The Drained Weight Test

Neil Jones Food Company is US Food Processor Company with its corporate office located in Vancouver, WA. We are privately owned and operate three different processing facilities, all of which run on the tradition of excellence and high standards and are strategically located for national and international shipping. Our team of Tomato Experts is continually making video to help you learn more about tomatoes. Learn about the drained weight test, what they are performed on, and how to go through the process. This will help you establish true pricing per ounce for your product. All of this brought to you by the Tomato Experts at Neil Jones Food Company. Video Transcript: Hi. I'm Taylor, from the Neil Jones Food Company. A common measurement in evaluating tomato products is the drained weight test. Drained weights are performed on whole, peeled, and diced tomatoes, but they can also be performed on other products, as well. This process is very important for restaurant operators because it helps them establish the price-per-ounce that they pay for a product in a can or a pouch. Historically, canned tomatoes have been marketed in part based on the weight of the tomato product after the packing medium has been drained; a very important factor in determining the quality of the canned tomatoes. There are 2 minimum average drain weight levels: One requirement USDA grades A and B, one requirement USDA level grade C. The method for determining the drained weight of a product first begins with determining which screen to use. There are numerous different screens that we can use, but in the tomato industry today, we mostly just use these two. Our first is our #2 Screen, which has a 12" diameter and is 3" deep, with 7/16" openings in the wire mesh. This screen is used to determine the drained weight in whole peeled tomatoes and diced tomatoes at least 3/4 " diced. Our second screen is our #8 Screen, which also has a 12" diameter and is 3" deep with 8 wires per inch. Now we're ready to conduct our drained weight test. First, you're going to take your #2 screen; go ahead and place it on the tray on the scale. You want to make sure that your scale reads 0. Once you've confirmed that it reads 0, you can take your screen off. Go ahead and place it in the empty tray, making sure that it's at approximately a 17? angle. Now you're ready to weigh your product. Go ahead and grab your tomatoes and just pour into the tray. You want to make sure that you get all of the product completely out. Have your timing device ready, because this needs to be weighed for exactly 2 minutes, leaving the product completely undisturbed. When your 2 minutes are up, go ahead and take your screen and place it back on the scale in order to get your drained weight. In our case, it's 75.5 ounces. This helps us identify which San Benito or Old California product is going to be best for your specific needs. Restaurant operators should calculate the true price-per-ounce of product by taking the Cost Per Case divided by the True Drained Weight, in ounces.