Witnessed Shrinkflation Up Close Today

[euro]

Weight is a factor if one is hauling these up/down stairs by themselves. A full US keg (1/2 barrel) weighs 165# full. Ugh. 1/4 barrels (7.75 gallons) weigh 83# full, and a sixer 55#. All of these are approximate because the weight of a gallon of beer depends on the alcohol content (i.e. specific gravity value).

.)

In my younger years, I used to work as an assistant to the beer delivery truck driver at a major brewery. We delivered to local restaurants and most of our deliveries were kegs of various sizes. An yes, many locations stored the kegs down many winding stairs in some cellar or up many winding stairs. I can confirm that the weight of the kegs was a big issue, but what was even worse was the the fact that each keg has a certain headspace so that the beer would swoosh back and forth while you were trying to navigate the stairs while trying to desperately hang on to the keg that was awkwardly placed on your shoulder.... quite an experience....

 

[ERD50]

I bought a bag of Kroger chips that were much less expensive than the name brands. When I open the bag it wasn't even half full! Shrink inflation involves more than packaged sized. Will need to check cost per ounce going forward. Good thing is I need less chips health wise, but I want to decide how much less!

You *always* have to look at $/unit (whichever unit is appropriate) if you are trying to get the best price.

-ERD50

 

[ERD50]

....

Weight is a factor if one is hauling these up/down stairs by themselves. A full US keg (1/2 barrel) weighs 165# full. Ugh. 1/4 barrels (7.75 gallons) weigh 83# full, and a sixer 55#. All of these are approximate because the weight of a gallon of beer depends on the alcohol content (i.e. specific gravity value).

Yes, I've spent too much time around beer. (A lot of this is from brewing beer.)

True, but not much of a difference. A light American lager might be close to a final gravity of 1.000 (the specific gravity of water, and that leads to the punch line of an old joke!). And very few beers are over 1.020, with more common ones in the range of 1.010 ~ 1.015.

But even 1.020 to 1.000 is only a 2% delta. But at 165#, I guess every # counts!

I'll need to read up on Strong Scotch Ales, I can't imagine a final gravity of 1.050 being drinkable. I'm sure I've had some Imperial stouts that were up in the low 1.020's, and that gets pretty extreme.

Time for a beer! -ERD50

 

[CaptTom]

You *always* have to look at $/unit (whichever unit is appropriate) if you are trying to get the best price.

Agreed, but I'd amend that to say you always have to calculate the unit cost, not trust what the store posted on the shelf label.

In practice, I usually do a rough estimate in my head, and if the label is close to that, I'll assume it's correct until proven otherwise. But if something looks a little fishy, or they use different units for competing products, do the math!

 

[Surewhitey]

Now, I understand why people buy grocery items from Amazon.

Probably why I do most of mine at Sam's. Self scan & check out on their app. In, out & so easy. Even the gas pumps are self scan.

 

[Surewhitey]

I dunno about 7-oz beer bottles.

In a recent trip, driving from Galveston back to Houston in a day trip, and fighting the terrible traffic all the way, I was so parched that at the restaurant that night, I ordered a beer, although I am not a daily beer drinker.

Pouring the beer into a glass (I tend to get a hiccup if I drink from a bottle), I knocked down the glass in 3 gulps. That hit the spot, but still left me wanting more. Told my wife maybe the bottle was small. She said, what are you talking about, it's 12 oz.

I said, OK, but it was not enough. The waitress brought a 2nd bottle. Same thing. I could have gone for a 3rd bottle, but decided to save room for the meal.

So, 7 oz? Why bother?

We see them in Mexico... You get 5 "bucket" and a personal pizza for 5 bucks... Good beer to food ratio & they are always cold.

 

[Fermion]

Ok, this is getting ridiculous.

Our fav. sushi place now cuts the spider roll into 3 pieces instead of 4 and I swear the pieces are smaller, not larger.

 

[Turbo29]

Speaking of grams... In that link, you'll see a lot of people put the product on a scale and read out the weight reading, usually in grams. I personally find these scales to be an essential kitchen tool. Get one if you don't have one!

