Author Topic: As food costs rise, your packaging becomes smaller. (Read 946 times)

SwampDonkey · « **on:** October 19, 2011, 03:30:52 pm »

http://www.dailyfinance.com/2011/04/04/u-s-companies-shrink-packages-as-food-prices-rise

Yes, and one brand in particular is Maxwell house that we have noticed lately. Their cans used to be 1 full Kg (1000 g). The new can on the market has the same size lid and girth, but is shorter with 600 g now. So if the price is the same, your now paying 40 % more for the coffee.

It's been happening for years my friends.

shelbycharger400 · « **Reply #1 on:** October 19, 2011, 04:36:38 pm »

i noticed it about 3 years or so ago, when gas went to $4.00 a gal, vrs around 2.50 in less than a few months ( the oil companys lining their presidential canadate)
wasnt that long ago, a 12 pack of pepsi was 2.99, a chocolate candy bar was .59, and it was 1/4 in thick, they have made it paper thin, shorter and narrower, and charge over a dollar for it now.... seems a lot higher than that articles 44 percent hike.

basically everything went up minimum 150 percent, gas prices droped a bit , prices didnt, now they say high fuel price, must raise price... hmmm... kinda funny they just did 2 to 3 years ago.

antifreeze was 4.99 a gal, straight , was hovering around 15, now its at 8 or 9, last i looked.

other ticker that influences inflation, besides price gouging at the pump is minimum wage, people pith and moan about only making 5 an hour, so they bump it to 7 something here, well... next day, prices at the fast food joint went up accordingly, want to make more...dont work minimum wage, go to school and apply yourself, they dont like that answer..

.

Ron Wenrich · « **Reply #2 on:** October 19, 2011, 04:56:43 pm »

When prices go up, I cut back. Pepsi raised its prices, I did without. I know how chocolate is made. I've done without.

But, I have put in a small garden, and I've pretty much done away with the prepackaged food. I can cook better than them. When I shop, I walk around the outside part of the store. I only buy a few things that I can't make myself, or something I just like. If everyone did that, we'd be healthier, and have a little more jingle in our pockets.

I wonder how much Maxwell House spends on advertising.

Al_Smith · « **Reply #3 on:** October 19, 2011, 05:00:59 pm »

It's Madison Ave .hype and hoopla .P and G who are the masters of marketing got a leg up years ago on this stuff .

For example in most laundry products the main ingredient is water .So they leave some of it out and call it concentrated ,better .Smaller package ,less packaging costs ,less shipping costs,same price .Hard to beat a deal like that .BTW it costs more for the bottle it comes in that the cost of the product therein .

Chlorox did the same thing with bleach .Bless their little hearts because of the small portfolio of stocks I own that one is the very best .

Chuck White · « **Reply #4 on:** October 19, 2011, 05:05:46 pm »

Lots of things are deceiving in their prices these days.

We feed the birds year round, especially during the winter.

We go to Tractor Supply to buy sunflower seeds, and notice that the same size bag of seeds has only 40 pounds of seeds, where the bags used to contain 50 pounds.

The kicker is the 40 pounder today costs as much as the 50 pounder did just a couple of years ago.

zopi · « **Reply #5 on:** October 19, 2011, 05:21:11 pm »

A good arguement for home canning and having a big garden...maybe a few rabbits and chickens....cow and a pig or two if you can arrange it...
I would love to be able to produce our food, as much as we can on our own...working towards that...not really trying to be off grid....but little things...next sawmill will be a diesel...worst comes to worst, I can make biodiesel...easy...gasoline, not so much...tryong to be as green amd self sufficient as possible...as soon as I get the barn done..solar kiln...solar hot water...maybe a wind turbine...I need to find a farmer who likes to barter...will saw lumber for beef...pork...peanuts...name it...tree work...gotcha...whatcha got to trade?
Trying to be independent of banks...would love to be independent of grocery stores...thank god I stuck out the navy...that commissary is a lifesaver.
My girls do not buy gummy worms...they make gummy worms...just one example...middle daughter took that Idea and ran with it.
Before I retired, we laid in cases of canned and staple food...might get us through the winter this year...
Winter garden is in...small, but in...less money spent on grub the better...
Now if I could just grow organic liability insurance...

