A sample only tells you something if you asked a precise question and then measured the answer. State the product and form, the can size, the drained weight, the packing medium, the destination market, and whether the sample should carry your own label. When it arrives, weigh it, drain it, count it, and inspect the can and the label against that written specification. Then record the result, because that record becomes the baseline every later shipment is checked against.
Why the request decides what the sample can prove
A sample request is not an order form. It is the first draft of a specification, and it decides whether the answer you receive can be judged at all.
Ask for "canned mushrooms" and the reply may legitimately be whole button mushrooms in a 425 g can, sliced in an 800 g can, or king oyster mushrooms in a 400 g can. Each is a correct answer to an imprecise question, and none of them tells you anything about the product you intend to buy and resell.
The wording also travels: onto the specification sheet, into the label artwork, and alongside the shipping documents, so loose wording at the start is inherited downstream.
The six categories are specified differently, so start with the products page, where each category already states the fields you need: canned fruit, canned fish, canned beans, canned mushrooms, canned corn and canned tomato.
What an answerable sample request must state
Eight fields turn a request into something a production partner can answer without guessing.
The eight fields to write down
- Product and form. Not "tomato" but tomato paste; not "fish" but mackerel in brine; not "mushrooms" but button mushrooms, whole or sliced.
- Can size. The nominal fill in grams: 425 g, 820 g, 3,000 g, 400 g, 210 g, 140 g or 70 g.
- Drained weight, where it applies: 230 g on a 425 g fruit can, 200 g on 425 g mackerel, 92 g on 140 g tuna, 240 g on 425 g beans or corn, 180 g on 425 g button mushrooms, 300 g on 400 g king oyster mushrooms; paste is specified by concentration.
- Packing medium. Brine, water, oil, syrup or juice; which oil where there is a choice.
- Carton configuration. 24 cans per carton for most of the range; 12 for 820 g and 3,000 g fruit; 48 for tuna flakes; paste from 50 per carton at 70 g to 6 at 2,200 g.
- Destination market, and the export documentation it implies, raised early through export support.
- Label and lid. Buyer brand or private label; easy-open end or plain end.
- Purpose of the sample. Product evaluation, artwork approval, or both.
A request you can adapt
"Quote and send tomato paste samples in a 400 g can, 24 per carton, buyer brand artwork attached, for export to our market, plus one 70 g can for size reference." Every clause is checkable, and the pattern works for any category.
How to evaluate a sample when it arrives
Four checks turn a sample into data.
Weigh it, drain it, weigh it again
Weigh the unopened can and compare it with the net weight on the label and the figure you requested. Open it, tip the contents into a sieve, drain for a fixed period, then weigh the solids against the specification. Agree a tolerance in advance, so a variance becomes a note rather than an argument.
Read cut, count and fill
Spread the drained contents on a white tray. For fruit, count halves or segments and note whether they hold their shape. For beans and corn, check size uniformity and broken pieces. For mushrooms, confirm whole against sliced and check cap size. For fish, check that pieces are whole and the brine clear.
Inspect the can and the seam
Examine the body for dents, rust and scuffed lacquer, and the rims for distortion. The double seam at each end should be even all the way round with no sharp lip. Note the packing code and best-before marking; a dented sample is a fact to record rather than an automatic rejection.
Match the label against the artwork
Where the sample was to carry your own label, compare it with the approved artwork: brand, product name, net and drained weight, ingredient statement, country of origin, lot and best-before. A supplier-labelled sample is valid for product evaluation; it cannot approve artwork.
Sample evaluation record you can copy
The record below replaces describing a sample in an email: one row per sample, filled in when it is opened.
| What to check | How to check it | What to write down |
|---|---|---|
| Net weight | Weigh the unopened can | Measured grams beside the label figure |
| Drained weight | Drain through a sieve for a fixed time, then weigh the solids | Measured grams against the specification |
| Fill ratio | Drained weight divided by nominal fill | The ratio, and whether it matches the agreed figure |
| Cut and form | Spread the solids on a white tray | Whole, halves, sliced, chunks or flakes, plus broken share |
| Size consistency | Compare pieces with each other | Uniform or mixed; largest and smallest piece |
| Packing medium | Pour off and observe | Type, clarity and colour |
| Can condition | Inspect body, rims and both seams | Dents, rust, seam evenness, code legibility |
| Label content | Compare with the approved artwork | Fields that match, fields that differ |
Two habits keep it usable: photograph the opened can and the drained contents beside a scale, and date every entry. With a date and a photograph the row is evidence; without them it is only a memory.
