A regular 6 oz. can of tuna ONLY YIELDS approx. 3 oz. of drained tuna!!!

[androyd]

Why does a normal 6 oz. can of albacore tuna say it contains approximately 2.5 servings of drained tuna @ 2 oz. PER SERVING? In other words, the can says it yields 5 oz. of tuna (2.5 servings x 2 oz.) once it's drained.

Why the macros on the can are completely wrong:

1. Weight of entire, unopened can of tuna = 7 1/8 oz.

2. Weight of entire empty can (just the bottom and lid) = 1 1/8 oz.

So right there, that leaves us with 6 oz. of tuna AND water combined.

Well, then we have to DRAIN the water from the tuna, and I can tell you right now, that there's A LOT MORE than just 1 oz. of water in a can of tuna.

I've had 4 cans of tuna over the last 2 days (Chicken of the Sea Albacore & Bumble Bee Albacore) and the weight of each completely drained can has been the following:

Can #1 - 3 1/2 oz.
Can #2 - 3 1/8 oz.
Can #3 - 3 1/8 oz.
Can #4 - 3 1/4 oz.

Yes, I drain my tuna thoroughly, but I don't use any special devices, I simply press the lid down on it firmly until all the water is gone and then weigh it on a digital scale. As you can see, my average can of tuna has yielded NOWHERE CLOSE to 5 oz. of solid tuna, like the can says it does.

So, using 3 1/4 oz. as the average weight of my last 4 cans, these are the macros we're looking at:

1 can of drained tuna (approx. 3 1/4 oz. OR 1.625 servings @ 2 oz. per serving):

114 Calories: 1.6g F, 0g C, 24.4g P


But if you were to simply go off the can, you'd think your macros were:

175 Calories: 2.5g F, 0g C, 37.5g P


The point here isn't so much about the difference in calories, but overstating your protein consumption. The can makes you think you're getting about 38g of protein in each can, when in reality, you're only getting about 24g. If you're watching your macros carefully, this is important, as it adds up quickly over the course of time, especially if you eat a lot of tuna.

Has anyone else noticed this?

[masterjb]

Why does a normal 6 oz. can of albacore tuna say it contains approximately 2.5 servings of drained tuna @ 2 oz. PER SERVING? In other words, the can says it yields 5 oz. of tuna (2.5 servings x 2 oz.) once it's drained.

Why the macros on the can are completely wrong:

1. Weight of entire, unopened can of tuna = 7 1/8 oz.

2. Weight of entire empty can (just the bottom and lid) = 1 1/8 oz.

So right there, that leaves us with 6 oz. of tuna AND water combined.

Well, then we have to DRAIN the water from the tuna, and I can tell you right now, that there's A LOT MORE than just 1 oz. of water in a can of tuna.

I've had 4 cans of tuna over the last 2 days (Chicken of the Sea Albacore & Bumble Bee Albacore) and the weight of each completely drained can has been the following:

Can #1 - 3 1/2 oz.
Can #2 - 3 1/8 oz.
Can #3 - 3 1/8 oz.
Can #4 - 3 1/4 oz.

Yes, I drain my tuna thoroughly, but I don't use any special devices, I simply press the lid down on it firmly until all the water is gone and then weigh it on a digital scale. As you can see, my average can of tuna has yielded NOWHERE CLOSE to 5 oz. of solid tuna, like the can says it does.

So, using 3 1/4 oz. as the average weight of my last 4 cans, these are the macros we're looking at:

1 can of drained tuna (approx. 3 1/4 oz. OR 1.625 servings @ 2 oz. per serving):

114 Calories: 1.6g F, 0g C, 24.4g P


But if you were to simply go off the can, you'd think your macros were:

175 Calories: 2.5g F, 0g C, 37.5g P


The point here isn't so much about the difference in calories, but overstating your protein consumption. The can makes you think you're getting about 38g of protein in each can, when in reality, you're only getting about 24g. If you're watching your macros carefully, this is important, as it adds up quickly over the course of time, especially if you eat a lot of tuna.

Has anyone else noticed this?

no, I didn't know that, but that is very useful info, reps

[Josh5442]

I came to the same conclusion a while ago--ended up just going by the can. Why? Well, you have to realized 2oz drained from person A may contain more water then person B. I'm assuming their draining methods don't fully drain the tuna like most consumers. If it says it's 2.5 servings I usually just enter it as 2.

[user5145]

The fact that you would even THINK about doing this worries me. Seriously.



If you really want to get anal, there are various factors that could create error. There is a difference between your scale and the scale the company used. There is a difference between how much water you drained out and the water the company drained out, etc.

It's not that serious.

[gatsby121]

The fact that you would even THINK about doing this worries me. Seriously.



If you really want to get anal, there are various factors that could create error. There is a difference between your scale and the scale the company used. There is a difference between how much water you drained out and the water the company drained out, etc.

It's not that serious.

and difference of 13g of protein is serious. SERIOUS BUSINESS. gjdm

[androyd]

The fact that you would even THINK about doing this worries me. Seriously.

