At a time when grocery prices are increasing, shoppers are noticing that they’re getting less for their dollar than ever before—even while buying the same products.
This is a phenomenon called “shrinkflation,” a term used to describe products staying the same price or increasing in price while reducing the actual amount of product they give you.
Numerous examples of this have gone viral and sparked discussion over the years on TikTok. One user showed how Betty Crocker reduced the size of their cake mix; another showed how the weight of sauce in a frozen meal was being counted toward the overall weight, leading to a reduction in product. A further TikToker showed himself opening a personal-sized bag of Doritos—only to discover it had just five chips.
Now, some shoppers are calling out Kraft for reducing the size of its Kraft Dinner, often called simply Kraft Mac and Cheese in the U.S.
In several videos, shoppers have noted that the size of their normal Kraft Dinner box is decreasing.
@stephyparker123 @KD Canada explain yourselves 😤 I need the full 200 grams of macaroni #inflation #canada #conspiracy #fyp #ontario #whatisthis ♬ original sound – Stephanie
TikTok user Stephanie (@stephyparker123) discovered that a crate of Extra Creamy Kraft Dinner contained boxes with two different weights, despite all appearing to be the same size.
“200, 175, 200,” she says, reading off the boxes’ weight in grams. In the caption, she adds, “@KD Canada explain yourselves…I need the full 200 grams of macaroni.”
Another TikTok user, Carley (@carley_larley), came to the same conclusion while looking at the original flavor.
@carley_larley Enough is enough. #shrinkflation #inflation #shrinkflationisreal #ripoff #grocery #stopshrinkflation ♬ original sound – Carley
“What in the shrinky-dink is going on around here?” she asks. “This is getting ridiculous.”
“A week and a half to two weeks ago-ish I bought this from Walmart. 225 grams, ‘kay?” she continues. She then points to the listed weight of 200 grams on a second box. “Today, I bought this box for the same price.”
In the comments section of both videos, users complained about shrinkflation.
“JUST said this to my wife last week when we split a box and felt like it wasn’t as much in it!” exclaimed a commenter. “Also used to be like .39 cents a box only 5 years ago.”
“We used to feed a family of four, fullllll bowls, with one box,” recalled another.
“And they’d already shrunk before. doesn’t fill the bowl anymore,” shared a third. “I feel less guilty downing the whole box though.”
The Daily Dot reached out to Stephanie via Instagram direct message, Carley via TIkTok direct message, Kraft via email, and Walmart Canada via Media Relations Contact Form.
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Source: https://www.dailydot.com/news/walmart-kraft-mac-and-cheese-shrinkflation/