In economics, the term shrinkflation could be characterized as a process in which a product shrinks in size or quantity or even gets its quality lowered, while the price of that product remains the same. In other words, it's making a certain product cost more without changing its actual price. Sounds unfair? Well, it does for a lot of people. Despite that, various well-known food and beverage companies have been using this strategy for years.
The trickiest thing about this practice is that the change is usually barely noticeable, so only the most attentive customers tend to notice it. And in the long run, even the smallest change ends up saving the company millions of dollars.
Without further ado, Bored Panda invites you to look through a few examples of products that at some point were affected by shrinkflation.
This post may include affiliate links.
Last year, someone on Reddit noticed how a "Bigger Bag, More To Share" pack of Doritos actually had the same amount of chips as the regular size pack. "More air to share," someone joked in the comments.
In 2016, fans of Pringles started noticing how their beloved chips are now smaller. In addition, some noticed that the tube itself also shrunk, making it harder for some people to reach in. Despite that, the price stayed the same. “Is this Pringles can getting smaller or my arm getting fatter?” a consumer went on Twitter to express their concern. The company explained that the reason behind these changes was that manufacturing shifted from the USA to Malaysia. “The equipment we use in Malaysia is a bit different to our sister factory in the US … you’ll notice that both the chip and the can are a little smaller to fit with the production facility,” the company explained.
Back in 2016, Toblerone announced they were altering the iconic design of their UK bars by adding bigger gaps between the mounds, which meant that the bars were about to have 10% less chocolate for the same price. Apparently, the unfortunate change was due to an increase in the price of the ingredients. People weren't too happy about it, to say the least.
Two years later, the company decided to bring back the original shape. Sadly, the price of the bar had to be raised as well.
For a long time, the clear glass cookware brand Pyrex was known for making fireproof glassware. Ironically, a few years ago, the pans started exploding when they got too hot. Apparently, the manufacturer switched to a cheaper ingredient that strengthened the glass against being dropped but weakened it against thermal shock.
a couple years ago on a holiday my mom made a sweet potato pie and right after it was taken out of the oven it exploded next to me nobody was hurt thank god
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PYREX (capitals) is borosilicate glass, pyrex (lowercase) is soda lime glass. They are made by different companies and licensed by different companies. Please look out for the difference.
Btw, Gizmodo had a good write up of the whole situation last year: https://gizmodo.com/the-pyrex-glass-controversy-that-just-wont-die-1833040962
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For reference, the borosilicate glass is the one on the right- that is "real" Pyrex. The one on the left with the green-blue color is just tempered soda-lime...in other words heat treated, "regular" glass. If you have one of the ones on the left, you should not use it with heat at all.
I've actually read about this one on numerous occasions. It's supported both by anecdotal evidence as well documented changes in the production process (very to to the negative). It's a damn shame, and certainly the entry here that deserves the most publicity (as other's have noted it is indeed an actual safety hazard, particularly considering the brand reputation).
A Pyrex bowl exploded in my lap when I placed hot popcorn in it from the bag. Did not microwave the bowl, only used it as the container afterward. I will never trust a Pyrex product again.
The company changed hands in 1998. Don't buy anything produced after that year.
This is a bit of a hard one to call. IIRC part of the reason for the change was because of environmental concerns about the ingredients, but it was mostly driven by market research that showed that people were more concerned about their pyrex shattering when dropped or bumped than they were about thermal shock. I'm not sure they made the right call on it, but it isn't really all about a cheaper ingredient, although I'm sure the cost factor played a role.
Wait until they get a lawsuit and then they’ll change it back. A lot of companies do this. They do things illegally and immorally until someone sues. It’s gross how capitalism works
Is it just me, or if you drop one... You expect it to break and to need to buy a new one.. Just like other glasses.. plates.. cups... So.. Maybe go back to thermal strength?
Story I heard was that they changed it because people were using their pans to cook meth.
You can shrink my candy bar, blow up my bag of chips and make my moon pie the size of a fifty cent piiece, but DON"T put something in my kitchen that can do so much bodily harm as to change a persons life, possibly end it!
I’ve had 2 Pyrex glass casserole dishes explode on me in the past 3 years. My daughter has PTSD because of this.
That happened to me with a pyrex bowl that had been refrigerated and then washed in warm dish water about two hours later. It broke in the cupboard after we put it away. What a mess! A dangerous mess.
also, a top U.S. cooking show on PBS tested these glass measuring devices, NO TWO HAD THE SAME MEASUREMENTS, all were slightly different. Zero quality control.
