# Didn’t spaghetti sauce jars used to be 32 ounces? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 16, 2018, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/didn-t-spaghetti-sauce-jars-used-to-be-32-ounces/812528 "2018-04-16T18:38:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Turble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8dc957/32.png) [@Turble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Turble)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2018, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/didn-t-spaghetti-sauce-jars-used-to-be-32-ounces/812528/1 "2018-04-16T18:38:57Z")
Most of the time I make my own but do buy some sometimes. Lately the jars are 28 ounces and the latest one I bought (the ‘fancy’ Prego Farmer’s Market) is only 23.5 ounces. That isn’t really enough for a pound of spaghetti. If I have to add a can of tomato sauce and add some extra spices the convenience factor of jarred sauce is pretty much gone. ---
**Author:** ![Grumbacher\_Red](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/85e7bf/32.png) [@Grumbacher\_Red](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grumbacher_Red)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2018, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/didn-t-spaghetti-sauce-jars-used-to-be-32-ounces/812528/2 "2018-04-16T18:46:14Z")
Yes, I am pretty sure they did used to be 32 ounces. I recently noticed sugar is now a 4 pound bag, too. And the Breyer’s ice cream container is now smaller and tapered towards the bottom. And toilet paper now has a HUGE inner cardboard roll. It is all in the name of not raising prices by giving us less. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2018, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/didn-t-spaghetti-sauce-jars-used-to-be-32-ounces/812528/3 "2018-04-16T18:56:33Z")
I just quickly looked at ads from 1988, just to pick a year, and they were 32 oz then, at least the Ragu. We personally never used a whole jar on a pound of spaghetti, though, but I think we use less sauce than most people. ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2018, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/didn-t-spaghetti-sauce-jars-used-to-be-32-ounces/812528/4 "2018-04-16T18:57:42Z")
Yogurt cups are 6 oz, used to be an actual 8 oz cup. Which totally messes up at least one recipe of mine, and the only alternative is to buy a big tub of plain yogurt so I can measure out my own. A “pound” of coffee has been 12 or 13 oz for quite some time. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2018, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/didn-t-spaghetti-sauce-jars-used-to-be-32-ounces/812528/5 "2018-04-16T18:58:25Z")
A two pound can of coffee now weighs 26oz. ---
**Author:** ![That\_Don\_Guy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/that_don_guy/32/538_2.png) [@That\_Don\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/That_Don_Guy)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2018, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/didn-t-spaghetti-sauce-jars-used-to-be-32-ounces/812528/6 "2018-04-16T19:06:21Z")
> [@Grumbacher\_Red](#): > > And the Breyer’s ice cream container is now smaller and tapered towards the bottom. Pretty much all name brand ice cream “half gallons” are now only 3 pints. Also, most hog dog packages have gone from 16 ounces to 12. Nathan’s even changed the name of its “bigger than the bun” hot dogs to “bun-length.” Hebrew National does sell its “dinner franks” in both 12 and 16-ounce packages, however. ---
**Author:** ![DavidwithanR](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/3bc359/32.png) [@DavidwithanR](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DavidwithanR)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2018, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/didn-t-spaghetti-sauce-jars-used-to-be-32-ounces/812528/7 "2018-04-16T19:29:48Z")
About spaghetti sauce specifically, in the past pretty much all the jars were 32 oz. Now there are several different sizes - the “fancy stuff” comes in smaller containers. ---
**Author:** ![Quimby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/22d042/32.png) [@Quimby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quimby)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2018, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/didn-t-spaghetti-sauce-jars-used-to-be-32-ounces/812528/8 "2018-04-16T19:36:47Z")
I noticed my new tube of toothpaste was .2 ounces smaller than the one I was throwing away. That’s how they Getchya! ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2018, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/didn-t-spaghetti-sauce-jars-used-to-be-32-ounces/812528/9 "2018-04-16T19:48:39Z")
Everything is smaller for a higher price. It’s all about the bottom line. We are about a minute away from overpriced Soylent green. I just gave up…buy what I have to, make the best of it. Plus, my tomato plants may have gotten too cold last night. Woe is me:( ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2018, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/didn-t-spaghetti-sauce-jars-used-to-be-32-ounces/812528/10 "2018-04-16T19:57:22Z")
> [@Shoeless](#): > > Yogurt cups are 6 oz, used to be an actual 8 oz cup. You’re behind the time: most yogurt is 5.3 ounces. Cans of tuna have shrunk down to 5 oz. I remember when they were over six. ---
