Grocery Items getting smaller???

[C.Ann]

Coffee, evaporated milk, and bread..

 

[k2k2]

Peanut butter, now 16.3 oz. used to be 18 oz.

 

[Malibustyle23]

Ohhh AND Pizza Huts large Pizza has gotten way smaller. I even asked the cashier the last time I ordered one for carry out "Has it shrunk?" she just smiled and said I dont know. They should've atleast made the box smaller to match but it was swimming in that large box.

 

[starrzone]

What I hate is "new, IMPROVED" packaging that is supposedly "more convenient" for the consumer, but that is more $$$ and holds less product!

Here's one that really got me:

I pasted this together from pictures on the company's website. The actual ad clearly showed the container on the left being 2L (0.44 gallons); the "new, improved" packaging has 1.89L (0.42 gallons). The measurement on this container was NOT shown in the ad; the space where the measurement would have been was just blank. What I don't like is when companies treat us like idiots who won't notice changes...

 

[Reedi]

Yep, it's the Incredible Shrinking Product! The "new and improved" label is usually a sure sign.

 

[kaytieeldr]

english muffins are missing a few nooks and crannies!!! Ridiculous!!! Less places for the butter to nook and cranny.

But fewer nooks & crannies are good (to a degree)! Sure, they're Thomas' selling point - but fewer air spaces = more muffin!!!!!

 

[poohfriend77]

Yes, I have noticed this trend also! Granola bars have the same size wrapper, but are at least 1 1/2 inches shorter!!!

And now they can boast "20% fewer calories."

DH recently asked me why I started buying smaller soap. Huh? I buy him the same stuff as always, but I don't use it, so I don't really pay much attention. Then I found an older bar in the back of the closet, and it is considerably bigger than the new ones!

 

[thebeesknees]

Frozen veggies are what I noticed right away here. We used to get them in 16 oz. bags, but now it is just a 12 oz. bag. I used to get 2 meals out of a bag, but not anymore!

 

[lovesmurfs]

My biggest problem with all of these is for recipes. What used to be a certain size can or bag quantity is now smaller, but not enough smaller so that two would work as well as the former one. So....do I want fewer beans (or less tuna, etc.) in the recipe, or should I get extra and refrigerate the rest? It's a real pain.

 

[Lovin' Disney]

At work we were re-doing the candy bar section. The newest version of King Size Hershey's bars are about 1/3 shorter than they were before. You should see the two combined. Maybe if I remember, I will buy one of each tonight, take pictures, and compare.

 

[hambirg]

I had to run and look at the tuna I just bought. . .yep. . .5oz! I hadn't noticed that one, so thanks for the heads-up. The first one I really noticed was those six packs of pop that look like the 20oz bottles you buy at the gas station, etc. Last time I bought them a few months ago, the Pespi was 20z, but the coke were only 16oz! Sneaky! The ones that annoy me the most are the things you would assume are 1lb. . .coffee, hamburger, pasta, cheese. . .but when you check they are less, sometimes as little as 12oz. Booooooo!

And now they can boast "20% fewer calories."

I recently bought Chex mix. You would think that 1 serving would be 1 serving no matter the kind. . .nooooooo. . .the serving sizes were all over the place. The turtle kind had the smallest package, 8oz, but the most number of servings, 8. I really wish they would use some kind of standard for serving sizes, not just let the manufacturer manipulate them however they want so the nutritional label reads the way they want it to. You know, some type of FDA guideline like 6oz of protein, 1/2 C carbs, 1C veggies, etc.

 

[AmberHeartsDisney]

Yup. my friend works for an ice cream factory and instead of rasing prices they now are smaller sizes.

 

[cwasil]

Thank you for all the responses. I guess I never noticed the tuna thing but it makes sense. I used to get a little more than two sandwiches out of a can and now it's just barely two. Thank god they don't want me to waste anymore . The one I noticed last night was frozen chicken breast...now half the packages come in 40oz packages instead of 48oz but with the same price. Figures.

My wife uses Dove soap so I've bought that for years. They used to come in packs of 8 but recently changed to 6, all for the same price. On top of that those bars have gotten quite a bit smaller.

Didn't sugar used to come in a 5lb bag too? Those little bags of chips in the vending machine have gotten ridiculously small, in some cases, as small as 1 1/2 oz per bag.

Idk...not alot you can do. You can't even switch brands because it seems as soon as one company does it all the competitors follow. Only other alternative seems to make it yourself and, in most cases, that's just not practical (or I'm just far too lazy).

The thing I've noticed myself doing is buying more fruits and vegetables from farmers markets and a 1/4 cow and whole pig from a farmer friend. I'd like to say I did it to be healthier but, honestly, it was more like I'd rather pay someone local than send my money off to some big faceless company that'd screw me over any chance they'd get. Oh well, off my little soapbox. I'm going to have to look at my old recipes and the new product sizes and do a little greatest common denominator sizing...what a nerd.

 

[usnuzuloose]

Alot of what use to be 24 packs of soda, are now 20. We were in Dennys and I ordered an omelet and when I got it I sat there starring at it, and then realized it shrunk. I dont eat alot, so I'm glad it was smaller, but I thought they really cut back on the size. Jo ( P.s. Check your tampons they probably have less also)

 

[mamo-4-wdw]

I am so glad op posted this, I thought I was nuts.

I did not notice the weight of the can of tuna but just made the sandwiches. I only got 1 and 1/2 sandwiches! So if Ds20 wants one and i want one it will have to be 2 cans

I also thought I bought the wrong size Dove soap bars for my DM78, she noticed it right away.

 

[kimblebee]

Frozen, boneless, skinless chicken breasts. I noticed this years ago, when I got 2 or 3 less breasts per bag. Then they started packing the same AMOUNT of breasts but they seem much smaller.....

It's not very often that you see breasts getting smaller

 

[cm8]

It's not very often that you see breasts getting smaller

, also, the "foot long" at Subway is NOT , box mixes like cake, and muffin, Ice cream has went from real to "fake" what the heck is a "diary product", Instead of using real ingredients in out food they are using lot's of byproducts and things I would consider not to be consumable for human life. shampoos, and towels and sheets are getting thinner, so are the clothes and some of them you can see right through the pieces that people are wearing

 

[DOOM1001]

Ice cream is the one that always gets me,I just don't buy certain brands anymore even when they're on sale.Edys and Breyers have the smallest boxes they're 1.41 liters,and more amazingly is that even when these brands are on special it's like 2 boxes for like $7.I hold out for the Publix brand which are 1.89 liters and when they go on sale are usually buy one get one free with the regular price being $3.99,so what would you choose 2 1.41 L boxes for $7 or 2 1.89 boxes for $3.99,it's a no brainer plus Publix even has way more flavors and is just as good.Another one I have no problem buying is Blue Bell when it goes on sale,it's the only one that's still half a gallon and even though the regular price is like $6-$7 when it goes on sale for $3.79 is a good deal,they also sometimes have them at buy one get one free at the regular price which is also good.

 

[enchantingodin]

Guys this isn't new - companies have been doing it for years. I always look at the cost per oz or unit on the labels at the store. They can't fool you there.

 

[LilyWDW]

It is simple economics really.

Consumers are, in general, price sensitive. If companies increase prices, even keeping all else the same, then demand will decrease. It's called price elasticity (the percentage change in demand divided by the change in price).

So companies decided on a different technique to deal with their own rising costs. By changing the size of packaging, but not the price, companies are hoping that there will be no effect to demand. Companies need that revenue to survive.

It really is just different ways to get the same result. If they had raised prices but kept the packaging the same, people would still be on here complaining. It's a no win situation for the company.