Thursday, September 3, 2009

The World is not the Only Thing Getting Smaller

Shopping is frustrating enough without getting mad and aggravated during the process. Yesterday I couldn't help that aggravation. I noticed in one of the supermarket circulars that solid white tuna was on sale and at an excellent price. Add in that I had a couple of coupons for the tuna and I should have been a real happy camper--NOT. Looking at those cans--and I'm talking national brand here--something just seemed a bit off. Now granted, I stocked up on tuna a few months ago so I was even being l'chav z'chus that it was me, not having shopped for tuna for awhile, that was having a problem, not the tuna.

But the niggling persisted and I started to scrutinize the can. Lo and behold I found the problem. You know those six ounce cans of tuna that used to be standard? Well no more. Those cans are now only 5 ounces. A check of the tuna shelf showed that all those big name brands were now coming with less tuna in the can. So a sale, yes, but getting less for your money. Time to adjust my recipes as well. I make tuna patties and/or loaf for the yom tovim. My recipe calls for 5 cans of tuna, but that's 6 oz. tuna. To get the same amount of tuna I'm now going to have to use 6 cans of that 5 oz. tuna.

Some companies try to con the consumer by announcing that there is a benefit to the consumer from some new type of packaging. They gloss over the fact that there is less product in the package. One orange juice company went to a 59 oz. bottle this way. Lots of shampoo companies that have changed to a grip-friendly bottle and are giving you less shampoo at the same time. Reynolds went to a smaller box for its 200-foot roll--they boast that the box will take up less room on the shelf in your kitchen. And the foil takes up less room in the box because it's not as thick as it used to be. Apparently the tuna fish producing companies couldn't think of a good enough con to make consumers think there was a benefit to less tuna in the can, so they just snuck it up onto the shelves.

And so the consumer gets rooked yet once again.

15 comments:

Leahle said...

We were gone last week so I also went to stock up on groceries this week. I also bought tuna. Read the post and went to check the cans and you're right! If you put an old can and a new can side by side you can see the difference but it's lots harder if you only look at the new can. Anything else they can shrink so it costs us more money?!

Cheryl said...

I heard someone on the radio who was making the claim that the smaller sizes have nothing to do with the economy. His take was that manufacturers are doing consumers a favor in reducing size of products. He said that most people don't know what the recommended portion sizes are and overeat, thereby causing the obesity epidemic everyone likes to claim is there. By reducing package size the manufacturers are helping people not to overeat. You should have heard the phonecalls this guy got in comment. Do manufacturers really think we are all that dumb?!!!!

G6 said...

I noticed that on the tuna cans as well. Of course, I remember when the standard was 7.25 ounces, so this if not the first time....

I actually complained to the soda company when they switched to mostly 1.5 liters for the same price as the 2 liter.
The customer service rep tried the "easy grip" garbage line on me as well, to which I responded twofold:
1) Show me ONE PERSON to support your claim
2) fine and good. You want easy to handle? Then reduce the price when you reduce the size....
Of course none of my complaints made a darn bit of difference, but I did get to vent for a moment :)

ProfK said...

G6,
Yeah, the change in the soda bottle size without price reduction also had me complaining. But I fixed the Coke company yesterday. Got rooked on tuna but made money on the soda.

Regular price for a 12-pack of cans in one of the markets is $5.35 but on sale yesterday for 4 for $8 plus a free 8-pack of 12 oz. bottles (regularly $3.99). This market also doubles coupons under one dollar. I had coupons for 75 cents off a 12-pack, so $6 came off in coupons. Also 2-liter bottles on sale for 79 cents, limit two. Had 75 cent coupons there too. Paid $1.58 and got $3 in coupons. I believe I paid 58 cents in my money for all that soda. Oh yes, I went in and out of the store 4 times to get the special. $2.32 for sixteen 12-packs, four 8-packs and 8 2-liter bottles.

Anonymous said...

Hope you also have a coupon for a dentist! :)

Anonymous said...

I noticed that about the tuna. annoying, but good reason for a post, so I can ask you for a good recipe for tuna patties :-)

Anonymous said...

When I went to Sam's Club (or was it Costco) they are now selling 7oz cans.

Anonymous said...

I buy tuna regularly, but did not notice change of can size... I gotta look closer next time.

Lion of Zion said...

i don't eat tuna fish, but check this out on shrinking gefilte fish:

http://agmk.blogspot.com/2008/08/cheap-kosher-pizza-in-brooklyn-for-9.html

ProfK said...

Anonymous 11:17,
Not worrying about the dentist--this soda represents months and months of soda supply--the expiration date is in 2011. Probably will get us through most of the winter on the cans and small bottles alone.

Anonymous 12:18--I once posted a recipe for those tuna patties but am having a senior moment and can't figure out which osting to look at. Will adjust the recipe and post it again.

Anonymous 12:54--are we talking tuna cans? If so, which brands? And any idea of the price? Seems a little strange that Bumble Bee and Chicken of the Sea and the supermarket store brands should have gone down to 5 oz. while Costco carries a 7oz. can, unless it's specially produced just for them.

ProfK said...

Lion,
Yeah, something "fishy" about the gefilte fish shrinking as well as the tuna. Was reading the comments on the posting you linked to and noticed the discussion of the pizza prices.

My hubby got in the mood for pizza and I wasn't arguing, having had one of "those" days. He found fresh pizza by the pie at Friedman's Grocery in Brooklyn for $13 a pie. Not saying that's cheap objectively but it sure beats any other prices I've heard about anywhere else. And the pizza tastes good too. Didn't seem to skimp on any of the ingredients. Still not as cheap as the Amnon's frozen 8-slice pie that Shoprite had on sale last week at $8.99 or the price when I make the pizza myself, but still not a bad price for readymade and ready to eat with no effort on my part..

Orthonomics said...

Tuna has been 5 ounces for a while. I did read that Costco's tuna is produced for them. It is 7 ounces.

Lion of Zion said...

another scam are the lower-sugar and lower-calorie versions of orange juice, grape juice, etc. that are essentially a watered down version of the regular product.

Anonymous said...

ProfK, would you mind sharing where you found the $0.75 coupons for the soda?

ProfK said...

Anonymous,
There are a lot of coupon exchanges and share sites online. I always have a bunch of coupons I can't use because they are for non kosher products or products that I don't buy, but others die for them. Someone had a bunch of the coke coupons, still before expiration date and not place specific for which I exchanged about triple the number of product coupons that she needed. I didn't care about the numbers because I couldn't use them anyway. We were both happy so that's what counted.