Haha, fair play, and I see what you're saying. In reality, I was just more interested in seeing how the macros off the can compare to actual. And it had dawned on me the other day when making tuna that it didn't feel like a can was giving me 5 oz. of tuna. And for someone, like myself, trying to make sure to get enough protein and meet certain macros, well, I just thought I'd test out the next few cans I make and weigh them. The only point here really is that you're probably not getting enough calories or protein if you simply go off the can, and if you're trying to bulk, well, that's not going to be a good thing over time.

[Tiffany_P]

I've never weighed my tuna, but I have noticed the calorie/protein difference between different brands of tuna, all of which come in 6 oz. cans, and I've noticed that fitday.com gives a different number than the labels. I've been quite frustrated trying to figure out how many calories are actually in those things, so yeah, I feel your pain.

[androyd]

I've never weighed my tuna, but I have noticed the calorie/protein difference between different brands of tuna, all of which come in 6 oz. cans, and I've noticed that fitday.com gives a different number than the labels. I've been quite frustrated trying to figure out how many calories are actually in those things, so yeah, I feel your pain.

Good enough. While I would hesitate suggesting that you buy a food scale (simply because I think it could potentially lead to OCD tendencies when preparing food), it might not hurt if you're really that bothered. I only bought one recently just to make sure that I'm getting *enough* of the essentials, as I'm trying to grow. I believe one of my biggest mistakes in the past has been overstating my macros in the food I eat.

[travelzd]

Why does a normal 6 oz. can of albacore tuna say it contains approximately 2.5 servings of drained tuna @ 2 oz. PER SERVING? In other words, the can says it yields 5 oz. of tuna (2.5 servings x 2 oz.) once it's drained.

Why the macros on the can are completely wrong:

1. Weight of entire, unopened can of tuna = 7 1/8 oz.

2. Weight of entire empty can (just the bottom and lid) = 1 1/8 oz.

So right there, that leaves us with 6 oz. of tuna AND water combined.

Well, then we have to DRAIN the water from the tuna, and I can tell you right now, that there's A LOT MORE than just 1 oz. of water in a can of tuna.

I've had 4 cans of tuna over the last 2 days (Chicken of the Sea Albacore & Bumble Bee Albacore) and the weight of each completely drained can has been the following:

Can #1 - 3 1/2 oz.
Can #2 - 3 1/8 oz.
Can #3 - 3 1/8 oz.
Can #4 - 3 1/4 oz.

Yes, I drain my tuna thoroughly, but I don't use any special devices, I simply press the lid down on it firmly until all the water is gone and then weigh it on a digital scale. As you can see, my average can of tuna has yielded NOWHERE CLOSE to 5 oz. of solid tuna, like the can says it does.

So, using 3 1/4 oz. as the average weight of my last 4 cans, these are the macros we're looking at:

1 can of drained tuna (approx. 3 1/4 oz. OR 1.625 servings @ 2 oz. per serving):

114 Calories: 1.6g F, 0g C, 24.4g P


But if you were to simply go off the can, you'd think your macros were:

175 Calories: 2.5g F, 0g C, 37.5g P


The point here isn't so much about the difference in calories, but overstating your protein consumption. The can makes you think you're getting about 38g of protein in each can, when in reality, you're only getting about 24g. If you're watching your macros carefully, this is important, as it adds up quickly over the course of time, especially if you eat a lot of tuna.

Has anyone else noticed this?

excellent info! I am on weight watchers and this explains soooooo much . I never thought they were counting the water in the ounces, the points value will go way down! thanks again! (I joined the site just b/c of this post)

[nftst2]

There was/is an actual ligitation case over how much tuna is in a can. Starkist vs Hendricks. You can google the case and learn the details. This is legit and I am not sure why people immediately go with the "are you serious" remarks. If you are paying for 10 gallons of gas, it would be very unfair to get 9.89 gallons, etc..the examples are endless. So for you guys who eat tuna (like me) go and file a claim. This website does not allow me to type a link but it is tunalawsuit dot com

[Oinkerjnn]

I comes down to a simple question. Do you trust the food manufacturers nutritional info?

If so, the amount of water (one cup or one gallon still zero calories) you strain out of a cAn of tuna is irrelevant. The amount of calories in the can does not change. Some make soupy tuna some make it dry. You are removing water not tuna!

If I take eight oz of beef and make beef jerky out of it, once it dehydrates it may weigh one oz. But will it have 1/8 the nutritional value now?

[gbullock32]

I comes down to a simple question. Do you trust the food manufacturers nutritional info?

If so, the amount of water (one cup or one gallon still zero calories) you strain out of a cAn of tuna is irrelevant. The amount of calories in the can does not change. Some make soupy tuna some make it dry. You are removing water not tuna!

If I take eight oz of beef and make beef jerky out of it, once it dehydrates it may weigh one oz. But will it have 1/8 the nutritional value now?

Legally they only need to be ~20% accurate on the labels, so they are allowed some room for... 'error'.

[Slow-N-Steady]

When consuming canned tuna daily, I'd probably say mercury content is a greater concern than water content..