For the past few years I have purchased my boneless skinless chicken breasts from places like Albertsons, Costco and every once in awhile even Walmart.
The last few times I have come home from Walmart with a package of chicken breasts I got this feeling like something just wasn’t right.
The styrofoam package and the little juice-soaker-upper thingy (I know… real technical) felt almost as heavy as the chicken breasts inside. I had this nagging feeling that I was getting ripped off.
So last week when I brought home another package of chicken from Walmart I decided to go with my gut and actually weigh the chicken and package.
In the store the price said $2.09 per lb. That’s an okay price – I usually get better deals at Zaycon.
Here is the package I brought home.
I paid $10.74 for the package. It says there is 5.14 lbs of chicken inside. At $2.09 per lb the price is correct.
So the first thing I did was to set the whole package on the scale to see if it was 5.14 lbs.
Ummm…nope! It weighs 4.938 lbs. So right there the price is off. I measured a few other items to make sure my scale was accurate first and it was.
I did read on the packaging it says “Contains up to 15% natural chicken broth.” I was assuming that it was injected into the chicken breasts or something, but I noticed a TON of chicken juices in this package. I think that is kind of weasly, don’t you?
Next I decided to take out all the chicken and see how much that weighed by itself.
This is all the chicken in the package. I tared the scale and then put the chicken on the scale.
3.97 lbs.
I knew it. Oh the humanity. I was irritated and annoyed at this point. I should have only paid $7.92 for this package at $2.09 per lb.
Still, I wanted to weigh just the package and juice-soaker-upper thingie.
This weighed almost exactly ONE pound.
So…that $2.09 per pound price is now $2.71 per pound.
Sneaky sneaky packaging.
I feel cheated. Duped. Bamboozled (yeah, I just went there. ) I wanted to run to my computer and share this all right away. But I was nervous. I mean posting online that I was ripped off at Walmart? What if I got the Oprah treatment? (sued)
Well, just in case, I will leave this little disclaimer…this problem may have only been at my local store and not chain wide.
One Week Later
I bought chicken again, this time I happened to be at Winco. The chicken was priced at $2.09 per lb again.
On the package it says it should be 4.04 lbs, but it was actually 4.15 lbs! Way to go Winco…you actually considered the weight of the packaging!
When I weighed the chicken it was spot on at 4.04 lbs. Their styrofoam package was not nearly as heavy as the Wally world one. Sheesh.
So anyways, I was going to say to always avoid these kinds of packages and just go for either the frozen bags at Costco or fresh from a deli. But Winco surprised me that they actually are honest in their policies of weighing the meat. (Big slow clap for Winco!)
As for Walmart – I didn’t call customer service or complain to them in store. We ate the $3.00 lb. chicken and it was tasty. No problems in the quality of the product, the problem I have is the jacking up of the price because of the packaging dishonesty.
I plan on going in again with my scale and see if it happens again. And if it does I will complain.
So watch out for chicken cheats and always try to get what you paid for because if you’re not careful you may end up paying over two dollars for a piece of slimy chicken juice packaging.
Oh and question everything my friends. If you feel something is wrong, it probably is.
About Karrie
Food is my love language. But so is saving money. So I like to combine the two a lot and make thrifty make ahead and freeze meals to save time. Because life is busy, and freezer meals can come to the rescue for all of us. And yes, they actually CAN taste good. Read more...
Comments & Reviews
John Henrys Meat says
Next time try your local farmers market for fresh pasture raised chicken meat or order online
Liz Davis says
Hi I just came across your comment about the Walmart brand chicken breast. I just had to start weighing my food and like you I came home thinking I had over 5lbs of chicken when it was almost a pound less I had already thrown the PKG away so I couldn’t weight the chicken in it’s PKG to see if they were charging me for the weight of it being PKG. So today I had to buy more and it said 5.17 net weight at $2.67 a pound. I weighed the whole unopened PKG and it weighs 4.44 lbs. I have bought alot chicken breast from Walmart. I’m so mad. The price of meat has gone up and to be ripped off like this is unexceptable. Did you ever report it is my question? I think we need to report it. I was in the process of looking for a way when I came across your page. We need to let more people know this is going on.
Rosi Huber says
Exactly the same thing happened to me today! I was trying to find out how many packages of chicken breast Walmart sells in a day so I could work out what their exorbitant profit is, when I came across your article. I bought a 4.29lb package, but when I weighed the meat alone, it was only 3.10lbs. I wonder how many more thousands of us there are out there
Aleph says
I know this article is old, but Walmart has not backed down on their practice of pumping the chicken full of excess water. I bought a package similar to yours and got the same results that you did. However, when I baked the chicken I emptied out a quart of water from the pan. I read that this was normal and that all farms pump their chickens with water. Well, I bought a similar package from a local chain (HEB) and was surprised that I only got half a cup of water, after baking the chicken. The chicken breasts did not shrink as they usually do with the Walmart poultry.
Lesson learned, don’t buy poultry or meats at Walmart. The local store is a much better deal.
william haney says
January 2020
I have found the same issue with frozen seafood at Krogers. When thawed out, the water content of the seafood made a substantial difference in weight which obviously drives the cost per pound up.
Rando says
It’s January 2020, currently in Nashville
This issue occurs with the kroger brand chicken breast… Fairly consistently..
