# Understanding the Sanka slogan **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 1, 2005, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/understanding-the-sanka-slogan/287782 "2005-02-01T15:33:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![snow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ba9def/32.png) [@snow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snow)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2005, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/understanding-the-sanka-slogan/287782/1 "2005-02-01T15:33:03Z")
If lunch meat says it’s 97% fat free, that means it’s 3% fat. Fat is 3% of package weight. Sanka says it’s 97% caffeine free. So is it 3% caffeine? = 1/2 oz caffeine per 1 lb package Or 3% of the normal amount of caffeine? Or something else? * * * Posting at [Fathom](http://fff.fathom.org/forums/forumdisplay.php?forumid=10) ---
**Author:** ![Polycarp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/82dd89/32.png) [@Polycarp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Polycarp)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2005, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/understanding-the-sanka-slogan/287782/2 "2005-02-01T15:41:59Z")
3% of normal caffeine level, is what I think they mean. But it’s an interesting question, taken to a more general level – what **do** advertisers mean by those comparative percentages? It’s like 2% milk – ever wonder what the other 98% is? 😃 In the case of milk, what they’re saying is that it only has 4/7 of the normal amount of cream (“part-skim” is the old way of phrasing that) – normal homogenized milk has approximately 3.5% cream content, depending on the predominant breed of cow milked, etc. In 2% milk, that is reduced from 3.5% to 2% before homogenization, and similarly for 1% and 0.5% milk. But there are other foods where the Sanka-style percentage is done: the foodstuff may normally be 0.8154% a given substance (“X-eine”) prior to processing, and that’s reduced to 0.2037% and the claim is made that it’s “only 25% the normal X-eine content.” True – but how pertinent to health matters? ---
**Author:** ![snow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ba9def/32.png) [@snow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snow)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2005, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/understanding-the-sanka-slogan/287782/3 "2005-02-01T15:54:51Z")
A lot of people think 2% milk is nearly-fat-free instead of half-the-fat. * * * I post at [Fathom](http://fff.fathom.org/forums/forumdisplay.php?forumid=10) ---
**Author:** ![the\_first\_supraliminal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f475e1/32.png) [@the\_first\_supraliminal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/the_first_supraliminal)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2005, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/understanding-the-sanka-slogan/287782/4 "2005-02-01T16:06:32Z")
The [Swiss Water Process](http://www.swisswater.com/decaf/decaf) > [@](#): > > The SWISS WATER® Process meets the US Food and Drug Administration decaffeination guideline of 97% caffeine removed, as well as the Canadian/European decaffeination standard of 99.92% caffeine free. ---
**Author:** ![Polycarp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/82dd89/32.png) [@Polycarp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Polycarp)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2005, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/understanding-the-sanka-slogan/287782/5 "2005-02-01T16:11:10Z")
> [@snow](#): > > A lot of people think 2% milk is nearly-fat-free instead of half-the-fat. I wouldn’t be at all surprised to find out that’s why they market it that way! ---
**Author:** ![snow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ba9def/32.png) [@snow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snow)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2005, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/understanding-the-sanka-slogan/287782/6 "2005-02-01T17:51:39Z")
On the official [Sanka web page](http://www.kraft.com/100/innovations/decaf.html) it says this: > [@](#): > > …The process centered on using supercritical carbon dioxide… What is “supercritical”? * * * I post at [Fathom](http://fff.fathom.org/forums/forumdisplay.php?forumid=10) ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2005, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/understanding-the-sanka-slogan/287782/7 "2005-02-01T20:05:52Z")
> [@snow](#): > > On the official [Sanka web page](http://www.kraft.com/100/innovations/decaf.html) it says this: > > What is “supercritical”? > > * * * > > I post at [Fathom](http://fff.fathom.org/forums/forumdisplay.php?forumid=10) Sort of like a mother-in-law. ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2005, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/understanding-the-sanka-slogan/287782/8 "2005-02-01T20:43:40Z")
[What is supercritical carbon dioxide](http://www.answerbag.com/q_view.php/11533)? Warm and lotsa pressure, just like a mother-in-law. ---
**Author:** ![vetbridge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b5e925/32.png) [@vetbridge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vetbridge)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2005, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/understanding-the-sanka-slogan/287782/9 "2005-02-01T21:08:42Z")
> [@snow](#): > > What is “supercritical”? Caustic and gassy, like my ex. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![kniz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/c37758/32.png) [@kniz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kniz)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2005, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/understanding-the-sanka-slogan/287782/10 "2005-02-01T23:27:29Z")
So **Polycarp** tell me all about the \*\*.\*\*56 % impurities contained in Ivory soap. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2005, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/understanding-the-sanka-slogan/287782/11 "2005-02-02T01:05:23Z")
> [@kniz](#): > > So **Polycarp** tell me all about the \*\*.\*\*56 % impurities contained in Ivory soap. 😉 [Cecil already did.](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a4_157.html)