From Cooking Wiki
How to Select Canned and Package Goods
If the average household is to be supplied with the vegetables and fruits needed in the abundance recommended in this book, some provision must be made to have a supply on hand during the months when fresh products are not available. In some
households, these will be stored, canned, or otherwise preserved at home. In others, they must be purchased fresh from the market or bought in preserved form from the dealer.
It would be a profitable thing for every housewife to learn sizes in canned goods and demand certain standards. She should keep a record of good and poor grades so that she may ask for the quality she prefers. Canned goods that are used frequently should be purchased in case lots, as a wholesale or reduced price can be obtained in that way.
The canneries have the sizes of cans well standardized and the housewife will find it to her advantage to know the common sizes. The following list gives the size of the can by numbei together with an approximate estimate of its contents:
Standard Sizes in Cans and What They Contain
No. 1/4 cans sardines, potted meats such as deviled ham, condensed milk contain 4 to 4 1/2 oz.; approximately 1/2 cup.
No. 1 /2 cans shrimp, lobster, salmon, pimiento, condensed milk contain 7 l /2 to 8 oz.; approximately 1 cup.
No. 1 cans (short or small) tunafish, canned soup, milk, boned meats such as chicken contain 10 to 13 oz.; approximately ! 3 /4 CupS.
No. 1 cans (tall or square) salmon, asparagus tips contain 1 lb.; approximately 2 cups.
No. 2 cans vegetables such as peas, corn, beans and some fruits, such as pineapple and berries contain 1 lb. 4 oz.; approximately 2 l /z to 3 cups.
No. 2 oz cans fruits such as pineapple, peaches, pears, plums, berries; also many vegetables, such as beets, asparagus stalks in square tins, spinach contain 1 lb. 14 oz. To 1 lb. 15 oz.; approximately 5 1 / 2 cups.
No. 3 cans tomatoes, beets, sauerkraut, pumpkin and fruits contain 2 Ibs. To 2 Ibs. 1 oz.; approximately 4 cups.
No. 10 cans mince-meat, apple sauce, marmalades, jams, pickles, sauerkraut, baked beans, corn on cob, in fact, nearly all canned goods for large quantity use contain 6 Ibs. 8 oz. To 7 Ibs. And over for fruits and vegetables and 7 Ibs. 8 oz. To 8 Ibs. 12 oz. For marmalades and jams. Approximately 3 1 / quarts.
While the size of can is standardized, there is a variation in weights of cans put up by different canneries. This difference in weight is probably due to a more solid pack or a greater density in sirup content in the heavier cans and, this being the case, the housewife should know not only the number but also the weight she can expect in a can of any given size.