SwampDonkey · « **Reply #6 on:** October 19, 2011, 05:33:08 pm »

Yeah, like Ron I buy stuff I have to prepare myself. I don't buy much for snacks except nuts and dates mostly, sometimes a cracker but they could sit for weeks untouched.

Tonight it was corn on the cob, squash, cabbage and haddock fish.

Ga_Boy · « **Reply #7 on:** October 19, 2011, 06:18:25 pm »

What I have noticed.

5 lb bag of sugar is now a 4 lb bag at a higher cost.

Half gallon of ice cream is now four tents of a gallon at a higher cost.

I am 40 miles south of Washington DC, not sure if others are seeing the same.

Mooseherder · « **Reply #8 on:** October 19, 2011, 07:16:13 pm »

Something fairly new from Pepsico is 1.5 liter bottles of their soda products.
I think they are preparing everyone to do a dirty deed and get rid of 2 liter bottles.

I'm not gonna buy them if at all possible. Hopefully the public won't either.

zopi · « **Reply #9 on:** October 19, 2011, 07:35:12 pm »

Soda pop aon't hard to make either...

mrcaptainbob · « **Reply #10 on:** October 19, 2011, 10:51:01 pm »

DanG! These days it just takes more to make a dozen!

DanG · « **Reply #11 on:** October 19, 2011, 11:13:06 pm »

There is nothing new about this. A pound of coffee went from 16 oz to 13 oz over ten years ago. Then it went down to 11.5 oz pretty shortly, but the price per package didn't go down. Yeah, Ga. Boy, it is happening all over. A "Family-Size" bag of potato chips has gone down from 16 oz to 11 oz while the price has doubled. Are your folks getting all of that increase, Swampdonkey? Hell no, they're not! I can still get an 8lb bag of potatoes for two bucks, on sale. Of course, that used to be ten pounds, but it is still only 25¢ per pound. Why would chipped up fried potatoes cost six bucks per pound? Oh yeah, Lays would go broke if they didn't make a 5000% profit!

Al_Smith · « **Reply #12 on:** October 20, 2011, 04:19:12 am »

The price has always been whatever the traffic will bear .They've just came up with innovative methods to make it seem to be a better deal .

SwampDonkey · « **Reply #13 on:** October 20, 2011, 04:50:29 am »

Quote from: DanG on October 19, 2011, 11:13:06 pm

Are your folks getting all of that increase, Swampdonkey? Hell no, they're not!

Mom and dad were glad to sell lock stock and barrel 10 years ago. You ask dad about the past and he don't remember or want to talk about it.

I can buy a 50 lb bag of unsorted taters from the local farmer for $10 bucks. His bags have not shrunk, just his profit. You would think potato chips were gold, over 3 bucks for half a 16 oz potato goes in them big air filled bags. And those little sacs of home fries for $5 with a little oil, garlic powder, salt, paprika, and cumin can be made right at home for less than 25 cents.

DanG, those outfits would go broke if they had to grow all their own to begin with. The fact is, it would not give them an opportunity to steal 20% off the top to make up for their inefficiency. The average wage in those places is certainly nothing special. If you watch them farm their own ground, the processor needs 6 tractors on 50 acres where as the farmer would have 2 and no more than 3 while cropping and one when plowing.

Ron Wenrich · « **Reply #14 on:** October 20, 2011, 05:30:03 am »

We have several farmer's markets in the area. They're only open for a few days, but I can buy produce a whole lot cheaper there for a lot less than in the chain stores. The quality is either the same or better. Example is I've been buying navel oranges for 50¢ each. The local chain has them on sale for $1 each and the normal price is $1.50. If I bought in bulk, it would be much cheaper.

Some things at the market are more expensive, but the quality is much better. Or its something I can't buy at the chain.

They also lure you in to buying something you normally wouldn't buy with coupons. Its for something at a higher price. Coupons are ok if its for something you normally buy. I find I save a lot more by not buying the product at all.

The local chain store also tries to lure us in by offering off money on gasoline. The only problem is you can't buy gas at their stores in this county. You have to drive 20 miles to get the gas, and that negates the savings.

SwampDonkey · « **Reply #15 on:** October 20, 2011, 06:23:41 am »

Farmer's markets really don't cut it around here, they have become craft bizarres. Most roadside stands have not fared that much better and only available for a short time of the year, late summer-early fall. Because of all the running for this or that there is no savings as your petrol bill goes up. You can't buy flour, can't buy cooking oil...on and on. Most coupons a fella can just throw in the trash because it's stuff you don't normally buy and usually something boxed or canned, not fit to eat. When you walk in any of the grocery stores there is a board at the entry with all kinds of coupons. I have never found anything that I buy on those coupon boards.

