Examining “Shrinkflation”

Are you as inattentive when shopping as certain manufacturers think you are? Or have you noticed that many grocery items are appearing in smaller packages these days? It’s a neat trick, this shrinkflation, because even if the price per package doesn’t increase, the food inside a shrunken container obviously costs more.

I first spotted this trend years ago when I pulled a package of Breyers® ice cream from a neighborhood grocer’s freezer. It seemed to have lost a bit of heft, and indeed it had. The former half-gallon package had shrunk to 1 3/4 quarts. I just checked the Breyers in my freezer now and discovered the container holds 1 ½ quarts, an example of creeping shrinkage, the current package providing 25% less ice cream than the original half-gallon size.

Spreading shrinkflation

Examples of shrinkflation have become especially widespread during the recent surge in inflation (1). The economy is heating up and driving up prices. If it squares with your view of economics, take a deep breath and cast a baleful eye on one likely cause, the FOMC and its chairman, Jerome H. Powell. And, if it squares with your political views, take a deep breath and cast a baleful eye on another likely cause, the folks in the Washington swamp (2) who are providing unemployment benefits generous enough to keep some folks from working, thus forcing employers to plead for workers. How many “Help Wanted” signs have you seen lately?

A couple of months ago I picked a box of Kellogg’s® Raisin Bran from a shelf and was amazed by how skinny it was. Its height and width (as it set proudly on the shelf) probably hadn’t changed but it had been narrowed. When I brought it home, it wobbled when I put it on a pantry shelf. Poor thing barely had enough base to stand on.

The ploy is harder for me to recognize when it comes to paper goods. I’m inept in judging the number of sheets in a roll of paper towels, or a roll of toilet paper, but I know the numbers of sheets are shrinking.

Clever dodges

Some dodges are especially clever, almost awe inspiring. Cunning folks at Skippy® Brand peanut butter came up with one fine illusion. They devised a new jar that has exactly the same profile as the older version, but the bottom has been hollowed out. Imagine a bottom like a wine bottle, and visualize how that bulge in the bottom of the jar fills space formerly occupied by peanut butter.

To be clear, I’m not arguing against price increases. I’m just jousting against the way they are foisted on us. Manufacturers are experiencing inflation of their own. The costs of materials and labor are increasing, and companies must find a way to maintain their income to offset their own increased costs, at least if they want to stay in business. I simply would prefer them to be more transparent. One final thought: It’s clear that I have no future in marketing.