First-hand merchandise knowledge, explained by an expert, presented in an understandable and clear way for all trainees, professionals and industry participants. That is PMM College, a new exclusive service from Paul M. Müller. Curtain up: What does “count” actually mean? PMM College explains.

The indication of a count or caliber is not mandatory in food law. However, for better orientation, but also from a commercial point of view, it is part of good manners, in order to avoid any misunderstanding when purchasing.

So: The caliber for olives, for example, is a measure of how many whole olives come to a certain weight.

Important: The count always refers to 100 grams of raw material before processing.

This should be known, because after processing and, if necessary, coring, the weight and size of the olives change.

In the trade, the weight is extrapolated on a kilogram basis, i.e. multiplied by a factor of 10.

In any case, the lower the count, the larger and higher quality the olives. Paul M. Müller, for example, trades in ADRIA canned goods with a count of 26/29 as a short designation. This means that there are approximately 260 to 290 olives per kilogram of raw material. In the ADRIA jar, for example, we offer a count of 28/32, which means that there are approximately 280 to 320 olives per kilogram of raw material. Our popular top product ADRIA-Queens comes to a count of about 100 to 110 large, flavorful olives.

For whole artichoke hearts, the number of pieces is given in counts. However, the count is calculated differently for artichokes. Important: The larger the count, the smaller the artichoke hearts. That is, a count of 30/40 indicates a number of pieces of about 30 to 40 hearts in the can. ADRIA canned artichoke hearts are available in small cans (425 ml) with counts of 5/7 or 8/12 up to a high count of 25/30, 30/40 to 50/60 for large cans (2650 ml). Small hearts are correspondingly more expensive.

The count is different again with our snails. Here the count is declared in dozens. This means that in the 850 ml ADRIA can (30 oz), for example, we have around 12 dozen, i.e. 144 snails in the can.