Huge Difference in Labels!

Miliaz

Hi, everyone! I joined Cronometer a little less than a month ago and, while I love the features, I am CONSTANTLY getting big differences between the actual labels on my food and the nutritional analysis that Cronometer figures. For example, the label on Kroger French Vanilla Coffee Creamer for 1 tablespoon (mL) = 35 calories. When I manually add this food to my diary (in the exact same 1 TBSP. measurement), Cronometer 's calculations = 15.0. That's only HALF of the calories that are on the actual label! To add to the confusion, when I scanned it on my phone w/the Cronometer app, it states that it's 34.9 calories for 1 tablespoon. Another example is Kroger Homestyle Waffles. The actual label states that a serving = 2 waffles (70g) and is 210 calories. However, the phone app scanner says that for 1 serving (amount of waffles not listed, nor are any kind of measurement), the calories are 179.9. That's a difference of 30-plus calories!

Last weekend, I emailed Cronometer's support team because when I manually looked for Kroger Traditional Pasta Sauce in the "Add Food" section, I found two listings - Kroger, Pasta Sauce, Traditional, 89.6 kcal. for 1/2 cup (128g) and The Kroger, Traditional Pasta Sauce, 39.7 kcal. for 1/2 cup (128g). Both claim the UPC label as their source of information. Obviously, one of these is grossly incorrect. When I checked the label on the jar, it looked like the first one I mentioned (the 89.6 kcal. one) is correct. The person who responded was very nice and suggested I follow the protocol when there are differing labels. But then the burden was laid at MY feet when the original problem (whether I had the actual food label in my possession or not) was actually with Cronometer for having in their database two very different labels for the exact same food!

So what do I trust on here (by the way, I am a Gold member)? It's so much easier to just scan the bar code on my phone. But apparently I can't always trust the information that produces. So then I have to add, number by number, the information in a custom-created food. THEN I'm supposed to upload pictures to Cronometer so they can look it over and see if they need to make corrections. So much wasted time!!

Any help would be GREATLY appreciated!!

Karen_Cronometer

Hi Miliaz,

One of the issues with adding brand name products to your diary is that a company may have many different formulations for the same product out on the marketplace at the same time. They may change their recipes based on availability of ingredients or geographic location, for example. Add this to the fact that the nutrition information is often calculated (rather than analyzed) and then the values are rounded on the label, and you begin to see how easily the values can vary for the same product.
Since there are different formulations in the marketplace at the same time, we include both in our database. When you are searching for these foods, check out the nutrition information when you add them to your diary to make sure you are getting the version that matches your product. You could also mark the one that matches as a 'Favorite' so you will quickly know which is the right one to add to your diary next time.

Another option would be to add the generic versions of the brand name foods you are eating from NCCDB and USDA (use the Common Foods tab when searching for foods to limit your food searches to these databases). If you search for "Coffee Creamer" "Waffles, Frozen" "Tomato Sauce" you can find generic equivalents to all the brand name products you are looking for. These will not exactly match the brand name products you have, but they will provide more nutrient information than what is provided by the manufacturer on the label. This approach isn't for everyone, but if you want more nutrient information this is the best way to do it!

You might like to check out this blog post to learn a little bit more about getting the best nutrition data we have in Cronometer: https://cronometer.com/blog/6-tips-getting-nutrition-data/

Best,

Miliaz

That was fantastic advice that really addressed my problem! I can't thank you enough :-) :-) !!!

gearup328_2619

I have a similar problem as Miliaz. A recent example was Oscar Mayer Natural Applewood Smoked Turkey Breast. The label shows 0g sugars for 2oz. COM gave me an astounding 10g of sugar. Food labels can be very misleading.
For a nutrition tracking application, this is way over a little deviation. You are providing very detailed measurements, some of which are totally inaccurate, If I were using COM because I was diabetic (I am not), it would be useless.
I began COM because of Dr. Mercola and I wanted a good learning tool to see exactly what I was eating. COM gave the best breakdown of vitamins and minerals that are not given on the package or on fresh foods. I only wish they were more accurate. I have to compare COM with Nutrition Data.com all the time.

Marie_Eve_Cronometer

Hello @gearup328_2619 ,

As @Karen_Cronometer mentioned, one of the issues with adding brand name products to your diary is that a company may have many different formulations for the same product out on the marketplace at the same time.

If you do spot a mistake in our database, you can report the issue to us through Cronometer. On the website, you can report an issue with your specific food by right clicking on the food entry in your diary to select "view/edit selected food". Then select the settings icon in the top right corner, and select "report an issue".

In the mobile app version, tap "More details" and select the "!" icon in the top right corner. Submitting your issues helps us maintain an accurate and complete database.

Cheers,

gearup328_2619

Didn't know that. I'll report this.
I also buy Oscar Mayer Black Forest Uncured Ham and it shows 0g sugar on the package and in the database. If you love ham, that's the only way to go.
Thanks Marie-Eve.