When companies take their manufacturing overseas, that’s what happens— quality suffers, along with their customer satisfaction. They lower their expectations, their product reliability to “save a few bucks” and then they cry about the gross loss they get at the end of the year. #DoThingsRightTheFirstTime
Load More Replies... They should not be on the market if they shatter with heat. Pyrex was designed for cooking in ovens not just measuring jug as show above. i use a trio sized of bowls in the microwave and all OK.
i'm going to need to see a picture of the explosion before I believe it...
Haha, if by environment you meant to save money? hehe...
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According to Metro, last year, a man named William Knight happened across a "vintage" 1996 Mars bar in the bottom of an old box in his loft. After measuring the old bar against a modern-day one, the man was surprised how much bigger the "vintage" one was. Despite that, the price of the bar has more than doubled since then.
Throughout the years, a Double Stuf Oreo pack has changed from being 16.6 oz to 15.35 oz and is still being sold for the same price.
For quite a while now, the length of toilet paper rolls has been shrinking. Apparently, once upon a time, the standard size of a toilet paper roll was 4.5 inches by 4.5 inches. Fast forward to now, most rolls are a half-inch shorter than they used to be. Despite that, consumers are still paying the same price.
Look at it this way- 1)you probably consume tp on the basis of length not square area and 2) the paper company can get more rolls out of the same raw materials. The environment wins.
Many well-known chocolate bars have been shrunken down over time, but their prices haven't changed. For instance, a Twix bar is now about 14% smaller than it was back in the day. Apparently, in 2012 Mars, Inc. (who make Twix) announced a 250 calorie cap on all single-serve chocolate bars, and because of that, many of their products have been downsized.
Customers have been noticing that throughout the years many cereal brands have been reducing the amount of cereal they’re selling in a box while keeping the price the same. Many brands have been making the boxes thinner, so from first sight, it appears to be the same size as it used to be.
It's actually kind of a miracle that they can use thinner cardboard and film liner. When I was working servicing cereal manufacturers the machines used to make the package "bag in box" were not capable of using thinner materials. The cereal guys are saving significant money with reducing thickness and it's mean less consumption and waste of trees and plastics.
Turns out, some bags of Lay’s potato chips contain fewer chips than others. Lay’s regular "Family Size" packs are 10 oz., but the company’s bags of flavored chips are 9.5 oz, yet both sell for the same price. According to the Associated Press, the difference is equivalent to approximately 5-6 chips.
As you may know, a standard US pint is 16 oz. Apparently, some bars in US practice “short pouring” their customers by using glasses that are only 14 oz. Since these glasses are the same size as the real ones, though, most customers tend to not notice it. These glasses are usually called “falsies” or “cheater pints.”
Short pouring is illegal. Most of a bars profit comes from beer sales. Once word got around that they were doing this, they would lose all their customers.
Turns out, some brands replace cotton in their "tissue tees" with cheaper and much thinner synthetic fabric. Because of that, these t-shirts appear almost see-through.
I HATE these! Then when you finally find a 100% cotton tee, they often use short staple cotton which is crap. Long-staple cotton frays less, pills less and wrinkles less than short staple. You can feel the difference as well - long staple feels smooth and short staple feels somewhat rough. This is also why high count thread sheets are not necessarily better than lower count - it depends on what type of cotton they use.
Back in 2017, consumers started noticing that the size of family-size cartons of Tropicana downsized by almost 9 percent. Despite the change, the price remained the same.
Companies know that price increases cause people not to buy. When the cost to make the product goes up, they downsize the container to be able to sell at the same price.
A month ago, a user on Reddit shared how they've noticed that Hefty bag cartons went from containing 90 bags to containing 80. Despite that, the price stayed exactly the same.
Yes--everything costs more. Consumers notice when a price goes up. They don't necessarily check other parts of the label. We need to become more intelligent shoppers. And we need to understand that the price of everything goes up.
At the beginning of this year, someone on Reddit noticed that Powerade was also affected by shrinkflation. Apparently, the original 32 oz bottles were downsized to 28 oz, but the price remained exactly the same.
In 2014, Coca-Cola reduced the size of their large bottle from 2 liters to 1.75 liters. However, the price remained the same.
