July 12th, 2008 by john 
in Categories: 
Manufacturers Display Their Magical Powers
There is something underway you should know about. Even as I speak thousands of consumer products are shrinking, right before our very eyes. That’s right, manufacturers are reducing the sizes of everything from bags of dog food to boxes of cereal and cartons of ice cream. Can you say back door price increase? Inflation?
Less is better right?
While the mainstream media reports less product for the same price, I have noticed something different. Most everything I purchase has gone up in price, if only by a few cents. Sale prices have not been anywhere near what they used to be. So, I would say “Less for More”. If you are already aware of this, good for you! You’re a savvy shopper! If not, take a look next time you’re at the grocery store. Ice Cream for instance has shrunk from 54oz to 46oz. That’s almost 15% less creamy goodness for little Johnny. Some manufacturer’s are trying to pass off the size reduction as a health benefit, as in “New Smart Size”. Face it folks, it not about your waist, it’s about your purse.
Soon you may have to buy ten boxes of Super Duper Flakes to make one bowl of cereal!
[poll=6]
What Can You Do About It?
Here are a few ideas to help ease the pain:
- Shop sale ads
- Buy sale items in bulk
- Use manufacturers coupons
- Buy store brands
- Eat less (I’m kidding, sort of)
- Write your congressman (Again joking, they don’t seem to be able to relate to what’s going on in the real world from behind the tinted windows of their bullet proof, fuel-hog SUV’s.)
For more detailed tips on saving on your grocery bill, check out:
5 Tips To Cut Your Grocery Bill Today!
And now would be a great time to work on your personal finances:
8 Steps To Recession Proof Your Finances
Please check out these posts and feel free to offer other money saving ideas that you may have!
In Conclusion
There are many reasons for this latest round of product shrinkage. Commodities such as eggs are up 46%, corn is up nearly 70% and wheat is up an amazing 96% over the last year. Fuel has almost doubled. These are all major factors contributing to our ever decreasing purchasing power. I get it. I understand the manufacturers have to re-coupe the cost of the higher raw materials and fuel. But where I have a problem is the way in which they are passing on the increase to consumers. Quietly. Inconspicuously. I would almost prefer to see the price increase. Almost. Unfortunately, I think we will see more of both. What do you think?
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My name is John.
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{ 44 comments… read them below or add one }
It’s sad but true. The sad part is that most of us go without noticing it. My wife told me that our dog is eating more than ever. Going through a bag of food every two weeks. We get it from a local mill. No additives, high protein and cheaper type of thing. So I stop by the mill to pickup a new bag and as I leave the store I mentioned, “Either I’m getting stronger or this bags getting lighter”. The owner looks at the floor and admits he has no choice. His costs have risen so much he was all but giving it away before. He said he saves money with the smaller bags but I think we all know why he went with smaller bags. He’s hoping most wont notice. Great post!
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The saddest part of it all is that the gap between the have and have not’s will only get bigger.
Alot can still be said for how much money the treasury has been pumping into the market and wages are not getting any higher.
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Hi John,
Yes, I have noticed and it is just terrible for all of us. It’s all about money. They should just keep it the same size. Pretty sad! We have to have our electric, food and gas. So they know money will come in. I’m thinking some of that food, might just go bad in the stores. They will lose money then! Because, not all of us can afford to pay the high price increases. Is that what it is gonna take, for them to lower the prices again? Kalgon take me away, a good bubble bath to take away some of this stress.
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Hey… sh#t flows downhill… and if somebody doesn’t fix the septic leak up at the top… we’re all gonna stink pretty bad down here
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A disturbing trend. Hopefully this will fizzle out in the near future but I doubt it.
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Even worse in a one industry town. When they get a raise that is how much the groceries increase.
Not all of us work there so makes it even harder for the one not making as much money.
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I think even toilet paper rolls have shrunk – the round tube in the middle is shorter than it used to be
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It is funny that you just wrote this as my husband and I were talking about this tonight. The mozzarella cheese sticks that my daughter loves went up from 27 cents a stick to 59 cents!!! I almost fainted. Same with cereal and oatmeal. It is awful. Great post!
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Yes, boy have I noticed. I couldn’t believe the price hike and shrinkage in a span of 2 weeks.
We have been trying to be more sales ad shoppers, but then you have to be careful of the gas you spend going from store to store to get what is on sale.
To sum it up, it really really sucks !
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I don’t buy food at the supermarket except for bananas.
And yes, bananas have gone up at least 10cents per pound.
I shop for most of my food at the Farmer’s Market.
