Sometimes the price will stay the same and sometimes it’s reduced disproportionately to the fall in size or weight, making it harder for shoppers to realize they’re getting less for their money. They reverted to their original dimensions following an outcry from consumers.Įverything from chocolate to crisps, cereals to soup and even dog food and washing detergent - if it’s in a packet - can be shrunk. In the years following the Brexit vote, Britain’s Office for National Statistics noticed more examples of product shrinkage, including Mondelez International reducing the weight of some of its Toblerone chocolate bars. Today you can witness shrinkflation, also referred to as “downsizing,” anywhere from Australia to India and the UK. That is sometimes called inflation by stealth.

Rather than increase the price of a product, companies simply offer a smaller package for the same sticker price. Shrinkflation, a portmanteau of the words “shrink” and “inflation’ envisages the reduction in the size of a product in response to rising production costs or market competition. “Shrinkflation” is back in vogue as the industry is grappling with soaring costs of everything from wheat to vegetable oils and energy. A United Nations gauge of world food prices has jumped more than 70% since mid-2020 and is near a record after the invasion of Ukraine choked off crop exports and rattled supply chains.Īmid a global food crisis and soaring inflation, not only are groceries are becoming more expensive, they’re getting smaller too.

Tillamook ice cream smaller