Anyway, the point is not metric, but rather that people were finding the product was marked wrong. The producer was already cheating down the weight before changing the packaging. Although trickery is possible here and people are faking this, I don't doubt that it is really happening.

I had a package of Barilla rotini, 1lb (454g). When I use this product I almost always use half the package putting a bowl on the scale, taring the scale, and then pouring 227g out of the package. When I use the second half of the package I usually weigh the product again just out of habit. In the past it has always come out that the last "half" is within 1-2g of 227g. Last time I used it, the second half was only 218g.

Packages like this are all filled by weight by machine. I have been inside of several processing plants for various foods and the equipment is very sophisticated. It would be difficult (but not impossible of course) to make an accidental error like this.

 

[Chuckanut]

Agreed, but I'd amend that to say you always have to calculate the unit cost, not trust what the store posted on the shelf label.

In practice, I usually do a rough estimate in my head, and if the label is close to that, I'll assume it's correct until proven otherwise. But if something looks a little fishy, or they use different units for competing products, do the math!

I had an entire workbook of Mental Math Tips and Tricks that I used when teaching math in middle school. Some students learned it. Those who blew it off (and there were all too many) will end up being the willing victims of less than scrupulous retailers.

I am reminded of the definition of a state lottery - "A tax on people who did not study their math."

 

[FindingForward]

Ok, this is getting ridiculous.

Our fav. sushi place now cuts the spider roll into 3 pieces instead of 4 and I swear the pieces are smaller, not larger.

I've seen the amount of fish significantly shrinking in many of the sushi spots I used to visit. The amount of tuna or salmon they now use in a roll is microscopic - they're charging top dollar for basically all white rice. The sashimi portions are also much smaller.

I absolutely love sushi, but after the last time, I'm done buying it for a while. It's always been a bit pricier of a splurge compared to other types of takeout, but at least I felt I was getting fair value. Now, forget it.

 

[tmm99]

Anything that has to fly in from some place else seems to have gone up in prices.

 

[Koolau]

Anything that has to fly in from some place else seems to have gone up in prices.

This is especially true where the distances are huge. Hawaii is the most isolated inhabited place on Earth. Our products shipped in by air (or even by ship) are going up rapidly though YMMV.

 

[cyber888]

I don’t drink beer at home, so Im fine. But was looking at picking up a box of mini-Sprite from Costco .. 30 mini-cans for $12.99. Then, to my surprise, beside it, I saw the regular-sized Sprite can .. 35 cans for $12.54. The Shrunk Sprite was more expensive, so I picked the bigger Sprite cans - I got 5 cans more + saved .45 cents

 

[CaptTom]

The Shrunk Sprite was more expensive, so I picked the bigger Sprite cans - I got 5 cans more + saved .45 cents

That's because the can costs more than the sugar water inside. Not to mention the environmental impact.

 

[John Galt III]

I don’t drink beer at home, so Im fine. But was looking at picking up a box of mini-Sprite from Costco .. 30 mini-cans for $12.99. Then, to my surprise, beside it, I saw the regular-sized Sprite can .. 35 cans for $12.54. The Shrunk Sprite was more expensive, so I picked the bigger Sprite cans - I got 5 cans more + saved .45 cents

Similar thing when buying fish oil capsules. The 60 count 1000 mg caps cost $7.00. The 120 count 500 mg caps cost $6.50. Same brand, same percent of active ingredient, etc. Cheaper to get the less potent pills and just take 2 instead of 1. This was at Walmart.

 

[John Galt III]

Beer crisis looming at the John Galt estate. Running low on good craft beer and nothing currently on sale. At next beer run may have to check out the 30-packs of macrobrew, like Genesee and Hamm's. Last time I looked, it was $13.29 for Genny and $14.xx for Hamm's. Will score the Genesee, if prices haven't changed.

 

[Chuckanut]

Beer crisis looming at the John Galt estate. Running low on good craft beer and nothing currently on sale. At next beer run may have to check out the 30-packs of macrobrew, like Genesee and Hamm's. Last time I looked, it was $13.29 for Genny and $14.xx for Hamm's. Will score the Genesee, if prices haven't changed.

