Coles customer's 'disappointing' discovery after cooking 1kg of mince
A disgruntled Coles customer believes there's a major issue with the supermarket's packs of beef mince, admitting she was left "disappointed" by her discovery while cooking.
On Friday, the frustrated Perth shopper shared a photo of her cooked 1kg mince resting on a weighing scale, but the total weight was just 641 grams.
"Cooked and drained. All water. It's getting worse," she wrote on Facebook, adding she was "so disappointed".
Her picture shows the Coles meat, once cooked, weighed far less than the advertised one kilogram. But it wasn't just a couple of grams difference, but a significant 359 grams – or 35 per cent less.
It's not the first time a Coles customer has taken aim at the mince packets with multiple claims from shoppers who say they've received less than they paid for.
Woolworths has also been dragged for offering less mince than what's indicated on the packet, and supermarket shoppers have had enough.
"Where do you shop that gives you value for money for mince please?" the original poster asked on Facebook, to which many suggested trying a butcher instead.
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Internet weighs in: 'Completely normal'
While agreeing there was a "noticeable" difference in weight, many offered a reasonable explanation.
"All meat weighs less when cooked, did you weigh it when it was raw? The weight on packet is based on meat weighed when raw not cooked," one woman said.
But when questioned about how much shrinkage should be factored in, the woman claimed: "Meat loses about 25 per cent of its weight when cooked."
"Cooking on higher temperatures result in greater shrinkage," she added.
One person said the photo is "completely normal" when comparing the "raw to cooked ratio".
Others pointed out the small 'e' on the packet next to the weight, which indicates an "estimation" only.
"The 'e' next to the weight is for estimate so you will never get the amount that is on the label," one wrote.
Some shared their own thoughts on the matter.
"It was fat, not water. You just flushed all the flavour down the drain," one person pointed out.
"I buy my mince from Aldi and get no water or fat. It's fantastic," another said.
Testing the true weight of supermarket mince
Following several complaints from customers who purchased mince at Australia's leading supermarkets — Yahoo News Australia decided to test whether customers were getting what they paid for.
The investigation found all of the randomly selected mince packets Yahoo tested were actually overweight, with the Coles-brand mince coming in six grams overweight.
A Coles spokesperson previously told Yahoo News Australia that the instruments used to measure home brand products are tested regularly to ensure accuracy.
"We also require our suppliers to ensure their products comply with all measurement laws, and we remove products from sale if we find or are advised they are non-compliant," the spokesperson said.
"Household scales are not made to commercial standard and are generally not regularly checked for accuracy."
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