Confectionary brands put UK consumers on unwitting diet as sweeties shrink
UK consumers have every right to feel short changed when reaching for their favourite treats after research conducted by the Office for National Statistics threw a spotlight on the strange case of Britain’s shrinking consumer goods.
Confectionary brands put UK consumers on unwitting diet as sweeties shrink
The analysis showed that a basket of no less than 2,529 products tracked by the ONS over the past five years have reduced in size over the period with everything from chocolate bars, juice and toilet rolls becoming ever more Lilliputian.
A devious means of maintaining profit without jacking up prices the strategy has seen sharing bags of Maltesers shrink by 15% while bags of Doritos crisps shed 20g to just 180g and a large box of Coco Pops is now not quite so big, having shrunk from 800 to 720g.
Food manufacturers have blamed the diminution trend on the impact of the Brexit vote on the value of the pound, which has slumped in value in recent months making the price of imported ingredients more expensive.
In a statement the ONS said: “ONS said: “No, you’re not imagining it – some of your favourite sweets really are shrinking. In November 2016, Toblerone chocolate bars reduced in size by about 10%, provoking outrage online. And Maltesers, M&M's and Minstrels have gone the same way.
“But it’s not just chocolate bars. Over the last few years, journalists have found examples of loo roll, coffee, fruit juice, sausages, beer and chips getting smaller without getting any cheaper.”
At the other end of the scale 614 products actually went up in size, although this was partially accounted for by a change in the law requiring pouches of rolling tobacco to contain a minimum of 30g.