Feel like you’ve been buying less and less toilet paper? Ever wondered why that Dorito bag felt bigger than the last? You’re encountering what some would term, “shrinkflation” which is simply referring to the shrinking of the size or quality of a product with an unchanging price point.
Sounds ridiculous? We don’t disagree! That’s why we want you to be knowledgeable next time you go out and shop for any household goodies. Don’t be taken for a fool on your next purchase and be sure to check these next 25 items out before your pockets suffer the consequences!
1) Heinz-Sight 20-20
When talking about staple condiments, none do it better than Heinz. If you’ve been a fan of salad cream flavor, you should’ve noticed a reduction in bottle size by about 9 percent, while also paying a heftier price point. This corporate decision should get you to rethink this as your next purchase.
2) Not Cho Decision
Some years ago, Chobani decided to downgrade the size of its signature product from 6 oz. to 5.3 oz. The decision was made in order to improve product consistency and adjust to the market since competitors favored the 5.3 oz. pots to make it easier for consumers to read nutrition labels. Regardless of the changes, the price for the product has not changed and has shifted the perspective some buyers have towards the New York-based yogurt company.
3) Cadbury Craze
By the end of 2021, Cadbury stated that it would reduce its calorie count of bars that are sold in multipacks to no more than 200 calories each. “We must play our part in tackling obesity and are committed to doing so without compromising on consumer choice,” said Louise Stigant, UK managing director. The brand will still keep its price despite the changes coming to their line of treats.
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4) Coca-Cola Conundrum
From afar, it may look like nothing’s changed with these coke bottles. However, Coca-Cola decided to reduce the size of their 2 liter bottles down to 1.75 liters and the price remained unchanged. This is a personal attack on all coca-cola fans out there. If you’ve been feeling dissatisfied from your last coke experience, this might be the reason why.
5) Power(Deg)rade
The original Powerade bottle was reduced from 32 oz. down to 28 oz. at the beginning of the year. The price remained exactly the same regardless of the obvious changes to the quantity amount per bottle.
6) Not So Hefty Now
The discrepancy of the product was highlighted by a Reddit user who noticed that the Hefty bag cartons went from having 90 bags down to 80. The company decided to still keep the price and not change it even though it just reduced the quantity of the product by 10. It goes to show you just how shrinkflation works when it comes to normal day-to-day products.
7) Synthetic Over Cotton
Companies sometimes skimp out on costs to deliver subpar products to the consumer in order to not sacrifice their profit margins. This means that they would rather use cheaper, much thinner synthetic fabric than use actual cotton when making shirts like these. What you see is an example of these “tissue tees” which can be made with cheaper resources and can significantly affect the quality of the product you intend to buy. Don’t even think about seeing a price drop here because it won’t happen.
8) Tropicana-mania
Consumers started to take notice of size changes in Tropicana cart products back in 2017. They realized that the family-size cartons had been reduced by 9 percent in size from 1.75 liters to 1.60 liters. What’s more inconceivable is that the company had the nerve to retain the same price for the product.
9) Fear The Beer
This smokescreen can easily pass the optical patdown, but if one looks closer then the difference is crystal clear. Some bars in the U.S. substitute the standard 16 oz glass for a short-handed 14 oz replacement. This practice is referred to as “short pouring” where the customer is often cheated by these “falsies” as some refer to the glasses by.
10) Lay It On Me
These Lay’s bags show how one contains more potato chips than the other. Their standard “Family Size” packs, which are 10 oz, were cheaply reduced to 9.5oz. It’s no surprise that they’re committing highway robbery by not adjusting the price for the reduced quantity. Potato chips are a snack that keeps you coming back, but just remember to think twice about your next choice.
11) Boxception
Many customers have been taking note of the reduced size of cereal brands while also realizing that regular prices remain unchanged. Different brands have used thinner sized cardboard sizes to make it seem as if its still the same amount as one with a regular-sized box. Clever from a manufacturer standpoint, but not so much if you’re the consumer.
