation of GS1 Hong Kong 489 barcodes, please contact us. In addition, we also offer FREE barcode & digital workshops, barcode symbol testing & membership enquiry services.

Get GS1 Barcode

Regardless of where the products were manufactured or sold,  brand owners selling product shall get barcodes from GS1. Therefore, manufacturers, suppliers, retailers, and even  wholesalers who redesign and repackage imported products can all contact us to get a GS1 product barcode with product prefix “489”.

GS1 offers various GS1 barcodes powered by GS1 Standards. In addition to GS1 barcodes widely used on products, different industries can also apply GS1 barcodes for unique identification of products & logistics, which can be used in retail stores and supply chains to enhance logistics efficiency & supply chain traceability, or even to meet regulatory requirements.

GS1 barcodes used by various industries:

1. Retail and Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG)

GS1 Product barcodes facilitate the accurate identification of products, so product price & information can be accurately captured by barcode scanner & retial POS system for inventory & sales management. Major global e-commerce platforms also require merchants to provide GS1 barcodes (GTIN, Global Trade Item Number) when listing products to effectively manage products and enhance consumers’ shopping experience. 

2. Food & Food Services 

GS1 2D barcodes can be used for food management. For example, GS1 DataMatrix can store product batch numbers, expiration dates, weights, and other relevant information. In the event of a food safety incident, manufacturers can leverage the barcode for food recalls.

3. Healthcare

The GS1 barcode (GS1 2D barcode) can store information about an item's batch number and expiry date. Utilizing the GS1 2D barcode can ensure patient safety by identifying and capturing data on medicine, medical devices, vaccines etc.

4. Transport & Logistics

GS1 barcodes (GS1-128 and ITF-14) powered by SSCC (Serial Shipping Container Code) can be used for identifying logistics unit to track product & information flow.  This empowers businesses to obtain visibility of product information at every location, including the point of production, sales points, return points, and any other relevant locations.

想申請產品條碼嗎？在香港，GS1 HK是唯一在香港獲GS1授權發出以「489」開頭條碼的機構。每一個GS1條碼都是獨一無二，可助您將產品於全球零售點和電商平台上架，並隨時追蹤商品庫存。除了推出新產品需要申請GS1條碼外，甚麼情況需要為產品編配新的條碼？一文詳解申請489條碼及香港條碼應用等實用資訊，讓您更快將產品推出市場！

拆解GS1 489產品條碼的基本知識

在店鋪將購買的商品帶到收銀處時，店員熟練地用條碼掃描器掃描條碼，結賬系統就可自動獲得商品資料及價錢，為消費者帶來精準又便利的購物體驗。隨手拿起你身邊印有GS1條碼的商品，可以見到以下樣貌：

申請香港489條碼

GS1 Key: 獨一無二的GS1國際貨品編碼

● 條碼左右兩側必須留有空白區域，避免影響條碼判讀。 

● GS1地區字首（即條碼的首3位數字）

由GS1授權批出的地區編碼，香港地區編碼是489，僅由GS1 Hong Kong獲GS1官方授權發出。

● GS1公司編號、產品參考編號

- 貿易貨品少於1,000件的公司，會獲得6位數字的GS1公司編號

- 貿易貨品為1,001 – 10,000 件的公司會獲配5位數字的GS1公司編號

- 貿易貨品超過10,000件的公司會獲配4位數字的GS1公司編號

● 終檢碼  

確保條碼數字組合正確，GS1條碼能被讀取。 

甚麼時候需要為產品編配新的產品條碼？

當有新產品推出，就需要為它們編配獨一無二的貨品編碼。除此之外，以下幾個情形也為原先的產品重新編配產品條碼。

1. 產品配方變更

當產品的原料或配方改變，就必須為產品編配一個新的產品條碼。例如：將產品中的糖份減少50%，產品變成「低糖」產品。

2. 產品尺寸或淨含量改變

當產品的尺寸，或包裝內的產品重量、體積、數量增加或減少，或有所不同時，就需要為此產品編配一個新的產品條碼。例如：產品的包裝從透明膠樽更換為透明玻璃瓶，產品重量增加了20%；一包零食的淨重量從600克增加到690克；一包牙刷組的牙刷數量從6支減少到5支。

