EDIT Meaning This character is used on European packaging. According to EU-law »Council Directive 75/106/EEC« from 1971it is mandatory on every packaging produced in the EU in a size of at least 3mm.
It indicates that the weight or volume of the sold good (sans packaging and extra material like the juice in which canned fruit is preserved) is guaranteed to differ from the indicated number only slightly and with tolerances determined by the EU, and also that the machines involved in the filling process were calibrated.

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EDIT Typography This character is used in the same way as a logo, it doesn't adhere to the style of the font a text is written in and is usually set in the cap-height of the following text. The exact shape of the character was determined in Brussels in 1971 with the »European Union Directive 71/316/EEC«.

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EDIT Synonyms EEC-sign

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