Hong Kong consumer watchdog finds ‘shrinkflation’ in city’s supermarket products, urges greater transparency
Hong Kong Free Press
Hong Kong’s consumer watchdog has found cases of multiple supermarket products being downsized over the past three and a half years, with some amounting to a de facto price hike. It has urged greater product information transparency against “shrinkflation.”
The Consumer Council on Tuesday said it had surveyed 62 supermarket products with volume or weight changes between January 2021 and July this year. Results showed that 58 products had been downsized by between 1.3 per cent and 30 per cent.
Among such products, 16 saw a price increase of 10 per cent or more per unit, based on the watchdog’s calculations. They were mostly confectionery, biscuits, snacks, or personal care products.
“This kind of “shrinkflation” phenomenon has become commonplace in many parts of the world including Hong Kong, yet consumers may be unable to identify it when shopping,” the watchdog said in a press release.
A McVitie’s orange biscuit bar was found to have shrunk from eight to seven pieces per package while its retail price rose from HK$33.5 to HK$37 – amounting to a 26.2 per cent increase in price per 10 grams, the steepest price hike among the products surveyed.
A pack of Knorr cornflakes had been reduced from 250 grams to 175 grams in weight – the biggest downsizing in the watchdog’s study.
The watchdog also highlighted three products – including two Oreo cookie packs and a Friskies cat food portion – that had been downsized twice within the survey period.
Products of the same brand may also have seen different sized cuts, the watchdog said.
Based on the watchdog’s “online price watch,” a database of retail product prices, 85 per cent of the product surveyed saw increases in the average unit prices just one month after product volume or weight changes. The changes were mostly cuts.
The watchdog said some retail agents had cited rising costs or the need to standardise packaging across markets for cutting product sizes while maintaining prices.
“The council is of the view that consumers are the ultimate stakeholders affected and the party to pay, and agents have the responsibility to clearly state volume or weight changes of goods on the packaging or at the point of sale,” it said.
Retailers could follow overseas practices by setting out the unit price of products to facilitate the comparison of products of different sizes, the watchdog said.
They should also have clear displays in stores and on websites about changes in product size, the watchdog added citing similar practices in countries such as Korea and France.
The watchdog also advised consumers to pay attention to the volume or weight and shelf price to calculate the unit price of products, especially for frequently purchased foodstuffs or necessities.
Changes in packaging or wording such as “new formula” or “upgraded” may suggest a change in product volume or weight, it added.
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