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How to Calculate Fat in Food?

Published in Nutrition Calculations 2 mins read

To calculate the fat percentage in food, you need to know the grams of fat and the total serving size, then perform a simple calculation. Here’s how it works:

Calculating Fat Percentage

The core concept is to determine what portion of a food's weight is made up of fat. This is done by:

  1. Identifying the Fat Content: Check the Nutrition Facts label of your food. Find the number of grams of fat per serving.
  2. Identifying the Serving Size: Note the total weight of one serving, also shown on the Nutrition Facts label, usually in grams.
  3. Dividing Fat Grams by Serving Size Grams: Divide the grams of fat by the grams of the serving size. This will give you a decimal.
  4. Converting to Percentage: Multiply the result by 100 to get the fat percentage.

For example, if a food has 1 gram of fat in a 28-gram serving, the calculation is:

  • 1 gram of fat / 28 grams serving = 0.0357
  • 0.0357 * 100 = 3.57%

Therefore, this food is approximately 3.57% fat.

Example: Using a Nutrition Facts Label

Let’s use the example provided:

Component Value
Serving Size 28 g
Fat per Serving 1 g

Calculation:

  • 1 g of fat / 28 g serving = 0.0357.
  • 0.0357 x 100 = 3.57%
  • Thus, the food is 3.57% fat.

Key Takeaways:

  • This method gives you the percentage of the serving size that comes from fat.
  • The values you need are always located on the Nutrition Facts label of the product.
  • This is a simple mathematical approach based on the formula: (grams of fat / grams of serving size) x 100