Shoppers spot massive change to hugely popular spread this Christmas as prices soar – did YOU notice it?
DISGRUNTLED shoppers spotted a huge change to a popular spread this Christmas.
Brits were gobsmacked to discover the latest casualty in the shrinkflation crisis over the festive period.
Philadelphia has been slammed for sneakily cutting their family size tubs from 300g to 280g over the past year.
Bakers were the first to notice the change – and their cheesecakes suffered for it.
The popular brand, owned by Kraft Heinz, added insult to injury after shoppers also realised the price didn’t reflect the smaller amount.
In major supermarkets such as Tesco, the much-loved spread is now marked up at a whopping £3.25 – a rise from the previous £3.
The increase has risen across a three year period.
While casual soft cheese lovers aren’t thrilled by the shrink, a group of bakers vented their frustrations on social media about the effect on their recipe measurements.
Many popular cheesecake recipes demand precise measurements, often needing 900g of cream cheese.
For expert dessert makers who want to follow these instructions strictly, they need to buy a whole extra tub of Philadelphia.
One baker posted to Reddit: “I know [there was a reduction] because my cheesecake recipe needed three tubs for the 900g required… Now it’s 280g but still called family pack.”
Another angry baker chimed in: “You gotta really watch your recipes now…’a container of’ means absolutely nothing.”
Others continued to echo the sentiment: “Companies must not have considered how many generational family recipes get thrown off.
“Anything that calls for one container of ____ needs to be adjusted.
“And it doesn’t stop there, the other ingredients are also off by weird amounts. We’re living in the worst timeline.”
Cream cheese enthusiasts already noticed a reduction for the larger Philadelphia product, claiming it contained 340g in 2021.
A spokesperson from Mondelez International said: “We understand the economic pressures that consumers continue to face and raising prices is a last resort for our business.
“However, we are continuing to experience significantly higher input costs across our supply chain, with ingredients used in our products costing far more than they have done previously.
“Meanwhile, other costs like energy, packaging, and transport also remain high.
“This means that our products continue to be much more expensive to make. While we have absorbed these costs where possible, we still face considerable challenges.
“As a result, we are having to make some carefully considered list price increases and changes to product size across our range so that we can continue to provide consumers with the brands they love, without compromising on the great taste and quality they expect.”
It comes as shoppers were also disappointed to learn some festive family treats had suffered from shrinkflation this year too.
Which? discovered the victims of this year’s cuts that consumers should be on the look for.
The consumer group compared the sizes and prices of some of the nation’s festive favourites from 2023 to 2024.
Cadbury announced it would bring back its chocolate-filled Mini Snowballs this year.
But Which? noticed the family-sized bag had shrunk from 296 grams to 270 grams.
Despite this smaller size, the consumer group said its price had increased as fans paid 20% more for 9% less chocolate, compared to this time last year.
Unfortunately, this has not been the only Cadbury product to be hit by these changes.
The medium Santa selection box fell from 145 grams to 125 grams, despite a huge 59% price increase at Morrisons.
Meanwhile, Cadbury’s Buttons selection box has become 9% smaller as it drops from 375 grams to 340 grams.
Another festive chocolate victim was Nestlé’s Dairy Box, which now has 36 treats instead of 40 in the winter collection.
Variation has also been targeted in this box, as buyers will only have a choice of eight different chocolates instead of ten.
Despite these changes, Which? revealed the price of this box has increased by £2 in Asda, compared to last year, but has stayed the same in Tesco and Sainsbury’s.
The smaller version of this Nestlé Dairy Box has also shrunk from 20 chocolates to 16 this year.
Even the “classic collection” has dropped from 40 to 32 sweets
WHAT IS SHRINKFLATION?
Shrinkflation is when manufacturers reduce the size or quantity of a product, while keeping the price the same, explains consumer editor Lynsey Barber.
Prices are rising and food and drink makers are reluctant to pass this on to consumers.
Instead, shrinking the item means the price tag doesn’t change. But shoppers get less for their money.
Some manufacturers have even put UP the price at the same time as making products smaller.
Another tactic used is known as skimpflation.
This is when the recipe of food and drink is changed to try and reduce production costs.
But shoppers still pay the same, or more.
It means shoppers won’t pay more when costs increase for the company making the item – but they will get less product.
Smaller products are easier for customers to digest compared to increasing prices, making it a popular option for manufacturers as it’s less noticeable.