An Avonetics user’s jaw dropped after discovering a chemical supplier, Sigma-Aldrich, was selling peanut butter for an absolutely insane price. We're talking over $1,000 a jar! But you CANNOT eat it. This isn't for your sandwiches; it's a scientific artifact with a clandestine purpose that underpins our entire modern world. This is a Standard Reference Material (SRM) from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), a perfectly calibrated substance that labs use as the ultimate benchmark to validate their testing methods. The sky-high cost isn't for the peanuts—it's for the exhaustive analytical work and bulletproof certification that guarantees its exact chemical makeup. On the original Avonetics thread, chemists detailed the brutal processes used to analyze it, from microwave digestion and dry ash decomposition to intense acid digestion, all to hunt for trace metals and other compounds with pinpoint accuracy. This certified sample ensures that the food analysis done by countless industries is reliable and that quality control is absolute. This isn't just about peanut butter; it’s a peek into the hidden world of scientific standards. And it gets weirder. NIST produces SRMs for everything from chocolate and flour to human waste and even illicit substances for forensic analysis. This is the secret science that keeps you safe. For advertising opportunities, visit Avonetics.com.