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by Mary K. Morgan
“Honey, they shrunk the food!”
Before you get your glasses adjusted, be advised that product packaging is rapidly changing size. It’s not your eyes. Some manufacturers are probably shrinking their packages as I write this column. Cereal, for example, has undergone extreme size reductions. Since the intent of manufacturers is to trick you into thinking that you are still getting the same amount of product, the last thing they want is for you to see old and new products sitting side-by-side on the shelf, especially since “new” usually translates into “smaller.” As a result, these downsized items often appear right after a big sale on a particular product line. The remaining larger boxes disappear and the newer, smaller ones slip into their place.
A popular peanut butter brand recently went from 18 ounces to 16.2 ounces with very little fanfare. So clever are the designers of these downsizes that the average shopper doesn’t even notice the change. The price stays the same, but the consumer gets less bang for their buck. Over time, the new, smaller size becomes the standard, like the four-pound bag of sugar that gradually replaced the old five-pound benchmark bag of yesteryear. The current 11.5 to 13-ounce can of coffee used to contain a full pound. Let us not forget the eight-ounce yogurt cups that now hold smaller, six-ounce servings. Another case in point being the “whipped” yogurt that weighs in at only four ounces due to the addition of air into the product. Ice cream has suffered through several re-packaging campaigns — a “half-gallon” is currently down to 56 ounces. Strange, the carton looks the same, but it has actually lost about 12 percent of its content.
It’s not just food that is shrinking. Paper towels and toilet paper are suffering the same fate. Not only did a leading brand of paper towel shrink 20 percent, the price went up six percent in the process. Your toilet paper roll boasts 1000 sheets, but have you ever actually noticed the size of an individual sheet? Chances are it is not the size of last year’s sheet. Once a tidy 4.5-inch square, some manufactures produce sheets now measuring 4.5 inches by 3.7 inches. Do the math. One thousand sheets multiplied by a .8 inch shrinkage per sheet, or 800 inches, translates into a lot of paper. And you thought the kids were just wasting it.
What’s a shopper to do?
• Two simple words, unit price, hold the key to solving the shrinkage problem. Forget the size of the box or bag, the extra long cardboard that your tiny candy bar is resting on or the number of sheets on your roll of paper. If your stores post the unit prices, be sharp enough to read them. And if they do not, invest in a Dollar Store calculator and determine the unit price for yourself. Unit price = cost divided by amount. For example, if 16 ounces of a product costs $4.80, then the unit price is $.30 per ounce.
• Buy from companies that are maintaining their standard sizes, especially if competitors are shrinking their products and increasing unit cost. It’s still about unit cost. In addition, write to the others to tell them that you have noticed that their products are shrinking and that you are planning to switch to another brand because of that fact. Losing any customer is a big deal to companies.
• Try generic, private label and store-brand items if they offer better unit prices.
• Contact the grocery stores that you frequent and ask them to stop carrying the most blatant “shrinkers.” Some manufacturers are much worse offenders than others.
• Take control and do not be the victim of a marketing scheme that is shrinking your grocery-shopping dollar.
• Buy more foods/products that are shrink-proof, like eggs, fruits and vegetables. Mother Nature seldom cuts her package sizes.
Now that you are aware of this situation, chances are you will begin discovering many more instances of this silent campaign that undercuts your buying power and plays havoc with your budget.
Rebating Fights Rising Prices
If there were an honest way to purchase something, keep it and still get all or part of your purchase price back, would you do it? Only people who answered “yes” need read any further. Perceptive shoppers know that rebating is one of the best deals around, and the sagging economy suggests that more consumers might be able to benefit from the idea.
The first step in rebating is to find the offers. Ordinarily that is not a problem. They are ubiquitous. Once you begin looking, you will find them on labels, store signs, mailers, advertising flyers, in magazines and store brochures. One of the premier, on-going rebate offers is the Walgreen’s EasySaver® program that consists of a list of offers that you can redeem monthly by mail or online at www.walgreens.com.
Step two is to read the terms and conditions of the offer very carefully. Cross all the T’s and dot all of the I’s before sending in the required paperwork. Do not let the fine print intimidate you. Proceed carefully, with attention to detail. If it requires a UPC, send it. If it asks for a receipt with the product price circled, circle it. This is merely a heads-up for those who are new to the rebating game, and certainly not meant to discourage you from taking advantage of the offer. The rewards far exceed the work involved in submitting the request.
Step three, keep a record of the rebate requests that you mail, including the date sent and a contact phone number, if available. Photocopies of all documents submitted are great references, especially on high-priced items like computers. Some rebates arrive in record time while others linger in the system for what seems like an eternity. Happily, most eventually make it to your mailbox.
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