Speaking of coke I was selling soda at school and I ran out after 32 cans snd made 32 bucks and this Sneedy jerk went up to buy one but I informed him it was sold out he ran to the teachers I was selling COKE but forgot to include it was soda they thought it was COCAINE shortly after that I had to serve 3 weeks in In-School suspension it's now on the police record so YAY( sarcasm)
Cadbury announced that by the end of 2021, they're going to reduce the calorie count of bars that are sold in multipacks. According to BBC, the four-packs packs of these popular sweets are about to contain 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 at Mondelez International, according to BBC. However, they're not planning on changing the price.
Just causes people to eat an extra one - hence, calorie intake goes up higher!
A few years ago, the New York-based yogurt company Chobani decided to downsize some of its yogurts from 6 oz to 5.3 oz. Despite that, the price of the yogurt hadn’t changed. Customers weren’t too happy about it. The company explained that the change was to improve consistency with its newly launched products as well as competitors who favored the 5.3-ounce pots, so it could be easier for consumers to compare nutritionals.
Last year, bottles of Heinz Salad Cream shrunk by approximately 9 percent, and the product became more expensive.
The price of everything goes up. Production and manufacturing prices go up and companies cant just keep the prices the same forever. None of us like it, but it is the way it goes. It only really pisses me off when things say "now larger" when they are actually giving you less, like the doritos. It is straight up lying and creating more waste and more pollution. Just raise the price or reduce the amount. Plus, it is probably better for all of us if candy bars are getting smaller! :'D
My father use to pay 5 cents for a candy bar and I demand the same treatment 60 years later! How dare they raise their prices so they can afford to pay their employees. Sickens me you hear, sickens.
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Ice cream in Canada. Started out 2 L, then 1.89 L, now 1.66 L. Same price of course.
I just checked in my freezer, Coaticook chocolate ice cream is 2 L.
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Just give us the same amount and raise the price! Nobody expects prices to stay the same forever. We do expect that companies refrain from attempting to deceive us.
This has actually been shown through market research to lower consumer loyalty and sharply drop sales.
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1. no one should expect the price of nearly everything to remain the same price forever. prices increase. 2. I think shoppers have noticed the sizes changing. we are not stupid.
Mad Magazine, in the 50's had an "article" showing how things will change. The one I remember the best, was a Hershey chocolate candy bar that, then, came in a little dark brown tray, wrapped in white paper and then wrapped around with the Iconic brown Hershey paper. It showed that now [then] the chocolate bar would fill the tray, then later, the article said, that the tray would stay the same size, the price would stay the same size, but the bar would be about 25% smaller and would continue until you got one square of chocolate and the same size tray and wrapper.
Standardization would help with all these issues, but the government has to enact it :)
I have another one! KitKat Chunky. Those were sooo good fifteen years ago, I was addicted to the white ones... I can't recall any numbers anymore (I did, though, I actually compared them a couple of years ago), but the bottomline is that you used to get a pack of four that was about 250 grams together, and now you get a pack of five that is just 235 grams together. That number is probably wrong, but you get the idea. Where did that thick, massive layer of chocolate go!? Really, now it's just a wafer, with a thin chocolate layer. I hardly ever buy them anymore, when I do, it's just for nostalgia's sake.
We consistently demand higher wages and low prices; the only way to satisfy this is by downsizing and cheaper ingredients. How else do we think manufacturers are going to accomplish this?
The most obvious of all is a POUND of coffee. Can't believe that isn't here. If you get 12 oz in your pound bag or can now you're doing well.
I really don't understand the idea of this post. There is no "hidden trick" in the middle. As someone else mentioned, if you want the size of the candy bar to be the same over 60 years, expect to pay more. If you want to pay the same, then something's got to give, in this case, the size of the bar got smaller. This thing is obvious for everything, you can't keep the same price for a product for ever or you will either run out of people to make that product or go bankrupt.
Buyer beware; I don't see a problem here. If the product is labeled properly, you, as the customer, have the final decision as to whether to buy it or not. If a product used to be 16 oz, and is now 15 oz, no matter the price, as a consumer, only you can determine if it is worth the price.
Unless one is trying to keep up with the Jones’ and buy those designer jeans for $150-$300 a pair... 😳😳🤷🏻♀️
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Well, I cannot do anything about the inflation of all things, I can only do what I can. To consume less.
