So why are there metric measurements on other parts of the label?
So why are there metric measurements on other parts of the label? If you look at the food products we use, there’s a mishmash of information listed in both U.S. Customary units and metric units. You’ll see canned goods listing nutrients like protein and carbohydrates in metric. But the net weight might be in both metric and customary. “FDA — which regulates food labeling for packaged foods — has requirements that stipulate metric units be used for nutrients, in part to be consistent with the Metric Conversion Act of 1975 that was enacted to voluntarily increase use of the metric system,” Harnack explained. The FDA had a very logical reason to do this: the customary units Americans were used to — such as ounces — are too large to describe something as small as a nutrient. For example, Ford pointed out it wouldn’t be useful to put an amount like 0.026 oz, which is where a metric unit like the gram comes in handy. In the 1970s, soda companies also started to use metric ...