Is my scale broken or are serving sizes that out-of-whack?
sugarstrawberries
Posts: 140 Member
I put two large pieces of bread on my scale to weigh out peanut butter onto them. The two slices together were 50g, but the serving size for one slice is 43g.
Has this ever happened to anyone else? Did you count by grams or buy another scale?
Has this ever happened to anyone else? Did you count by grams or buy another scale?
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Replies
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Ahh, welcome to the world of "label claims versus reality".
This is very, very common, though it typically goes the other way.
Count by grams.2 -
Grams! Your scale is not wrong. Serving sizes are not required to be exact. In my opinion, stop looking at serving sizes all together and just make your calories fit in your daily goals.1
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Depends on the brand, but I've seen huge differences in bread weight versus what the label says. I would go by grams unless you have a reason to think something is wrong with your scale.1
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Sounds like it was mis-labeled. I think they meant one slice was 43g.
I buy small loaves of bread, and the slices are anywhere from 27-38g. The serving on the bag is...I don't remember, but it's not ^that.0 -
Yeah, unfortunately I find bread is one of the products that is notorious for useless serving sizes on the bag.0
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Yeah, that was a surprise to me, too. It even happens with frozen entrees. I had an amy's frozen meal bowl the other night that was fully 10+ grams more than what the box stated. It might have been close to 25 grams more, but I don't remember exactly.0
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The bread I use is 42g a serving(2 peices). Are you sure it's 43g for 1 slice or is that for a serving of two slices?0
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janejellyroll wrote: »Depends on the brand, but I've seen huge differences in bread weight versus what the label says. I would go by grams unless you have a reason to think something is wrong with your scale.
I read that moving it while it's on can mess up the insides. It's a handheld scale, so I have once or twice accidentally turned it on while transferring it from where it resides to where I wanted it to sit. That's the only reason I'd think it's off-kilter.0 -
Rebecca0224 wrote: »The bread I use is 42g a serving(2 peices). Are you sure it's 43g for 1 slice or is that for a serving of two slices?
It's just one. It's "country style" or whatever, so wider than a standard sandwich loaf.0 -
sugarstrawberries wrote: »janejellyroll wrote: »Depends on the brand, but I've seen huge differences in bread weight versus what the label says. I would go by grams unless you have a reason to think something is wrong with your scale.
I read that moving it while it's on can mess up the insides. It's a handheld scale, so I have once or twice accidentally turned it on while transferring it from where it resides to where I wanted it to sit. That's the only reason I'd think it's off-kilter.
No, when you turn it off it re-calibrates/resets. It's just that you don't want to turn it on, move it, then weigh something.
It doesn't permanently damage it to move it while it's on.
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cmriverside wrote: »sugarstrawberries wrote: »janejellyroll wrote: »Depends on the brand, but I've seen huge differences in bread weight versus what the label says. I would go by grams unless you have a reason to think something is wrong with your scale.
I read that moving it while it's on can mess up the insides. It's a handheld scale, so I have once or twice accidentally turned it on while transferring it from where it resides to where I wanted it to sit. That's the only reason I'd think it's off-kilter.
No, when you turn it off it re-calibrates/resets. It's just that you don't want to turn it on, move it, then weigh something.
It doesn't permanently damage it to move it while it's on.
Oh, thanks! I've been fretting about that so much ahahaha.0 -
sugarstrawberries wrote: »cmriverside wrote: »sugarstrawberries wrote: »janejellyroll wrote: »Depends on the brand, but I've seen huge differences in bread weight versus what the label says. I would go by grams unless you have a reason to think something is wrong with your scale.
I read that moving it while it's on can mess up the insides. It's a handheld scale, so I have once or twice accidentally turned it on while transferring it from where it resides to where I wanted it to sit. That's the only reason I'd think it's off-kilter.
No, when you turn it off it re-calibrates/resets. It's just that you don't want to turn it on, move it, then weigh something.
It doesn't permanently damage it to move it while it's on.
Oh, thanks! I've been fretting about that so much ahahaha.
You're welcome. The only thing that happens is possible inaccuracy that one time if you've moved it after turning it on - just turn it off, turn it on where you want it to be, weigh the bread. Any scale you use, even body weight scales, depend upon the device's resting place. Each location is slightly different, has differing levels (such as a bump on the table, an uneven counter top, etc.) The scale will compensate for that. 0 -
Even allowing for allowed inaccuracies, 50% off is an awful lot.0
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Is it a fresh loaf or would it have managed to get dried out at all? It seems like that would have an effect on weight as well.
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I have a multigrain bread that is also 43g per slice. Usually two slices vary between 80-95g. If my scale said 50g for two normal looking slices, I would assume my scale wasn't level, needed new batteries, or was broken.0
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Yeah, I'm really questioning why there is such a giant discrepancy.
It's Arnold brand bread, if anyone else has an opinion on this.
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WickedPineapple wrote: »I have a multigrain bread that is also 43g per slice. Usually two slices vary between 80-95g. If my scale said 50g for two normal looking slices, I would assume my scale wasn't level, needed new batteries, or was broken.