3. 同款式但擁有不同顏色、尺寸

舉例一件同款衣服可以有不同尺寸、顏色。只要任何款式、顏色以及尺寸不同，都視為是不同的產品，需要編配不同的產品條碼。

4. 限時促銷產品

若產品包裝因季節性、特殊節日，或一段限時優惠檔期而產生變化，例如包裝上印有聖誕樹的圖案、印在包裝上的促銷文字、附加在產品上的贈品等，都需要額外編配新的條碼。

5. 更改包裝上印有的產品價格

品牌把產品的定價直接印在包裝圖片上，當包裝上的定價更改，品牌則需要重新為產品編配新的條碼，因此建議不要將產品預售價格印在包裝上。

有關於香港489條碼申請、編配查詢，歡迎聯絡本會。同時，本會亦提供免費條碼工作坊、條碼測試、會員查詢服務予企業。

申請香港489條碼

只有產品需要申請GS1條碼嗎？哪些行業也需要申請GS1條碼？

不論產品在何地生產，銷售該產品的公司需要負責為產品向GS1申請條碼。因此生產商、供應商、零售商，或將進口產品重新包裝的批發商等，都可以向本會申請489開頭的GS1產品條碼。

GS1提供多種建基於全球標準的GS1條碼。除了常見用於產品上的GS1條碼外，不同行業都可以用到不同GS1條碼為產品、物流做獨有識別，在全球各地的零售點及供應鏈上應用，提高物流效率及供應鏈上的追蹤追溯能力，甚至是符合監管要求。

不同行業常用到的GS1條碼：

1. 零售及快速消費品

貨品編碼(barcode) 可以透過準確識別產品，讓掃描器讀取正確產品資訊及價錢，並加速結帳流程，同時方便管理庫存、銷售管理。全球大型電商平台亦要求/建議商家上架貨品時須使用GS1條碼（GTIN，國際貿易貨品編碼）作為產品識別碼，有效管理產品及為消費者帶來更佳購物體驗。 

2. 食品及餐飲服務 

GS1 2D條碼可以用於食品管理上，例如GS1 DataMatrix可以載有產品批次編號、到期日、重量等。當有食物安全事件發生時，生產商可以根據條碼識別回收該批次食品。

3. 醫療護理

GS1條碼（GS1 2D條碼）載有產品批次編號、有效日期連接，識別並擷取有關藥物、疫苗、醫療儀器資料，保障病人的健康安全。

4. 運輸及物流

載有SSCC (貨運容器序號)的GS1條碼（GS1-128及ITF-14條碼）可以識別物流單元，追蹤產品的流向及資訊，讓商家可以全面掌握貨品在生產、銷售點、退貨點等任何位置資訊。

3步申請香港條碼，為產品加上GS1 Barcode

香港貨品編碼協會 (GS1 HK) 是唯一在香港獲授權發出全球認可 UPC、EAN、GTIN 和其相關條碼的機構。申請流程十分簡單，僅需要三步驟即可以完成條碼申請流程，於你的產品上應用獨一無二、國際通用產品編碼。我們也會提供產品測試服務，確保您的產品能被掃描器準確讀取。

步驟1：填寫申請表格 

您需要先註冊成為 GS1 HK 會員才能獲得 GS1 條碼。請填妥申請表格並提交處理。如果你有任何疑問，可以填寫申請條碼查詢表格、致電 2863 9701 或 WhatsApp 5122 7144。我們會安排專人提供協助。

步驟2：準備所需文件 

申請時需提交以下文件：

• 已填妥的申請表格
• 貴公司的香港商業登記證副本
• 員工人數的證明文件，例如員工保險文件或強積金證明書
• GS1 香港會籍費用付款憑證

步驟3：提交申請並等待審批

GS1 HK 條碼的申請流程十分簡單，在正確提交申請及所需文件後，一般處理時間約為 3 至 5 個工作天。確實批核時間可能會因為申請量及額外驗證流程而有所變動。為確保流程順暢，我們建議儘早申請並確保填寫的資料完整準確。

申請獲批後，您將得到屬於您公司的 GS1 公司前置碼（Company Prefix），並可以使用我們的「BarcodePlus」平台隨時生成產品條碼。獲得 GS1 條碼後，您就可以把條碼應用在產品上。我們建議在大批印刷產品前，先提交予本會進行條碼測試，確保條碼被掃描、讀取狀況良好，讓零售結賬系統能讀取產品資訊。

    立即查詢