ARS | Publication request: REASSESSMENT OF HOUSEHOLD MEASURES AND WEIGHTS FOR SELECTED FRUIT IN THE USDA NATIONAL NUTRIENT DATABASE FOR STANDARD REFERENCE

Submitted to: Meeting Abstract
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: March 6, 2006
Publication Date: March 31, 2006
Citation: Thomas, R.G., Gebhardt, S.E. Reassessment of household measures and weights for selected fruit in the usda national nutrient database for standard reference. Maryland Dietetic Association annual meeting, March 31, 2006, Maryland.

Technical Abstract: The USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference (SR) includes common household measures with corresponding gram weights for most food items. These weights and measures are important for dietitians, researchers, educators, and consumers to help estimate the nutrient content in a specified portion. The weights and measures in SR are derived from multiple sources, including: food industry files; published sources; U.S. Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) standards; the USDA National Food and Nutrition Analysis Program (NFNAP); and other USDA studies. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has standard weights and measures for the 20 most frequently consumed raw fruits. These data and recently acquired NFNAP data resulted in the reassessment of weights and measures in some of the raw fruits in SR. In addition to FDA and NFNAP, the following resources were considered: current SR data; USDA’s MyPyramid; various food industry organizations and retailers; USDA’s Food Surveys Research Group; AMS standards and statistics; and Price Look-Up (PLU) sizes. Discrepancies arose among the various sources and methods of determining the weights and sizes for many of the fruits, including raw peaches. Reassessment of peaches resulted in significant changes in gram weights and an additional size designation of “extra large.” For foods that are frequently consumed, such as bananas and apples, a modest change in the gram weight for 1 serving of fruit can have a significant impact on food consumption surveys and other research studies. Thus, great care and consideration were given to this reassessment process, including external review of all changes prior to dissemination in SR.