Kitchen scale not made in China

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steve
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Joined: Thu Jun 17, 2021 8:43 pm

Kitchen scale not made in China

Post by steve »

One product that's practically impossible to find that's not made in China is a kitchen scale.

If you're buying for industrial and professional applications, and have a few thousand dollars to spend, there's Detecto, Pennsylvania Scale, and Penn Scale. These are all made in the USA for those who need (and can afford) the best of the best. They can be found here: https://www.madeinusascales.com/

Sadly, consumer scales aren't easy to find. Once-dominant brands like Salter Housewares (established in the UK in 1760), Taylor Precision Products (established in the USA in 1851) have completely outsourced to China. Certain companies like Soehnle/Leifheit (established in Germany in 1868) continue to manufacture high-end scales in Europe, but have completely outsourced consumer products to China. The aforementioned Penn Scale also produces a low price-point product, the Penn Scale PS-10, but that may or may not be made in China (check with the manufacturer).

Sadly, the future of all brands that think they can save money in the short-term by outsourcing to China is bleak. These time-tested brands thought they could increase profits by outsourcing their mass production to China for low-end products, but they were oblivious that the China subcontractors they used would ultimately steal their intellectual property and eventually cut them out (just look at how many China brands are selling kitchen scales on Amazon that are literally copies of other brands).

There's one scale that several folks on the Web have touted which is not made in China, but Korea--the ACOM PW-200.

https://amzn.to/3uKkQr0

Your other best bet is to find a Tanita scale that comes from a Japanese third-party seller on Amazon. Look carefully at the Amazon product description to make sure it states that Japan is the country of origin (you may need to look in the Customer Questions and Answers), and make sure that the seller has a free return policy--this way if the seller sends you a China-made product you can return it.

https://amzn.to/3ahukk5

I'd say the kitchen scale market is pretty much lost to China--it's eerie to think of how many other industries where China has completely monopolized the means of production. I don't know if you're going to make much of a dent by buying Not Made in China, but every little bit counts. And you'll likely get a product that lasts and does not have the planned obsolescence that American consumers have grown used to.
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Paul
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Joined: Sun Dec 05, 2021 5:10 pm

Re: Kitchen scale not made in China

Post by Paul »

Last year I also searched for hours for a digital kitchen scale, these are not to be found.
Indeed, another product that is completely dominated from China.
Kern and Soehnle produce their professional models in Europe, but prices start at €270,- ($300,-).

This is the cheapest professional model from Soehnle, made in Germany, it costs €270,- ($300,-):
https://www.soehnle-professional.com/en ... nch-scales

This is the cheapest model from Kern, made in Germany, it costs €280,- ($315,-):
https://www.kern-sohn.com/shop/en/labor ... nces/KB-N/

If you are satisfied with an old-fashioned analog portion scale, there is still an option.
Edlund supplies a number of made in USA models, prices start around $100,- in the US.
Please note, not all Edlund scales are made in the USA!
https://www.edlundco.com/products/compa ... al-scales/

In my search I couldn't find any Tanita models that came from Japan, everything made in China.

The Korean ACOM is unfortunately not available in Europe.

The Penn Scale PS-10 is made in China, see the FAQ on Amazon.
Fighting a lonely battle... People, please stop buying Chinese crap!
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Paul
Posts: 79
Joined: Sun Dec 05, 2021 5:10 pm

Re: Kitchen scale not made in China

Post by Paul »

Update on my previous post.
A helpful reader on Reddit had a tip about Tanita scales.
On the Japanese website you can make a selection "made in Japan".
Below you see a number of made in Japan Tantia scales, most are only available in Japan.
However, they are quite easy to order on www.amazon.co.jp/-/en, shipping costs to Europe are not very high, possibly not to the US either.

The link to the Tanita page Japan (don't forget to check "made in Japan"):
https://www-tanita-co-jp.translate.goog ... r_pto=wapp

Image
Fighting a lonely battle... People, please stop buying Chinese crap!
steve
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Posts: 97
Joined: Thu Jun 17, 2021 8:43 pm

Re: Kitchen scale not made in China

Post by steve »

Wow, this is a great tip--thanks Paul! I love how Tanita and Zojirushi make a point to have a Made in Japan filter on their Web sites--in many ways they need to outsource their low end products to China to be competitive against China manufacturers. But of course, the Japanese are not as naive as the people in Europe and the United States to understand that China has "liberated" Hong Kong, they're going to "liberate" Taiwan next, and then after that will be Japan, India, and the Philippines.

China manufacturers have learned that all they have to do is copy the superficial product design, hire a copywriter who can write English, and most consumers in the West are too lazy, too busy, or too stupid to understand or care that there's a reason the China-made product is pennies on the dollar of the same product made in Japan. Maybe it's the government subsidies, maybe it's the shoddy worksmanship, maybe its the slave-wage labor, maybe it's the government turning a blind eye to safety and environmental abuse. Sadly, most consumers will have the product break a day after the warranty, get angry for a few days, and buy the very same product again.

It looks like Tanita is down to these models. For folks in the US I've put links to Amazon or eBay. In both cases, you have clever third party sellers who are likely buying the product in Japan and then reselling to the US market. You'll be at the mercy of the third party seller as far as the price and the shipping costs, but as Paul said in most cases the pricing looks reasonable.

1439 - https://amzn.to/331wAMt or https://ebay.us/NvBUhc
KD-313 - https://amzn.to/3rtVOwr
KW-001 - https://ebay.us/wbcYO7
1445 - https://amzn.to/3otiD1f
1437 - not found on Amazon or eBay
1345 - https://ebay.us/al1HEG
1403 - not found on Amazon or eBay
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