The price of produce has remained fairly stable, with slight increases here and there.
The biggest increase in price is usually found in packaged foods.
This is one of the many reasons that you should eat whole foods; especially fruits and veggies.
Peace.
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I see prices getting higher and higher…but wages aren’t getting higher. I made “more” in 1996 at $7.25/hour because everything was so cheap.
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Everything just gets more expensive everyday!
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I think inflation is everywhere. We think we have money to buy something and when we finally go to the store the money is not enough.
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Wow, I haven’t even been watching this but it doesn’t surprise me that’s how it all works…unfortunately.
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they must think we won’t notice! granted, i’m sure a lot of people DON’T notice and keep paying the same amount (or more) for less than what they’re used to. very sad.
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Over here in Europe it’s the same, price increases are in some cases up by 25% on just normal every day food. We bake bread ourselves, but from one week to the next a 1 kg bag of flour increased by 12%. Problem is the funds coming in don’t grow at the same rate – so at some point, the cupboards are going to be empty. Just can’t imagine how the elderly are coping on their pension.
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Most of us westerners eat too much so what better time to make that diet work.Cut down on processed food. Reduce your meat intake and replace meat with lots of home-grown vegetables. You’d be surprised how much you can grow in a small space.Cutting out processed food with its hidden fat and sugar will have your waistline praising you.
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I’m glad someone else noticed this. I was starting to feel like a conspiracy theorist or something. Nice to see that I’m not alone in noticing.
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Thanks for the head’s up. I will definitely be a little more shrewd in my shopping. It’s all a little frustrating as we lose our purchasing power…
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Hey John, very interesting insights. Funny thing, I was just looking at my ice creams the other day and noticed (one I bought a few months ago) was larger than the one I just purchased. And I know the prices were the same. As for what we, as consumers, can do? Very little, except always shop wisely, read lables, use coupons, and grow our own.
peace,
mike
livelife365
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Great post!
What to do… ? Here’s what I do- EAT LESS! Seriously, as much as it sucks right now, it kills me to eat as much as I do. So now I benefit financially and physically!
Maybe it’s a blessing in disguise!
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Eating less can be a big money-saver, no doubt about it. This also triggers other money-saving dominoes like reduced medical costs, less absenteeism from work, lower health insurance premiums (if you’re not in a group insurance plan), etc.
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When someone says to eat less, I’m hoping they were over-eating to begin with. I would hate to think about someone eating less than they need to because of higher prices.
What can we do about paying higher prices and/or paying the same prices for less? The sad part about our current financial situation is there are people around making more money than ever. Some businesses will make record profits by taking advantage of the rest of us. Someone should do something about that.
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Good post John. Inflation is absolutely running full steam ahead right now, and doesn’t appear to be anywhere near slowing down. It probably won’t be long before our once almighty dollar gets dumped in favor of the Euro as the world’s reserve currency.
Although I don’t eat it hardly ever, I’m really curious to see how long McDonald’s keeps their dollar menu. They’ve got to be getting close to abandoning it. That’d really be a sign of the times.
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It’s not going to stop until transportation costs get back under control. Ethanol was supposed to lower the price of fuel, instead speculators and floods have driven the price up. Add to that the cost of wheat and two of the main staples in the American diet have gone up in price all by themselves, without adding transportation costs on top of the production price.
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I think in the futur, a lot of war will be cause just because of that….
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In the case of India, which is a developing country, the purchasing power of the people has been increasing day by day. And people usually purchase only gadgets and gizmos.
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It’s all about Supply & Demand economics.
My mother owns a restaurant and she is having to figure out how to be profitable almost on a daily basis. Just the other day, the city informed her that her utility bill was going up 14 percent.
The cost of doing business, like this utility bill increase, are passed on to consumers like you and me.
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Hi John
It’s mad over here in Scotland too. Inflation is supposedly 3.8%, but fuel bills are expected to rise by 60% by the year end!
Petrol is up to 125p per litre from 89p not that long ago.
Supermarket shopping is going up by the week.
I started a poll about petrol prices on Canny Squirrel.
If you get a change pop by and register your vote!
Cheers
Canny Squirrel
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Yes, it’s a sad state of affairs. Yet, maybe some good will come out of it.
By spending less and adopting a frugal lifestyle, we are consuming less of the Earth’s resources. It will also give more initiative for car producers to come out with economical Hybrid cars that use alternative fuels such as Hydrogen.
Like in ‘The Dark Knight’, things are going to get worst before it gets betters. Dawn will rise just after the Darkest Night.