12) Don’t Twix The Facts
Did you know that a Twix bar is now 14% smaller than it was back in the day? Many other chocolate bar companies have followed suit and shrunk their sizes over time. The makers of Twix, Mars, Inc., declared a 250-calorie cap on all their single-serve chocolate bars, and due to this, many of their products have minimized gradually.
13)Not your standard doube-stuf
14) Toilet Paper Tantrum
Toilet paper is no exception when it comes to shrinkflation. Apparently, a regular-sized toilet paper used to be 4.5 inches by 4.5 inches, whereas now most rolls are a half-inch shorter than this norm. No matter the changes, it’s been easy to trick purchasers into buying it for the same price without batting an eye.
15) 30 Seconds (And Then Some) To Mars
It doesn’t take an expert to see the difference between these two bars. Not surprisingly, the price has since more than doubled from the time of the bigger, vintage bar from 1996. This modern one clearly is missing a large chunk of the action and should rather be named Pluto instead.
16) Glass Rules Everything Around Me
Pyrex was known for making sturdy, fireproof glassware that could withstand any amount of heat. Unfortunately, the manufacturer switched to a cheaper ingredient that did benefit from breaking less from dropping, but was incredibly weak against thermal shock. As a result, pans started to explode once they got too hot and people failed to realize that Pyrex was no longer confidently established as a company that sold fireproof glassware.
17) Toblerone To Pick
The iconic Swiss chocolate bars decided to add bigger gaps between the mounds, which meant the bars would have a 10% decrease in chocolate for the same value. The change came about due to a higher price amount for the ingredients necessary to craft the bar. The company came around two years later and decided to bring back the fundamental shape of bar. This was probably due to the resistance met by many people who weren’t too happy about the previous changes.
18) Pringle And Ready To Mingle
Ever noticed your pringle chips get smaller over time? The main reason is that the manufacturing equipment and process shifted from the U.S.A. to Malaysia and so you’ll notice how much smaller these new ones are. That’s fine and dandy, but the price remained static and did not change as a result of the noticeable difference in size. That’s unacceptable.
19) Dorito Dilemma
A bigger bag with the same amount of Doritos is eyebrow-raising enough. This smokescreen is a clear example of predatory marketing working against consumers. The illusion of a bigger bag with more Doritos is really just a total waste of plastic, since it just provides more air for no apparent reason.
20) Cheese Louise!
Both bags rang up at $2.18 even though one is about 1 oz. bigger than the other. Cheese is a major component of a lot of people’s diets and is a food group that many companies have on the shrinkflation radar. Watch out for stuff like this next time you head to the dairy section.
21) Kit-Kat That
Here’s another example of the many changes taking place. Even kit-kat is getting hit with a reduction in size despite not having its price change. The crunchy chocolatey feel is still worth it to some who are willing to sacrifice more bar for the same buck.
22) Shameful Shampoo
Same price, different amounts. And the incredible thing it has only been a year since the change from corporate took place to reduce the size of the bottle. Shouldn’t companies stop skimping out on consumer satisfaction when, in fact, they’re gaining millions of dollars each time they get away with these methods?
23) Raising The Bar
The comparison is of a 100g bar to a 90g bar to which both are priced the same. Nestle has somehow been the culprit of many of these noticeable changes in size, yet untouched prices. You would do well to be wary of them in a convenient store near you.
24) Tricky Treats
Even dog treats aren’t safe from shrinkflation. These two treats differ in that one offers one additional beef stick, but both remain at the same price. Tis’ a shame it’s come down to this, but what else are we going to do but provide the best for our doggies.
25) Tea For A Fee
This example shows a box of tea bags missing 5 extra packs that would’ve been provided with a more recent purchase. The kicker is that of course they’re both valued at the same price, so those 5 extra teabags make a huge difference in the experience. Double-check your numbers and see if your store allows for the swapping of similarly priced products!
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