We have a grocery store doing the gas coupon gig as well, the gas savings are only realized if you drive to the self serve stations. The one across the street is full service, so it's 2-3 cents higher to begin with. But there are plenty of self serve stations around. But with this gig the prices at the store have certainly been adjusted upward. Irving Oil doesn't give anyone anything.

Al_Smith · « **Reply #16 on:** October 20, 2011, 07:45:58 pm »

The "farmers "market went pretty good around here .Drew lots of people did extremely well .Untill the local mayor and his croneys got the bright idea to make them pay city income tax on what they sold .

They moved out lock stock and barrel and set up in an adandoned mall parking lot and still kept the crowds .The mayor tried to resend his edict but they showed him the fickle finger off fate .Poetic justice ya gotta love it .

zopi · « **Reply #17 on:** October 20, 2011, 11:27:25 pm »

Best story I have heard all day...

Al_Smith · « **Reply #18 on:** October 21, 2011, 05:24:30 am »

Well can you imagine such nonsense .Pay taxes on a water melon or a pound of tomatoes .In Ohio there are no sales tax on produce or food stuffs .

Ha I burned the mayor myself and I don't live in town but own a rental property .

It seems a few years back I spruced it up with vinal siding ,nice .Built a 360 degree sunburst in the peak of the roof .They thought it was nice too ,increased the taxes 50 percent .

So I get on the internet and proved that rascal plus 50 percent of the town council and 90 percent of the lawyers with big castles were paying about 1/2 the taxes as much their neighbors .They resended the increase of my taxes because they knew in their greedy little minds what I was going to do with that information next had they not .Ha ,two can play at that game .

SwampDonkey · « **Reply #19 on:** October 21, 2011, 05:46:34 am »

Sure don't seem like any formula involved in tax assessment in your town. Get all you can get.

Al_Smith · « **Reply #20 on:** October 21, 2011, 09:56:35 pm »

It's more of a "good old boy " thing than anything else . I'm pretty certain it goes on just about everywhere .Maybe even in that swamp you talk about .

SwampDonkey · « **Reply #21 on:** October 22, 2011, 04:50:59 am »

Nope, we have a formula and I can go online to assessments to see what anyone else is paying. A lot is based on what houses are being sold at in each area. So it's not just the tax man it's the realestate markup/down along with all the stuff that the town has to build and maintain for everyone to enjoy (whether used or not by all). I also have a cousin in the department.

I pay hardly anything for land tax, so I'm a good old boy. The woodlot isn't really a swamp, but there are wetlands. It all grows wood. It could be solid mature cherry and oak and I wouldn't pay a cent more.

The dang rabbits have resorted to girdling all the pole sized oak I have, so that dream is shot. Oh no, we don't need coyotes.

shelbycharger400 · « **Reply #22 on:** October 22, 2011, 02:32:26 pm »

hunt the rabbits , good grillin

Jeff · « **Reply #23 on:** October 29, 2011, 07:23:00 pm »

This right here is downright intentionally deceptive.

We bought a package of Candy corns to decorate a birthday cake. Once we took a few out, we find that the entire center is raised and there is just enough candy corns in it to make it look like it's full. Who the hell turns a package upside down to check something like that? The bottom edge is just wide enough to feel like it has a flat bottom on it. Please disregard the errant m&m's

Chuck White · « **Reply #24 on:** October 29, 2011, 08:29:25 pm »

Now that's deceiving!

Initially appears that there would be twice as much corn in the container than there actually is! $:-\$

SwampDonkey · « **Reply #25 on:** October 30, 2011, 04:33:36 am »

Yup, that was the intent. Otherwise, why make a dish like that? Notice too that the nutrition info, normally on the bottom, is put on the top so no one flips the container to read it. Oh, all kinds of schemes.

Bread loaves, unless your talking about the "Wonder Fluff" are getting shorter and the loaf pans are even smaller. Around here, if you wanted an old fashioned sized bread pan your out of luck. They have really conspired with one another throughout the whole manufacturing process.

News:

Author Topic: As food costs rise, your packaging becomes smaller. (Read 946 times)