An investigation by Which? has revealed another wave of examples of groceries that have shrunk in size while the price has stayed the same – or worse
Families struggling with the cost of living are having to contend with a new wave of ‘shrinkflation’, consumer group Which? has found.
It says big brands have cut back on the size or quality of popular products, from toothpaste and coffee to heartburn medicine. Shoppers were asked for examples of shrinkflation – where a product’s size or quantity is reduced but the price stays the same – seen in supermarkets in recent months.
They included Aquafresh Complete Care Original Toothpaste, which went from £1.30 for 100ml to £2 for 75ml at Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Ocado – a 105% price rise per 100ml. Shoppers also reported bottles of Gaviscon Heartburn and Indigestion Liquid shrinking from 600ml to 500ml. But to make matters worse, Which? found that at Sainsbury’s the price also stayed at £14 – a 20% rise per 100ml.
Which? also found that Sainsbury’s Scottish Oats have shrunk from 1kg to 500g, yet the price increased from £1.25 to £2.10, a 236% rise per 100g.
There is also bad news for shoppers with a sweet tooth. Which? found KitKat Two-Finger Milk Chocolate Bar multipacks have gone from having 21 bars down to 18. But at Ocado, the price has risen from £3.60 to £5.50, it says.
Shoppers planning to buy chocolate tubs for the festive season may also notice lighter boxes this year, the watchdog warned. Quality Street chocolate tubs have been reduced from 600g to 550g, while the price for the smaller tub at Morrisons increased from £6 to £7 this year.
Meanwhile, Cadbury’s multipacks of Freddo and Fudge bars both dropped from five bars to four at Morrisons, Ocado and Tesco, even though the price of £1.40 did not change.
Which? Retail editor Reena Sewraz said: “Households are already under immense financial pressure with food bills inching up and the expense of Christmas looming on the horizon, so it can feel especially sneaky when manufacturers quietly reduce pack sizes or downgrade key ingredients. Supermarkets must be more upfront about their prices so that it’s easy to see what the best value is.
“This includes ensuring that their unit pricing is prominent, legible and consistent in-store and online to help customers easily compare costs across different brands and sizes of packaging – that way shoppers can be more confident they’re getting the best value.”
A spokeswoman for Mondelez International, which makes Cadbury products, said: “We understand the economic pressures that consumers continue to face and any changes to our product sizes is a last resort for our business. However, as a food producer, we are continuing to experience significantly higher input costs across our supply chain, with ingredients such as cocoa and dairy, which are widely used in our products, costing far more than they have done previously. Meanwhile, other costs like energy and transport, also remain high.
“This means that our products continue to be much more expensive to make and while we have absorbed these costs where possible, we still face considerable challenges.”
A spokesman for KitKat maker Nestle said: “ Like every manufacturer, we’ve seen significant increases in the cost of cocoa over the past years making it much more expensive to manufacture our products. As always, we continue to be more efficient and absorb increasing costs where possible. To continue to offer shoppers great value, it is sometimes necessary to adjust recipes of some of our products. Retail pricing is at the discretion of individual retailers.”
A spokesman for the Food and Drink Federation said: “Cocoa prices rose sharply last year, reaching a 45-year high. Alongside other rising costs, such as national insurance increases and a new packaging tax, manufacturers are paying nearly 40% more for ingredients and energy than they were in January 2020. As a result, in some cases food manufacturers will have had to make changes to products to continue offering shoppers the food and drink they love at reasonable price points.”