Incredible Shrinking Groceries
I've noticed recently that a number of grocery items I buy regularly have been shrinking in size, rather than having their prices increased. Barilla Penne is the latest package to have shrunk considerably.
This is a practice which has always been around, but it seems to have hit epidemic levels lately as companies try to avoid being scratched off consumers' grocery lists altogether by keeping the price the same, but shrinking the package instead.
USA Today ran an article on the phenomenon last week which is an interesting read.
The Consumerist website has a section titled Grocery Shrink Ray which tracks shrinking grocery items. You'll soon be noticing smaller ice cream containers in your freezer aisle, as at least a couple brands of ice cream, including Dreyer's and Breyer's, are moving from 1.75 quarts to 1.5 quarts. The days of the half-gallon tub of ice cream are now long gone...
posted by Laura @ 3:08 PM
3 Comments:
Breyers used to be our favorite ice cream but since they started adding more air and shrinking the package a few years ago, it lost favor. Bluebell started selling in Florida about five years ago and that's all I'll buy.
Holley
Coincidentally, I noticed the Dreyer's short and stubby 1.5 qt box this week. Another trick these days is the "whipped" style product - yogurt and canned frosting for example. The container size is the same, but because air has been whipped into it, the actual weight is smaller, usually by a couple of ounces.
Mrs. UNG
As long as the weight/quantity labeling on the container is in line with the contents, it is all legal of course. With rising costs, the companies only have so many choices. It is more work to reduce the amount, but sometimes it is worth it to avoid raising the price (even though, in actuality, it is a price increase).
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