That box of cereal may look the same, but the contents are not. Where once it held 15 or 16 ounces of shredded wheat or corn flakes, now you are paying a higher price for 14 or even 12 ounces. Maybe you don’t check the content number on the package so don’t notice. What you will notice is that you are running out of cereal after only four or five servings. “Put it on the list,” you tell your husband.
I’ve noticed that the actual packages are smaller now, so those boxes appear full. But I’m still paying more for less. I’ve noticed that there are fewer raisins and nuts in the granola I buy. I also suspect that some companies may be purchasing cheaper ingredients to hold down costs, but have no way to check that.
In fact, according to LendingTree, breakfast foods have the second-highest rate of shrinkflation. About 44 percent of the items tracked were now sold in smaller portions. I don’t buy Frosted Flakes, but LendingTree said the family-sized box made by Kellogg’s has been decreased from 24 ounces to 21.7 ounces resulting in a 40 percent increase in per-ounce price. I wonder how Tony the Tiger feels about that!
I seem to be buying more paper towels, toiler paper, and tissues lately, too. Now I know why. Those products are high on the list of products most prone to shrinking. Besides fewer sheets, I’ve noticed that the paper towels and toilet tissues are more loosely wound on the cardboard tube. The tissues are smaller. I had a sinus infection recently and was running through boxes and boxes of tissues.
The laundry detergent I buy now comes in a smaller bottle. While the label is the same, the fluid ounces are not. I gave up using fabric softener a long time ago, but I’m guessing if I still used a liquid one or dryer sheets, those would be smaller, too.
There’s another cost-saving measure going on. It’s skimpflation, the practice of businesses reducing the quality or availability of a product or service while keeping the price the same. Stayed in a hotel recently? Then you may have discovered that if you don’t specifically ask for maid service, you won’t have your room cleaned. And turn down service where that piece of chocolate is left on your pillow? Forget it! You can ask, but don’t expect that will happen.
The hotels make it sound like they are trying to be environmentally conscious and so will say if you don’t leave your towels on the floor, your used towels will not be replaced. I don’t know about you, but at home I always place my towels on a rack. Now I’m forced to be messy and leave towels on the floor just so I can get new ones. And I want new ones because the towels being supplied by most hotels now, even ones rated five-star, are thin and scratchy. One use and they are sopping well and will never dry in time for your next shower.
Service in restaurants is being impacted, too. With dwindling staffs, you can plan to wait to have water poured, an order taken, and your food delivered.
It’s hard to take out anger on the service sector. Hotels and restaurants are suffering not only because of higher costs, but because many of the people working in this industry are being held in deportation facilities around our country. You can thank Stephen Miller for that. I can’t help but wonder about the service he gets when he and his wife go out.
So what can we do? Eat less cereal? Use cleaning products made of cloth? Buy handkerchiefs like grandmother used to carry?
There’s a reason that Costco is doing so well. Bulk buying is one way to pay less. (Also Costso is one of the companies that refused to abolish DEI, so good for them.)
If you can’t go to Costco, then start reading the contents on boxes. Despite those TV ads, cereal is probably not the best food to be eating for breakfast. Explore alternatives like fresh fruit and home baked goods. Shop at farmer’s markets where you can meet the people who make your food.
When you stay at a hotel, ask when you check in about maid service. And if you do have your room cleaned, make sure to leave a good tip for the maid when you leave. It’s not the cleaning staff’s fault that their ranks have been depleted because of our president.
In restaurants, be patient. If you are dining before a Broadway show, tell the waiter and ask what dishes will come out of the kitchen faster. If you are not is a rush, then relax and enjoy the ambiance while you wait for your food.
Trump has called “affordability” a hoax, and says he doesn’t care if costs rise or think about people who are struggling.
We are all in this together, unfortunately. But there’s something you can do come November – VOTE!
Top Shutterstock photo by Love Employee
Middle Shutterstock photo by Sheila Fitzgerald
