Trade description, means 'any description, state-ment, or other indication, direct or indirect, (a) as to the number, quantity, measure, gauge, or weight of any goods, or (b) as to the place or country in which any goods were made or produced, or (c) as to the mode of manufacturing or producing any goods, or (d) as to the material of which any goods are composed, or (e) as to any goods being the subject of an existing patent, privilege, or copyright, and the use of any figure, word, or mark which, accord-ing to the custom of the trade, is commonly taken to be an indication of any of the above matters.' A 'false trade description' means a trade description which is false in a material respect as regards the goods to which it is applied, and includes every alteration of a trade description, whether by way of addition, effacement, or otherwise, where that alteration makes the description false in a material respect, and the fact that a trade description is a trade mark, or part of a trade mark, shall not prevent such trade description being a false trade description within the meaning of this Act.' See also the (English) Merchandise Marks Acts, 1894, 1903 and 1911; and the Acts 1914 and 1916 (Port and Madeira), and 1926. These Acts provide penalties for infringement.
By the Merchandise Marks Act, 1926 (16 & 17 Geo. 5, c. 53), imported goods bearing the name or trade mark of a British manufacturer or trader are not to be sold unless accompanied by indication of origin, and the prohibition is extended to any other imported goods referred to by Order in Council after inquiry [see s. 2 (ibid.)]. Local authorities are authorized to execute the Act in relation to foodstuffs, except in respect of importation (s. 9). Origin may be indicated by the words 'foreign' or 'Empire,' as the case may be, or by a clear indica-tion of the country of manufacture or production.