$
$
10
10
25
OFF
OFF
OFF
$
*
The Downsizing Spiral
*1 coupon or discount per customer, expires 9/30/15. Not valid with any other discounts.
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By Jill Cataldo
The topic of package and product “shrink” never seems to get old with my
readers! I’ve featured several stories about product sizes being reduced
while the price stays the same. My savvy, observant readers have been
busy spotting even more smaller-sized items.
Dear Jill,
This probably won’t matter to most, but it bugged me! I clean with a popular
brand of dusters, which require a refill. As I recently purchased a box of
24 refills, the dusters have become noticeably smaller in length than the
original product.The new dusters are perhaps two to three inches smaller
than the original. I wish the company had just raised the price!
Barbara V.
Dear Jill,
Are they going to teach a new measuring system to the younger
generation? A popular brand of mayonnaise now has a “quart” jar that
holds 30 ounces, and a gourmet ice cream brand touts its “pint” of ice
cream that holds 14 ounces. I guess 2 cups do not equal a pint anymore!
This is crazy that they are screwing the American public. I guess they will
now say jar instead of quart. This is just crazy!
Fran C.
Dear Jill,
I noticed a few months ago that 500-sheet reams of paper are still called
reams, but some of them have 400 sheets now. I picked up one of these
reams last week at the drugstore and while the price hasn’t changed, the
package size sure has! Do they think we aren’t going to notice it’s missing
a 100 sheets of paper? I refused to buy it, which is what everyone should
do if they are finding things that have gotten smaller. I refuse to buy the
400-sheet ream and went to an office supply store to get a real 500-sheet
ream for the same price.
Bill C.
Dear Jill,
I saw 96-ounce‘gallons’of milk at the store recently.A gallon is 128 ounces.
*
Retail purchases only. Up to five quarts of Motorcraft® oil and filter. Taxes, diesel
Do they think we have forgotten our weights and measures? I swear, this
is part of the dumbing down of America and we’re just supposed to blindly
accept it.Along with not teaching cursive writing in schools anymore, they
must not be teaching how many ounces are in a pint, quart and gallon.
Devin L.
Dear Jill,
I can rattle off all kinds of things that have shrunk. Pound boxes of pasta
are now 12 ounces. Pasta sauce is worse – used to be a 32-ounce
jar and now I see them at 26 and 24 ounces depending on the brand.
Another sneaky thing they do is change the label to be misleading. I use a
peroxide-based toothpaste and the last time I bought it, it said something
like ‘now with more peroxide.’ Well, that may have been true, but the new
tube had half an ounce less than my old tube! I also noticed a brand of
double-roll toilet paper went from 300 sheet to 260, but it is still called a
‘double roll.’ It’s ridiculous how small things are getting. Just raise the price
a little already. I won’t buy a 50-sheet box of facial tissues!
Karen J.
I agree. As much as I want to save money, unless these new, smaller
products are also fantastically priced deals, I’d rather see the price go up
a little versus seeing newly defined pints, quarts and gallons.As shoppers,
we do vote with our dollars. If one brand has downsized its product, but a
competitor hasn’t, you have a choice.
Smart Living Tip: When you first notice that a brand has downsized one
of its products, take a moment to look through the shelf at the store for the
“old” version. If you plan to buy the product anyway, look for the old, larger
size to maximize your value. It’s a temporary fix, as the next time you need
to buy the product you will likely have to buy the new-style items.
© CTW Features
Jill Cataldo, a coupon workshop
instructor, writer and mother
of three, never passes up a
good deal. Learn more about
Super-Couponing at her website,
www.jillcataldo.com.
Email your own couponing victories
and questions to [email protected].