Topic: Portion size investigation - help please

[Chilli Prawn]

I am trying to do a national survey on portion sizes/volumes/weights and your research expert help would be very welcome.  I am trying to work out the averages for BIR portions.  I need the average weight served (restaurant/takeaway) as a portion each of chicken and lamb, beef, prawn etc., and the average volume/weight of the sauce.  Not easy I know, but if you cant weigh try and judge the size and amount of meat pieces in each portion.

I provide the following portion sizes for my customers:
Meat (any) minimum 6oz uncooked weight (approx 5oz cooked weight)
Sauce - 6oz minimum.

Grateful for any feedback as I want to stop some of my customers moaning, some say we put too much and some the opposite and I would like to be able to quote a national average.  Our local BIrs provide slightly less than us.

Ta
CP

[spicysarsy]

Hi Chili, an interesting pointer, but from my reckoning I think the going weight especially from the takeaways I use are around the same weight you supply. I think it may be something set out by the weight and measures department, but is a very interesting topic and it will be interesting to find out what other forum members think. Cheer's Paul

[Chilli Prawn]

Good point Paul, but quantities of contents only need to be put on the packaging if you are in the wholesale chain; it has nothing really to do with weights and measures creating standards.  For example I have to put very accurate detailed labels on all our products (especially if they contain meat) that we supply to Delis.  However we do not need to label products if we supply to purchasing customers direct (as a retailer/take-away).  It might sound daft but it is needed; think about the contents of the products you buy from stored and fast food outlets, they now have to describe what type of meat is in the product and that is pretty shocking.  Still the takeaways et al won't advertise how much back-alley chicken there is in a portion (will they)  ;D ;D

CP

[spicysarsy]

  Point taken Chili.