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It’s all about money but one thing I have to say, almost all products are target for families, so in my case it’s not that bad because I live with my girlfriend and we are just the two of us at home, so sometimes for us it’s hard to buy things that comes in big packages because most of the time they go to the garbage. Since I’m not the only case they should create a market for those people like me, they could charge a little bit more (in comparison to the big packages) so they could not charge more for less products.
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It is amazing that our country has come to this where being the land of opportunity is no more. Being a personal trainer I am starting to find it hard to tell my clients to eat healthy as it is getting incredibility expensive. Loving politics and economics my opinions are usually right on so I just want to say if your ok with high gas prices, government control over everything and becoming like Europe where freedom is beginning to disappear than don’t worry. If your for lowering energy cost and taxes, more power to the people and having real freedom with our founding morals than let’s do something and tell congress make it better or your out of there.
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It’s funny that you mention ice cream in your article- when we (as in my husband and I ) make jokes about inflation etc at the grocery store, we always refer to these new Ben & Jerry’s shot glasses of ice cream. They are literally the size of short glasses and no longer a pint. I really was floored the first time I saw them. One thing I sell vintage on eBay- so I adore used and it’s my life. When I thrift I look for more and more things I can buy for the home there- then say at Wal-Mart. Yeah Wal-mart has low prices but used is cheaper and many times has just as much life in it.
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I for one would rather SEE the prices increase rather than have them raised in secret. It’s like the companies and manufacturers are trying to get away with something, and I don’t like it.
The government uses the same tactics that Big Business does. They’re always trying to implement something in hopes that the American public won’t notice. It’s almost like they figure us for idiots.
I’ve really noticed the increased price of milk lately. Our family drinks around 6 gallons per week, so a 50 cent increase adds up pretty quick.
Unfortunately, I don’t see an end in sight. Any Presidential candidate that says otherwise is telling an outright lie.
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The another reason for decreasing of purchasing power is FED rate cut! Yes, it is true. FED is more interested in Bankers and Corporate balancesheets than a common man.
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I really appreciated reading this article because every can relate to what is happening and awareness is KEY. We definitely should not support higher costs and should go out of our way to safeguard our pockets by shopping on a budget and being “sale” focused. Before you know it we’ll be paying $10 for a gallon of milk to go with our $10/gal of gas!!!
Thanks for the insight and I hope you pay me a visit. By the way, let me know if you want me to be a guest writer on here…
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I definitely agree! when it comes to profit, or even winning out your competitors, sometimes business ethics take a flying leap. Good article awareness for all. You noticed that with ice cream too . . .
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Excellent post of yours.
I’ve been noticing for years the deflation of goods and hence the inflation of prices. You end up buying more of everything and so pay more.
I shop in bulk for staple ingredients but only so much that it doesn’t go off whilst in storage.
I avoid processed foods as the processing adds to the cost.
I eat self-prepared, wholesome, tasty food and get by on about $2.50 a day.
In the back garden I grow vegetables so they are fresh and can be picked just when they need to be eaten so there is no waste.
The food crisis is not just a problem for the 3rd world. It is going to affect us all. Better to start changing now than have to make a huge change in the future.
James.
http://the-goodlife.blogspot.com
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John! Where’d you go?!
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John reply on August 18th, 2008 11:34 am:
Here I am…
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Thanks for the information! Actually seeing the lists on paper, makes me re-think how we live. Now is the time to enjoy the simple things in life, instead of just buying stuff!
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Decreasing the size or portions of products is more subtle than jacking up the prices. Unfortunately, some retailers who luv profiteering do both… yikes.
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It seems to me that not only are the sizes of items getting smaller, but the packaging they come in is getting larger. It’s like everybody loses (except the manufacturer), including the environment.
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John reply on August 23rd, 2008 7:28 am:
June – Yes the packaging on many items seems to get larger, while the product inside seems to shrink. Potato Chips come to mind. I hate opening a new bag, only to find it half empty!
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Now is a good time to save as we are going to see great deals in a deflationary spend. But it won’t last forever. Eventually hyperinflation is going to set in once all this money the fed prints up gets into circulation. Then hard assets and lots of debt will be advantage since you can pay off long term debt with inflated dollars.
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Interesting to compare with today – do you think the food prices have continued to go up, in this temporary era of so-called deflation?
Personally I think deflation has only occurred on big-ticket items like gas, cars, homes, etc. Food prices are definitely still up in the Chicago area.
But there’s more real inflation on the way as soon as markets kick back in again – watch out! Get out of long-term U.S. Treasuries before the bubble pops.
MoneyEnergys last blog post..My Keys To Financial Success
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