Shrinking food.

[B00]

Did someone ask the other week about supermarket products appearing smaller?

I've tried a search but came up with nothing- anyhoo, thought this might interest them if they're still around.

http://www.dailymail....ping-prices-same.html

Not sure about anyone else, but I'm finding it increasingly difficult to stick to my admittedly stingy shopping budget each month, and this could help explain why!

[mazie]

I shop at Adli and Lidl and have been saving loads on the weekly shop. The Lidl meat is some of the best we've had.

[joggerjayne]

I saw something about this on Watchdog. It seems to happen a lot.

Unfortunately, I don't know what the conclusion was, because they'd cut the last 10% off the end of the programme.

[B00]

We have a Lidl in the next town to me mazie, but, now this might sound daft, but by the time i've factored in the bus ticket price (you caught a bus lately? Wow!) im not sure how much savings i'd actually make!

[rowanwitch]

And watch out for some of the offers even the super duper large sizes reduced don't always come out cheaper than a couple of the small packs

[B00]

My downfall is at work ,when we reduce stuff. I buy it just because it's reduced regardless of whether i'd have normally bought it anyway. So really i'm saving bog all, lol.

[ELVIS68]

Golden Wonder have been shrinking their crisps for years, any less in a bag and they can call them fresh air flavour!

[mazie]

That's a shame B00 as not only is it so much cheaper but the quality is excellent. As a treat yesterday I bought 2 Scottish sirloin steaks for £5... Yep I started using the bus about a couple of weeks ago, the first time in about 40 years...I used my bus pass ;o)

[HowardKennitby]

I am the same as BOO. Transport costs make it marginal whether travelling to these places is actually worthwhile for me.

[B00]

think most crisps are like that aren't they elvis? I'm on yet another 'Stop eating crap, you're getting fat' routine, so i've stopped buying those altogether.

[mazie]

I haven't had cake, chocolate or crisps for 6 weeks, just boring fruit and healthy stuff (it's not nice)

[B00]

I can no longer get away with paying half for mini boo on the bus, so a bus journey anywhere, there and back is astronomical. The first time I made a particular journey and paid for her as well I was like "escuse me?" when the driver told me the cost.

[mazie]

It is expensive around here as well B00..I think the 4 mile journey I do on the bus costs about £2.60 each way. Would it be worth doing a monthly shop and getting a taxi back home?

[B00]

Anyhoo, back to shrinking food...

Think it hit home to me when I bought the customary tubs of Celebrations as Christmas presents last December. You sort of look at the tub, rattle it, and say "where's the bloody rest of it gone to?"

[joggerjayne]

COSTCO chicken satay sticks were always in packs of 25. Now ... same price ... packs of 22.

That's a 6% difference, so it's like increasing the price by that amount.

Not that I ever eat 22 satay sticks.

Well, okay ... sometimes.

And they are still WAAAAAAY cheaper than the exact same item in Waitrose, where they sell them in packs of 6.

[B00]

It probably would Mazie yes, and something i need to look into. I do occasionally shop online, this stops me browsing the aisles too, thus saving a smidgen I guess.

[mazie]

I noticed at Christmas. The size of the Roses chocolate tins seemed way smaller than the year before

[ELVIS68]

Another thing that has shrunk....Curlywurlys!

Borrowed one out of the kids Easter stash and was shocked how small they are, when I was a kid you could use a Curlywurly as a ladder!

[joggerjayne]

Duuuh me !!

Please nobody point out that 25 to 22 is a 12% difference, not 6%.

[tonyav]

They were mazzie, so were the tins of quality steet.

[ChuckFickens]

It is a sneaky tactic, shoppers will notice prices going up straight away but they will often not notice they are paying the same for a smaller amount of the produce.

Also, I'm sure one of the sweets manufacturers tried to claim they had reduced the size of their goods due to health concerns for their customers, well isn't that nice of them!