Took a closer look at that viral "cereal box weight" story from last week

I saw that post going around about how cereal boxes are supposedly 40% air and we're all getting ripped off. Decided to actually check it instead of just sharing it. I weighed a box of Frosted Flakes from my local 7-Eleven in Dallas and the net weight matched exactly what was on the label. The article they linked was from a satirical site that shut down 3 years ago, not a real news source. Has anyone else run into this same fake stat getting passed around?

3 comments

3 Comments

aaron88012d ago

Grabbed an old Cheerios box from my kitchen just to see and sure enough, it measured out to the gram what the label said. But then I got distracted and started wondering why cereal bags always have that weird crinkly sound that makes you feel like you're handling a bag of chips from 2005. Now I'm just sitting here listening to my breakfast rustle at me like it's plotting something.

eva_moore12d ago

Cereal companies definitely play games with package sizes all the time though.

flores.emma12d ago

Appreciate you actually fact-checking that nonsense instead of just passing it along like everyone else. The satirical site detail is key - people see a shocking number like "40%" and their brains just shut off. It gets exhausting watching this same cycle play out with every viral post, especially when a simple weight check proves it's garbage.