Strawberries yield: how much is usable after prep (AP to EP %)
Strawberries: about 94% usable going whole to hulled, with a published range of 86–99%. That is a cost factor of 1.06: for every kilo you need ready to use, buy 1.06 kg as purchased.
Yield by preparation stage
| Stage | Average | Range | What is lost | USDA item |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Good quality → hulled | 94% | 86–99% | Caps and stems | 2473 |
| Fair quality → hulled | 86% | 60–98% | Caps, stems, green and spoiled berries | 2474 |
| Frozen, sweetened, whole → thawed and drained | 59% | 49–71% | Liquid | 2475 |
| Frozen, unsweetened, whole → thawed and drained | 91% | 91–91% | Liquid | 2477 |
Fresh strawberries in good condition lose very little. A tray past its best can lose 40%, which is why the range on fair-quality fruit is so wide.
Prep notes
Wash just before hulling, never after, or the berries take up water through the hole. Hull with the tip of a small knife or a straw pushed up from the base; slicing the top off wastes far more.
What the yield does to the cost
Strawberries, 400 g punnet (supermarket) at £2.50 (Morrisons, 10 Oct 2026) is £6.25 a kilo as purchased. At 94% usable that is £6.65 per usable kilo.
Worked example: 80 g of hulled strawberries on a scone plate needs 85 g as purchased, costing 53p. Costed on the bought weight it would read 50p, so the costing would be 6% light: 3p a portion, or £3.19 over 100 portions.
For a coulis or a smoothie, frozen strawberries, 450 g at £2.29 (JJ Foodservice, 10 Oct 2026) give about 91% after thawing and draining unsweetened fruit, so £5.59 per usable kilo. Fresh is for the plate; frozen is for anything blended or cooked.
| Usable strawberries needed | Buy (as purchased) at 94% |
|---|---|
| 1 kg | 1.06 kg |
| 5 kg | 5.32 kg |
| 10 kg | 10.64 kg |
Use 94% in the yield calculator →
Typical uses
Scones and cream teas, Eton mess, fruit salads, breakfast pots and coulis.
Storage and the trim
Keep in the fridge in a single layer on kitchen paper, unwashed, and use within two days. One mouldy berry spreads through a punnet overnight. Soft or bruised berries that are still sound go into a coulis or jam.
Yield source: USDA Agriculture Handbook No. 102, Food Yields Summarized by Different Stages of Preparation (Matthews and Garrison, USDA Agricultural Research Service, 1975), Table 1, items 2473, 2474, 2475, 2477 (US samples of fresh strawberries). Prices as stated, read on 10 Oct 2026. Your own case is the real number: weigh it in the yield calculator.
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