How calories are measured in rye bread (Slice size varies)

goshnames

Does anyone know how companies measure the calories in a slice of rye bread/any other kind of bread where the slice sizes are all different (bigger in the middle/smaller at the ends)?

Is is average cals per slice based on how many are in the loaf? Or could it be that the number on the bag is the cals for the largest pieces?

malibu927

Most likely average. But that is why I weigh my bread.

goshnames

malibu927 wrote: »

Most likely average. But that is why I weigh my bread.

I just remembered that I got a tiny scale as a gift a while ago. I pulled it out and weighed a smaller slice from the end of the bag: 30g. The serving size is 40g, and the big middle slices were far larger than this one that I weighed.

So I guess it's probably average...which is disappointing because that means when eating the large slices, I have been eating more than expected.

Guess it's time I start using this scale!

DaintyWhisper

If you're watching your weight carefully, I would do the math and calculate for the larger pieces. (and the smaller pieces, too) For example, if the bigger slices were 50g each, you essentially ate 2.5 pieces of bread calorie-wise. (100g eaten÷40g per serving=2.5 servings) I find bread weighs more than what it says on the package a lot of the time. It doesn't always average out. Sometimes most slices are well over the serving size listed.

livingleanlivingclean

That's why I try and buy loaves that are more consistently shaped.... Or if I'm using it for toast and eating two pieces separately, I weigh them all and pair them up be to the weight I want.

HeidiCooksSupper

It's probably the total of the calories of the ingredients divided by the number of slices the machine cuts it into. A specific commerically made bread is usually consistent from loaf to loaf as to what ingredients go in and the slicer is probably pretty standard. The bags are for the average loaf of that recipe. The actual loaves themselves will vary in size and weight somewhat based on the weather when the bread was cooked. When I worked in a bread factory this drove us crazy. On cold, dry days, the rolls were so small they'd miss the slicer. On hot, humid days, they'd jam because they were so big and fluffy. Since the ingredients remain the same, the change in size doesn't affect the calories. Any weight change is due to water retention or evaporation in the dough.

Now, how you handle that in your calculations is up to you. Calorie counting as we do it is not an exact science. You can go with what it says on the bag or weigh the loaf and then each slice to determine whether you are actually consuming slightly more or slightly fewer calories for specific slices.

The latter is how I handle it when I make homemade bread since our handcut slices vary a good deal. First, I add up the calories of the ingredients. Then I weigh the final baked loaf. From this I can determine how many calories are in each slice as I cut them off and weigh them.

DX2JX2

goshnames wrote: »

Does anyone know how companies measure the calories in a slice of rye bread/any other kind of bread where the slice sizes are all different (bigger in the middle/smaller at the ends)?

Is is average cals per slice based on how many are in the loaf? Or could it be that the number on the bag is the cals for the largest pieces?

You'll eventually hit the average listed on the package over the course of an entire loaf.