It's probably better for our health. I still eat one bag of crisps or one bar of chocolate at a time (so eating fewer crisps and chocolate)
OK now fun story. In SA we started having "sugar tax" a few years ago. So then a 500ml regular coke was more expensive than a 500ml diet coke, because sugar tax. Obviously people weren't happy with that. So coca-cola's solution? They changed the regular coke bottles to 350ml, and the diet coke to 350ml "plus an extra 150ml free!" (i.e. 500ml), but both cost the same. Everyone's happy now. 🤷🏻♀️
The infamous "grocery shrink ray". It started with coffee & ice cream. Remember that half gallon, that shrunk to 1.75 qt and then to 1.5 qts. That 5 pound bag of sugar is now 3 pounds. Companies usually use the "new package design" as a way to shrink the product without people noticing. Google search "grocery shrink ray".
The eyebrow pencil I always buy is half the size it used to be, and the price is always going up. It seriously p*sses me off that manufacturers do this. When will it end?? When will chocolates and snacks go back to normal sizes, or will they keep shrinking until they are doll's house sizes??
Since most of these products sre junk food, maybe it's better the portions are smaller, regardless of the cost.
I'm just wondering of some of these weigh changes was due to marketing for metric-using consumers and making the metric number a whole number or easier to read. Maybe? I wish I knew if there was a similar list where products gained weight.
Check Costco... all their items they sell are LARGER SIZES.
Load More Replies... This isn't 19 ways. At all. Items becoming smaller but the price staying the same was listed on this one repeatedly. It's not a new way, it's just inflation. We don't need to see it so much on the same list.
For some of these it would be interesting to know if the comparison of "smaller but same price" takes into account inflation. Or any of a lot of other possible factors. (Though admittedly the company "explanations" when such are given, sound pretty lame.)
the real problem here is that everything goes up but our pay stays the same
inflation bithc inflation, except the pyrex one, thats oen is straight up a safety issue
I think most of us have noticed the downsizing and the price upsizing. Not a thing we can do about it.....
Buying a bag of individual serving bags of Doritos ... it use to be 12 individual servings bags but is now only 10 ... remember when coffee was 5 cents with free refills ... now is $2.50 to $3.00 with NO refills ...
I noticed it with C&H Cane Sugar several years ago (US). The bag used to be 5 pounds, and it is now 4. Same with ice cream. We were all used to "half gallon" containers. Now they're 1.5 quarts.
All the junk food SHOULD BE a higher price! All those empty calories - weight gain and teeth rot. Who needs most of these products anyway?
The failure of folks to grasp the most basic of economic functions is frightening. Here's one for all you "Biden will raise taxes only on big corporations" folks...corporations pay ZERO taxes. Never have. Every expense they have is passed on to consumers without whom the evil corporations have not a penny. So YOU are paying for Biden's tax hike. But Orange Man Bad, amiright?
The price of everything goes up. Production and manufacturing prices go up and companies cant just keep the prices the same forever. None of us like it, but it is the way it goes. It only really pisses me off when things say "now larger" when they are actually giving you less, like the doritos. It is straight up lying and creating more waste and more pollution. Just raise the price or reduce the amount. Plus, it is probably better for all of us if candy bars are getting smaller! :'D
My father use to pay 5 cents for a candy bar and I demand the same treatment 60 years later! How dare they raise their prices so they can afford to pay their employees. Sickens me you hear, sickens.
Load More Replies... Ice cream in Canada. Started out 2 L, then 1.89 L, now 1.66 L. Same price of course.
I just checked in my freezer, Coaticook chocolate ice cream is 2 L.
Load More Replies... Just give us the same amount and raise the price! Nobody expects prices to stay the same forever. We do expect that companies refrain from attempting to deceive us.
This has actually been shown through market research to lower consumer loyalty and sharply drop sales.
Load More Replies... 1. no one should expect the price of nearly everything to remain the same price forever. prices increase. 2. I think shoppers have noticed the sizes changing. we are not stupid.
Mad Magazine, in the 50's had an "article" showing how things will change. The one I remember the best, was a Hershey chocolate candy bar that, then, came in a little dark brown tray, wrapped in white paper and then wrapped around with the Iconic brown Hershey paper. It showed that now [then] the chocolate bar would fill the tray, then later, the article said, that the tray would stay the same size, the price would stay the same size, but the bar would be about 25% smaller and would continue until you got one square of chocolate and the same size tray and wrapper.