I don’t have exact numbers on hand… But there’s been times where the numbers were dramatic:
Eg, |5# package yielded nearly 2.5-3#… At 2.49/lb… This bumped it up to ~5/lb
I found this same problem at kroger in Columbus Ohio
I’ll say that I’d still get these as usually it still comes out to a better value…
I did attempt the national weights and measures folks but was told that I should contact the state… It seems that something needs to occur nationally as this extends beyond state lines
Keasha Bellamy says
This is the 4th time I have ordered groceries from Walmart and been charged the wrong price. The Chuck roasts are marked on the package as $10 and change and $11 and change. I’m constantly being charged and exact amount of $14.13. I have contacted a manager all times, and been told it would be taken care of, and I’d receive a refund. I have never received a refund, and yet again I get charged the $14.13 again. I’m so frustrated. Tomorrow they are taking care of this. Can you imagine how many people are being overcharged, and how much they are making??? Please people check your prices. Especially on your chuck roasts
Craig Smith says
This just happened to me last week. It’s so incredibly frustrating. I feel ripped off and cheated. Shame on them.
Kat says
It’s mid 2019 and this is STILL a problem!! We just got ripped off too! The package said 2.06lbs and when we put it on our scale it wasn’t even 2lbs!
Sarah S Campbell says
Gotta be a snartass…in every situation I guess.
Amy says
Here in Winston Salem, NC I came across this issue and that is how I found this site. I DID contact the dept of Weights and Measures who went out within 24-48 hours and found that, indeed, there was a problem.
I was told that all of the packages inspected were under, as much as 1/3 of a pound and that adds up. He said emails were going out and possibly all of the NC Walmarts were going to be inspected. After 2-3 weeks they will all go back out and if there is still an issue they will go to the plant where it comes from and start handing out big fines.
However, I am wondering if the consumers have any recourse. This is an issue that is at least 5 years old. This means Walmart has been basically ripping us off and not giving us what we’re paying for. It adds up. It’s the bigger picture and if just the ONE store is selling about 40 packages a day (says the mgr) at an average of a 55 cent rip off that’s over 8k a year. One store. One product.
Sarah S Campbell says
Really appreciate your help and information shared.
Richard Kahn says
Hi Amy, I have owned a restaurant for the past 3 years and at times need to use the local supermarkets for fill-ins. I have noticed also that the weights on the packages do not portend to the exact need weight of the chicken within. I have lots of information and documentation and have contacted a class action attorney that I have used on another case involving BMW. If you are interested in possibly being part of a class action if the firm takes the case, please feel free to contact me at 864-412-5555 and ask for Richie.
I hope we can put an end to this deceptive and cheerful practice of shortchanging us the consumers. Thanks for your posting. Richie Kahn
michael says
I see this is a rater old post but I’ll respond anyway– you should not hesitate to contact your state’s Dept of Weights and Measures, or Federal, if need be. These things are investigated and if found to be an actual practice (not an oversight) there are stiff fines to the violators.
robert says
Another Walmart Folly: Yesterday I bought 5 bags of 10 pound ice at Walmart at 2.00/bag. You pay first and then load later. As I was loading my basket, the bags felt light. I was in a hurry though so could not explore this more at the time.
Today, we had one bag left and I weighed it. Yup, weighed only 6 pounds! So, instead of a .20/pound, I paid .33/pound.
Frank T Oneill says
I have just been through the same thing with Tyson boneless, skinless chicken breast from Walmart. The package said the net weight was 4.13 lb but the true net weight excluding the “fresh-pack” (aka “that puffy thing”) was 3.38 lb for a difference of 0.75 lb or 12 ounces. I called the Tyson customer service line and the lady, clearly a Arkansas resident, slowly and carefully explained that the weight on the package included the fresh-pack and the wrapping. This is in fact the gross weight and not the net weight and, despite a thorough search through “The Joy of Cooking”, I have been unable to find a recipe for “the puffy thing Tyson’s proposed remedy is to send me a check for $3.00. That will just about pay for a trip to the store or perhaps to the Weights and Measures people. If this weight difference is a routine practice then Tyson is consistently short-selling consumers by 19% and does not seem to be overly concerned.
Richard Kahn says
Hi Frank, I have owned a restaurant for the past 3 years and at times need to use the local supermarkets for fill-ins. I have noticed also that the weights on the packages do not portend to the exact net weight of the chicken within. I have lots of information and documentation and have contacted a class action attorney that I have used on another case involving BMW. If you are interested in possibly being part of a class action law suit, if the firm takes the case, please feel free to contact me at 864-412-5555 and ask for Richie.
I hope we can put an end to this deceptive and cheerful practice of shortchanging us the consumers. Thanks for your posting. Richie Kahn
Steven Littlejohn says
Way late on this, but, tonight I decided that the Walmart chicken you speak of has way too much sodium in it. Hate fake stuff. So I’m trying a different type, their Marketside frozen brand of boneless breast. 75 grams of sodium. On you weight stuff, try a can of Walmart tuna, or canned peas. The normal packed in water tuna has junk in it that gives me heartburn. Chicken of the sea’s packed in Olive oil doesn’t. Tuna packed in an under pressure pack cost a bit more, but it’s better. Life in the store is creepy. Walmart brand Honey Cheerios…small box is so much cheaper than the large box. Weird. Same with a lot of larger sizes. I hate that.
Severine says
This actually happened to me with a package of chicken from Publix. So not confined to just Wally World…unfortunately. Sigh.
George Texstel says
I think Wal-Mart’s – and other store’s – boneless chicken breasts are missing FLAVOR.
I noticed this in the last year or so in chicken thigh fillets as well, (and don’t get me started on the pork they sell in this part of Texas).
I located a little of the missing flavor in bone-in, skin-on cuts, and the rest in whole birds. I’m not sure what this is going to do to my regular cooking. I may be getting bones in my Chinese stir-fry, but I am not going to eat meat that doesn’t have satisfying flavor.
Thank all of you for your entries on this blog – I read and learned from each one. —George