To ensure the assessment of correct freight charges and avoid infractions of federal and state laws, shipper should acquaint themselves with the descriptions of articles in the tariff under which they ship. Commodity word descriptions must be used in Bill of Lading and Shipping Orders and must conform to those in the applicable tariff. Except as provided in Section 3 of Item 640 of NMFC, each commodity subject to a different commodity description must be separately described. Appropriate word abbreviations may be used. Appropriate abbreviated descriptions are permitted, provided the NMFC item number and appropriate Sub number thereof are shown. The kind of packages used must be shown. Bills of Lading and Shipping Orders must specify the number of packages or loose pieces in a shipment.