From sample to baseline: why the record matters later
Once a sample has been measured, "the product" stops being a description and becomes a set of figures: this can size, this drained weight, this fill ratio, this cut, this medium, this label. Every later delivery has something concrete to compare against, which is what makes a quality conversation factual rather than personal.
It matters in three places. At order placement, the figures are copied into the purchase specification, so what is ordered is what was approved rather than a paraphrase. At pre-shipment inspection, they define what is checked and what variance is acceptable. At arrival, if a question is raised further down the chain, you can show what the baseline was and whether the goods met it.
It also protects the relationship with the production partner: a documented baseline separates a product problem from a preference change. Goods matching the approved figures are not a defect, even if the buyer has since changed their mind; that is a new specification and a new sample.
A vague request next to a specific one
| Element | Vague request | Specific request |
|---|---|---|
| Product | "Canned mushrooms" | Button mushrooms, sliced |
| Can size | "Standard can" | 800 g can |
| Drained weight | Not stated | 400 g drained |
| Packing medium | Not stated | Brine |
| Carton configuration | Not stated | 12 cans per carton |
| Labelling | Not stated | Buyer brand or private label |
| Lid | Not stated | Easy-open end |
| What the answer proves | Several products would satisfy it | One product satisfies it, and every line is measurable |
The second version takes a few extra minutes to write. The first costs a second sample, another round of correspondence, and weeks of delay in a market where your customer's own listing window may not wait.
A master template with the eight fields laid out as prompts stops anything being omitted under time pressure. Where artwork matters more than the product, the same fields feed an OEM and private label discussion, and carton decisions later connect to logistics planning.
Mistakes that make a sample useless
The most expensive sample is the one that produces an opinion instead of a record. The usual versions of that problem:
- Requesting "a sample of your best product" and then judging it in adjectives.
- Weighing nothing and draining nothing, treating the label as if it were a measurement.
- Using a supplier-labelled sample to approve buyer-brand artwork.
- Asking for several categories at once without saying which specification matters most, so none of the samples arrives configured for a decision.
- Letting taste and texture pass unrecorded because no comparable wording was agreed in advance.
The fix is procedural rather than technical. Fill the record the same day the sample is opened, while the can, the sieve, the tray and the scale are still on the table. A sample is evidence of a specification, not a marketing object, and it is worth only as much as the notes taken from it.
FAQ
What should a sample request state to be answerable?
Product and form, can size, drained weight, packing medium, carton configuration, destination market, labelling and lid type, and whether the sample is for product evaluation or artwork approval. With those written down, the reply can be measured against them. Missing any one, the sample answers a question you did not ask.
How do I measure drained weight on a canned food sample?
Weigh the unopened can, then tip the contents into a sieve. Drain for a fixed period, weigh the solids, and compare with the specification and the label figure. Keep the drain time identical on every sample: the interval you allow changes the number you record.
Do I need my own label on the sample to evaluate the product?
No. A supplier-labelled sample is the normal choice for checking cut, drained weight, fill and packing medium. Order your own label separately when the purpose is to review artwork or print quality.
Should I ask for more than one can size at once?
Usually yes, within the same specification. Neighbouring sizes let you compare fill, cut and labelling in a single round, and many buyers also request a small retail size for shelf reference. Ask for each can to be labelled clearly so the record stays unambiguous.
Why does the record matter after the sample is finished?
Because it becomes the baseline. Approved figures are copied into the purchase specification, used to brief inspection, and referred to if a question is raised on arrival. Without it, later conversations rely on memory, not a measured baseline.
What if the sample matches the specification but is not what I want?
Then the specification was wrong, not the product. Write a revised specification, request a fresh sample against it, and keep the first record on file as evidence of what was approved at that point.
If any field is still a description rather than a figure, send the draft specification to us through contact before requesting anything, and we will tell you what to add.