Or, the bread was getting really stale and had lost a good amount of moisture. I have a loaf of bread that's taken me a while to get through and I've noticed that the slices are getting lighter as time goes on, lol. It could also be an error in how the bread was sliced as compared to how it's *supposed* to be sliced per manufacturing requirements. Either way, as others have said, always go back actual weight of grams that you consume, not what's listed on the bag! 0 -
sugarstrawberries wrote: »Yeah, I'm really questioning why there is such a giant discrepancy.
It's Arnold brand bread, if anyone else has an opinion on this.
If it's the Arnold multigrain, I'd be surprised if it was that low for 2 normal looking slices.
I like the Arnold, because it doesn't have HFCS. and it's normally fairly hearty.1 -
I did buy it from Dollar Tree since it was a few days from its "best by" date, and now it's a few days past. Hmm.0
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You could check your scale's calibration. Water is a great way to do this.
1 fluid ounce of water weighs one ounce or 28.4 grams ; 1 US cup weighs 8 ounces or 227.2 grams.
1 ml of water weighs 1 gram.
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sugarstrawberries wrote: »I did buy it from Dollar Tree since it was a few days from its "best by" date, and now it's a few days past. Hmm.
I just finished up a loaf that was getting just this side of stale, and I noticed it seemed light, which is why I flagged that issue here. I didn't actually weigh it, but I think there might be one more slice in there so maybe I will do that when I get home, if I can remember.
It's the same issue with cooked chicken and other foods--moisture has a huge impact on weight.0 -
You could check your scale's calibration. Water is a great way to do this.
1 fluid ounce of water weighs one ounce or 28.4 grams ; 1 US cup weighs 8 ounces or 227.2 grams.
1 ml of water weighs 1 gram.
I think I have read that you can calibrate/test small scales using nickels or quarters (or any other non-worn coin for which there is a known and consistent weight).0 -
sugarstrawberries wrote: »I did buy it from Dollar Tree since it was a few days from its "best by" date, and now it's a few days past. Hmm.
I think moisture loss alone would not account for that much difference in weight. Buying named brand products at discount stores is most likely the culprit. I have worked in quality assurance before, and this happens regularly.
The most likely scenario is the manufacturer at the factory that produced the loaves forgot to reset the machine slicer from the previous batch that was slicing a thinner product. The quality of the batch would not pass quality control for sale to the usual grocers, but there is no health reason to prevent the sale of the loaves in that batch to other grocery and discount stores. So the distributor offered the rejected batch or batches (again, not rejected for any health reasons) to discount sellers and Dollar Tree purchased that batch.
I would say there is nothing really wrong with the bread. Since the bread is probably sliced thinner, the weight of each slice in that loaf would be less than one slice in a non-rejected loaf. The nutrition facts per weight would not change. I would just record the weight of the amount I actually used.3 -
sugarstrawberries wrote: »I did buy it from Dollar Tree since it was a few days from its "best by" date, and now it's a few days past. Hmm.
I think moisture loss alone would not account for that much difference in weight. Buying named brand products at discount stores is most likely the culprit. I have worked in quality assurance before, and this happens regularly.
The most likely scenario is the manufacturer at the factory that produced the loaves forgot to reset the machine slicer from the previous batch that was slicing a thinner product. The quality of the batch would not pass quality control for sale to the usual grocers, but there is no health reason to prevent the sale of the loaves in that batch to other grocery and discount stores. So the distributor offered the rejected batch or batches (again, not rejected for any health reasons) to discount sellers and Dollar Tree purchased that batch.
I would say there is nothing really wrong with the bread. Since the bread is probably sliced thinner, the weight of each slice in that loaf would be less than one slice in a non-rejected loaf. The nutrition facts per weight would not change. I would just record the weight of the amount I actually used.
Very interesting and good to know! I always wondered how discount stores got name brand food items.0 -
You could check your scale's calibration. Water is a great way to do this.
1 fluid ounce of water weighs one ounce or 28.4 grams ; 1 US cup weighs 8 ounces or 227.2 grams.
1 ml of water weighs 1 gram.
Thanks, very helpful!sugarstrawberries wrote: »I did buy it from Dollar Tree since it was a few days from its "best by" date, and now it's a few days past. Hmm.
I think moisture loss alone would not account for that much difference in weight. Buying named brand products at discount stores is most likely the culprit. I have worked in quality assurance before, and this happens regularly.
The most likely scenario is the manufacturer at the factory that produced the loaves forgot to reset the machine slicer from the previous batch that was slicing a thinner product. The quality of the batch would not pass quality control for sale to the usual grocers, but there is no health reason to prevent the sale of the loaves in that batch to other grocery and discount stores. So the distributor offered the rejected batch or batches (again, not rejected for any health reasons) to discount sellers and Dollar Tree purchased that batch.
I would say there is nothing really wrong with the bread. Since the bread is probably sliced thinner, the weight of each slice in that loaf would be less than one slice in a non-rejected loaf. The nutrition facts per weight would not change. I would just record the weight of the amount I actually used.
I do not think this is the case. The slices don't look any different from previous times I've had this bread. I think it was just older bread that needed to leave the stores quickly.0 -
I think its a shock that anyone who uses a food scale discovers pretty early on in the process. Yes, serving sizes are really out of whack. Thats why it is really important to weigh everything to be as accurate as possible with calorie counts.0
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