I got a 24 pack of Stella at Costco a few weeks ago. It was the only thing I could find that was not much over $1 a can/bottle ($1.07). I had been getting a Session 12 pack for $11. It's now $14. Too far over $1 a bottle. And that's for an 11 oz can. No go.

 

[copyright1997reloaded]

I got a 24 pack of Stella at Costco a few weeks ago. It was the only thing I could find that was not much over $1 a can/bottle ($1.07). I had been getting a Session 12 pack for $11. It's now $14. Too far over $1 a bottle. And that's for an 11 oz can. No go.

I can handle $6/gallon gas but this is just unacceptable.

 

[NW-Bound]

^^^ If you don't accept it, you can just go thirsty.

And all these price increases happen at the same time Bengen, the father of the 4% WR rule, says the WR should be lower.

Aye, aye, aye...

 

[athena53]

^^^ If you don't accept it, you can just go thirsty.

And all these price increases happen at the same time Bengen, the father of the 4% WR rule, says the WR should be lower.

Aye, aye, aye...

They say this every time the market dives. I've kept mine a hair under 3.5% in the 8 years I've been retired and I'm not changing anything.

The reason for the shrunken Sprite and other products is that they wanted to provide a smaller size so the macros in a can (sugar, caffeine, calories) wouldn't look as awful. And yes, packaging is an additional cost. Look at what they charge for 16-oz bottles vs. a half-liter bottle. I just can't bring myself to buy half-liters because I don't go through one before it loses its fizz and don't want to consume more than I do (maybe 8 oz. a day).

 

[Koolau]

I don’t drink beer at home, so Im fine. But was looking at picking up a box of mini-Sprite from Costco .. 30 mini-cans for $12.99. Then, to my surprise, beside it, I saw the regular-sized Sprite can .. 35 cans for $12.54. The Shrunk Sprite was more expensive, so I picked the bigger Sprite cans - I got 5 cans more + saved .45 cents

Mini-cans are available in the Islands, but aren't popular with most people. Every can - no matter the size - costs $0.06 over the regular price and only $0.05 is available upon return to an official recycling location. One can insist that cans be counted, but the recycler prefers to go by weight, so mini-cans return much less than 12 oz or 16 oz cans. I too have noticed that mini's seem to cost more (each) than regular cans. Never understood that, but the little cans do look cute, I guess. YMMV

 

[John Galt III]

I got a 24 pack of Stella at Costco a few weeks ago. It was the only thing I could find that was not much over $1 a can/bottle ($1.07). I had been getting a Session 12 pack for $11. It's now $14. Too far over $1 a bottle. And that's for an 11 oz can. No go.

I saw Stella at the beer store yesterday. It was $32 for a case of 11.2 ounce bottles. I bought a 30-pack of Genesee Ice cans for $13.49. The Hamm's 30-pack was $14.69, I think. The discount shelf had nothing but those Shandy things, or mango/chocolate/raspberry ale nonsense, which I have to be paid to drink, lol.

 

[djsander]

We would buy a foot long at the local Smiths for 4.99. Very full of turkey, cheese and a moderate amount of good greens. A really good deal. Then they started having smaller ones probably about 9- 10” at the most for the same price mixed in with the foot longs. We went in the other day and stopped by the case they were in. They had only the smaller ones and they were priced at $7.49. Well our days of eating those sandwiches are done!

 

[CaptTom]

...They had only the smaller ones and they were priced at $7.49. Well our days of eating those sandwiches are done!

This reminds me of the last recession, when Subway was running their five-dollar foot-long promotion. They seemed to figure out early that people needed to feel they were getting a good value. I think this saw them through the rough times when so many other businesses went under.

I think we're already seeing people take a stand like you did. They're refusing to buy these blatantly overpriced or undersized products. It just hasn't filtered back up to the MBA's in the Home Office.

The businesses which survive will be the one which go against the grain, and as Subway did back then, offer the customer a good value.

 

[Chuckanut]

The best way to fight back on the cutbacks is to not buy them.

I stopped buying Mounds candy bars (not that I eat much candy) because the bars have become so thin. IMO, they are hardly worth the effort to chew them. I found a great recipe for chocolate covered pecan-coconut goodies. Less sugar, more nuts, coconut and chocolate.