**Author:** ![Grumbacher\_Red](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/85e7bf/32.png) [@Grumbacher\_Red](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grumbacher_Red)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2018, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/didn-t-spaghetti-sauce-jars-used-to-be-32-ounces/812528/11 "2018-04-16T19:58:59Z")
* * * > [@Quimby](#): > > I noticed my new tube of toothpaste was .2 ounces smaller than the one I was throwing away. That’s how they Getchya! And that new smaller tube probably has some of the volume taken up by air. ☹ I bitched about this in another thread, so I apologize for those of you reading me say this again. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim_r.mortiss/32/142_2.png) [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_R.Mortiss)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2018, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/didn-t-spaghetti-sauce-jars-used-to-be-32-ounces/812528/12 "2018-04-16T20:14:45Z")
I just bought some batteries. When I got home, I noticed in the fine print it said “batteries not included.”\* \*Steven Wright, I think. I know I stole it from somebody. ---
**Author:** ![Turble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8dc957/32.png) [@Turble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Turble)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2018, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/didn-t-spaghetti-sauce-jars-used-to-be-32-ounces/812528/13 "2018-04-16T20:29:13Z")
Dammit, I thought so. I was aware of lots of the other stuff like smaller ice cream cartons and toilet paper tube shenanigans, but dammit, a pound of spaghetti gets a quart of sauce; the two things go together by design. I suppose the answer is going to be 14 ounce ‘pounds’ of spaghetti – which would actually be an improvement over the current situation. Seems with everything you go to buy these days somebody is trying to trick you, fool you, or confuse you. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![actualliberalnotoneofthose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e79b87/32.png) [@actualliberalnotoneofthose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/actualliberalnotoneofthose)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2018, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/didn-t-spaghetti-sauce-jars-used-to-be-32-ounces/812528/14 "2018-04-16T20:44:54Z")
I’ve never made a pound of spaghetti at a time. So I guess I never noticed that. One jar does cover making it twice (typically 1lb total) for my kids, but maybe that’s because we add meat and they don’t eat a lot. Mostly this stuff doesn’t bother me because the volume is clearly marked. I mean, the toilet paper roll size doesn’t matter if the package says it’s so many sheets of a certain size or 312 sq. ft or whatever. The ice cream thing happened a long time ago and sometimes I find decent brands that are still a 1/2 gallon or 1.75 instead of 1.5 quarts. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2018, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/didn-t-spaghetti-sauce-jars-used-to-be-32-ounces/812528/15 "2018-04-16T20:45:48Z")
Cheer up. Pretty soon the spaghetti packages will be downsized too and we’ll be back to the proper ratio. mmm ---
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2018, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/didn-t-spaghetti-sauce-jars-used-to-be-32-ounces/812528/16 "2018-04-16T21:39:51Z")
The 64oz cartons of orange juice are now 59oz. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2018, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/didn-t-spaghetti-sauce-jars-used-to-be-32-ounces/812528/17 "2018-04-16T21:43:35Z")
My brother use to say, " if you don’t buy food then sooner or later you don’t need toilet paper." He was a defeatist. Poor guy. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2018, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/didn-t-spaghetti-sauce-jars-used-to-be-32-ounces/812528/18 "2018-04-16T22:00:48Z")
> [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#): > > Cheer up. Pretty soon the spaghetti packages will be downsized too and we’ll be back to the proper ratio. > mmm I could have sworn some already have. Looking online, though, it seems to only the the whole grain, organic, and gluten-free versions that come in smaller sizes like 13.5 oz and 12 oz. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2018, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/didn-t-spaghetti-sauce-jars-used-to-be-32-ounces/812528/19 "2018-04-17T01:06:52Z")
It’s screwed up some of my recipes, too. I can only make Gramma’s cavitini when I’ve already got a half-jar lying around from some other dish (to add to another full jar). ---
**Author:** ![DavidwithanR](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/3bc359/32.png) [@DavidwithanR](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DavidwithanR)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2018, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/didn-t-spaghetti-sauce-jars-used-to-be-32-ounces/812528/20 "2018-04-17T02:57:23Z")
> [@Beckdawrek](#): > > My brother use to say, " if you don’t buy food then sooner or later you don’t need toilet paper." He was a defeatist. Poor guy. Being a defeatist is stupid and useless. He might as well give that up too. 😃 [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/didn-t-spaghetti-sauce-jars-used-to-be-32-ounces/812528.md?page=2)