Walmart shopper compares weight of chicken on label with actual volume — the results are astonishing

Already plagued by rising grocery prices hitting household budgets, Americans are now complaining about the way stores are robbing them by mislabeling products to sell them products weighing less for the same price. Recently, a TikTok user Virginia Madison (@the.witch.is.in) amassed 13.4 million views with 1 million likes for a video in which she was comparing the weight written on the label with what she saw on the weighing scale.

Madison started by showing a pack of Foster Farms chicken labeled 4.78 pounds being sold for $23.76 to her viewers. She then weighed the product on a scale and to her surprise, the chicken actually weighed 2.2 pounds, which meant she was getting almost half of what she was paying for. 

She was astonished by what she saw and thought of trying it with another product. Madison picked up another pack of chicken that was labeled 4.92 pounds, but upon weighing it on the scale, she discovered that it was just 2 pounds of meat. Madison couldn't believe her eyes and went on to say, “Walmart is getting us, right? They’re screwing us." Viewers were stunned and some of them mentioned tactics for informing the store about the mismatch. 

@ambermcdonnell247 commented, "You can call weights and measures they can fine them for their scales." @MoxieGrrl5 commented, "Can I just say it’s never occurred to me to weigh packaged meats?! It’s the old-school butcher with a thumb on the scale trick. Double their $$ is quite a profit margin." @Stewart-Dockery- Zoey commented, "I don’t shop at Walmart, but honestly never thought of weighing the meat. I’m sure it happens at other stores." @Jillehbean commented, "Call for weights and measuring. Also, I pointed it out to a manager and they had to change the price." @HotMessMomma2016 commented, "Sam's does the same thing. They are counting the weight of all packing and meat". 

@Andrea commented, "I’m officially checking mine from now on, no matter the store. Everything has gone down in quantity and quality but up in price and it needs to be stopped!" @NemoDory commented, "Just checked mine. It was off by over a pound. Means I paid 3.20 more than I should have." @ivygeevilla8086 commented, "See I knew I wasn't crazy I been getting Walmart ordered to my house and it'll say 12 dollars for 2.5 lbs and when it gets here it doesn't look like nearly 3 lbs it looks like 1 lb so I weigh it." @08Trucker commented, "They're ALWAYS overcharging at the registers too!! I take pics of everything as I go so I don't pay more ridiculous." 

There have been many such instances of customers feeling cheated by the labeling at such retail chains. For example, a customer at Kroger found out that the blue cheese they bought weighed less than what the label said. Walmart customers have found similar discrepancies when it comes to bacon and croutons as well, with the weight on the label not matching the actual weight. 

You can follow virginiamadison (@the.witch.is.in) for more such content.

Editor's note: This article was originally published on April 18, 2024. It has since been updated.