Bill George

Bill George

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Why Hot Dogs Were Sold in 10-Packs But Buns Were Sold in 8-Packs for Years

Hot dogs

Photo: Getty Images

I'm sure we have all wondered why some hot dogs are sold in packs of 10 and hot dog buns come in an 8-count. For decades that was the norm and it confounded consumers for over 80 years. Turns out there’s a reason for the discrepancy – lack of communication between butchers and bakers. 

Hot dogs usually weigh 1.6 ounces each and meat is sold by the pound, so producers sell them 10 to a package which translates to one pound. Companies started selling them this way in the 1940s according to Reader's Digest. Baking machinery is set to produce four buns and bakers started packing two sheets of buns to a package which amounts to eight buns. If they packed 10 buns into a package, the package would have been uneven and not stack properly on store shelves. 

These days hot dog packages come in a variety of configurations, including 10-Count (Oscar Mayer), 8-count (Nathan's, Ball Park Franks) and 6-count (Hebrew National), as well as a variety of sizes (jumbo, bun size, etc.), so it seems that most companies have found a way around those original restrictions.

photo: Getty Images SourceVinepair


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