Case code
A case code is the 14 digit GTIN on an outer case or multipack, identifying the box of several items rather than any one item inside it.
- GTIN-14
- ITF-14
What it means
Products travel in boxes, and each layer of packing has a number of its own. GS1’s rule is that “A unique GTIN is assigned at every existing level of the packaging hierarchy above the retail consumer trade item/base unit level.”1 In plain terms, a case of 12 kettles has a GTIN that is not the kettle’s.
The 14 digit GTIN-14 is the form GS1 describes as “a 14-digit number used for cases and packaging”.2 GS1’s ITF-14 barcode, one of the barcodes that can carry a GTIN, was introduced so barcodes could be printed straight onto corrugated cardboard. It is generally scanned in warehouses and distribution centres.3
Change the case and the number changes: GS1’s own example is a case going from 9 items to 12, which needs a new GTIN.1
Think of it like this
Picture a crate of apples at a market. The label on the crate tells the trader what it holds; it is not the sticker on any single apple.
For example
A supplier’s file for a fridge water filter has two barcode columns. EAN holds 5012345678900, and Outer holds 15012345678907, for the box of 12 the warehouse receives. The EAN goes in the GTIN field, and the outer code goes in a pack column of its own.
Why it matters
Put a case code on a single item’s row and the listing claims to be the whole box. The unit and the case then look like duplicates of each other. Keep it in a column of its own, and in a GTIN field only when you sell the whole pack as one product. For a pack the manufacturer made, Google wants the pack’s GTIN “and not the individual products”.4
Not to be confused with
A case code is not a second barcode for the same item. It identifies the box, so it never stands in for the item’s own EAN or UPC.
Sources
- GS1. GTIN Management Standard: 8. Pack/case quantity.
- GS1 GO Customer Service Portal. What is the difference between a GTIN, barcode, EAN and UPC?.
- GS1 GO Customer Service Portal. Which barcodes are used to represent GTINs?.
- Google Merchant Center Help. GTIN [gtin].