Standardization would help with all these issues, but the government has to enact it :)
I have another one! KitKat Chunky. Those were sooo good fifteen years ago, I was addicted to the white ones... I can't recall any numbers anymore (I did, though, I actually compared them a couple of years ago), but the bottomline is that you used to get a pack of four that was about 250 grams together, and now you get a pack of five that is just 235 grams together. That number is probably wrong, but you get the idea. Where did that thick, massive layer of chocolate go!? Really, now it's just a wafer, with a thin chocolate layer. I hardly ever buy them anymore, when I do, it's just for nostalgia's sake.
We consistently demand higher wages and low prices; the only way to satisfy this is by downsizing and cheaper ingredients. How else do we think manufacturers are going to accomplish this?
The most obvious of all is a POUND of coffee. Can't believe that isn't here. If you get 12 oz in your pound bag or can now you're doing well.
I really don't understand the idea of this post. There is no "hidden trick" in the middle. As someone else mentioned, if you want the size of the candy bar to be the same over 60 years, expect to pay more. If you want to pay the same, then something's got to give, in this case, the size of the bar got smaller. This thing is obvious for everything, you can't keep the same price for a product for ever or you will either run out of people to make that product or go bankrupt.
Buyer beware; I don't see a problem here. If the product is labeled properly, you, as the customer, have the final decision as to whether to buy it or not. If a product used to be 16 oz, and is now 15 oz, no matter the price, as a consumer, only you can determine if it is worth the price.
Unless one is trying to keep up with the Jones’ and buy those designer jeans for $150-$300 a pair... 😳😳🤷🏻♀️
Load More Replies... Well, I cannot do anything about the inflation of all things, I can only do what I can. To consume less.
It's probably better for our health. I still eat one bag of crisps or one bar of chocolate at a time (so eating fewer crisps and chocolate)
OK now fun story. In SA we started having "sugar tax" a few years ago. So then a 500ml regular coke was more expensive than a 500ml diet coke, because sugar tax. Obviously people weren't happy with that. So coca-cola's solution? They changed the regular coke bottles to 350ml, and the diet coke to 350ml "plus an extra 150ml free!" (i.e. 500ml), but both cost the same. Everyone's happy now. 🤷🏻♀️
The infamous "grocery shrink ray". It started with coffee & ice cream. Remember that half gallon, that shrunk to 1.75 qt and then to 1.5 qts. That 5 pound bag of sugar is now 3 pounds. Companies usually use the "new package design" as a way to shrink the product without people noticing. Google search "grocery shrink ray".
The eyebrow pencil I always buy is half the size it used to be, and the price is always going up. It seriously p*sses me off that manufacturers do this. When will it end?? When will chocolates and snacks go back to normal sizes, or will they keep shrinking until they are doll's house sizes??
Since most of these products sre junk food, maybe it's better the portions are smaller, regardless of the cost.
I'm just wondering of some of these weigh changes was due to marketing for metric-using consumers and making the metric number a whole number or easier to read. Maybe? I wish I knew if there was a similar list where products gained weight.
Check Costco... all their items they sell are LARGER SIZES.
Load More Replies... This isn't 19 ways. At all. Items becoming smaller but the price staying the same was listed on this one repeatedly. It's not a new way, it's just inflation. We don't need to see it so much on the same list.
For some of these it would be interesting to know if the comparison of "smaller but same price" takes into account inflation. Or any of a lot of other possible factors. (Though admittedly the company "explanations" when such are given, sound pretty lame.)
the real problem here is that everything goes up but our pay stays the same
inflation bithc inflation, except the pyrex one, thats oen is straight up a safety issue
I think most of us have noticed the downsizing and the price upsizing. Not a thing we can do about it.....
Buying a bag of individual serving bags of Doritos ... it use to be 12 individual servings bags but is now only 10 ... remember when coffee was 5 cents with free refills ... now is $2.50 to $3.00 with NO refills ...
I noticed it with C&H Cane Sugar several years ago (US). The bag used to be 5 pounds, and it is now 4. Same with ice cream. We were all used to "half gallon" containers. Now they're 1.5 quarts.
All the junk food SHOULD BE a higher price! All those empty calories - weight gain and teeth rot. Who needs most of these products anyway?
The failure of folks to grasp the most basic of economic functions is frightening. Here's one for all you "Biden will raise taxes only on big corporations" folks...corporations pay ZERO taxes. Never have. Every expense they have is passed on to consumers without whom the evil corporations have not a penny. So YOU are paying for Biden's tax hike. But Orange Man Bad, amiright?
