Is Clif Bar the latest victim of shrinkflation at the grocery store? One woman weighs in.
The latest trend going on with consumer brands is cutting back on the number of products in bulk sized items while raising the price. This tactic is know as shrinkflation.
So you are paying more to get less which makes total sense. However, companies forget consumers are smart.
In a TikTok, with over 6.8K views, Melissa, (@realmelissasimo) discovers how Clif Bar, Oreo, Cascade and Kellogg’s have all recently cut down quantities size on bulk items while raising prices.
Is Clif Bar the latest case of shrinkflation?
In her TikTok, Melissa reveals how companies are shorting customers by employing shrinkflation.
The first example she talks about is how Clif Bar went from selling 12 packs to 10 packs for the same price.
Second, she reveals how much cream is in an Oreo now. To simply put, it’s pathetic. Less than half of the Oreo cookie had the cream smeared on. “Stop it Oreo’s, we see what you are doing,” Melissa states.
Third, she showcases how Cascade dish pods bulk went from selling 62 pods for $22.68 to 57 pods for $26.12. The consumer found out when the recurring subscription was canceled and replaced with the new 57 count product.
Lastly, she noticed Kellogg’s changing the amount of All-Bran cereal from 450 grams to 405 grams. This change was accompanied with a taller box to store less cereal (we’re confused as well). Kellogg’s also did the same for Two Scoops Raisin Bran changing the portion from 425 grams to 375 grams.
Are companies giving less while charging more?
Melissa isn’t the only one accusing Clif Bars of changing its packaging to avoid being flagged for shrinkflation.
In a Reddit post to r/shrinkflation nine months ago, a user revealed that they actually emailed Clif about changing the number of bars in its packs from six to five. The screenshot response from someone in consumer services at Clif isn’t very specific.
However, it does state, “We’ve found that many [consumers] would prefer to have a slightly smaller package size, instead of an increased cost. They can still enjoy our products at a price that works within their budgets.”
If this is an authentic screenshot, it would appear to confirm the shrinkflation theory that brands are making their portion sizes smaller and not passing the savings onto the consumer.
What did the viewers think about shrinkflation?
“This makes me so angry,” one commented.
“I think they changed the cocoa powder they use in the cookie of an Oreo. It used to be darker, and now it’s like a regular chocolate cookie color,” a second user wrote.
“If they just made the container size equal to the product in the container, they would save so much” one suggested.
“Cereal boxes are going to be as thin as a book soon,” another user joked.
@realmelissasimo Shrinkflation compilation # 3,267,53 #groceries #groceryshopping #grocerystore #grocery #shrinkflation #skimpflation #shrinktok ♬ original sound – Melissa Simonson
The Daily Dot has contacted @realmelissasimo over Instagram messenger and TikTok messenger. We also contacted Oreo, Cascade and Kelloggs over email. Additionally, we contacted Clif Bar via online submission form. This TikTok has more than 6.8K views with over 888 likes.
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