Shrinkflation: why sweets keep getting smaller

Shrinkflation is what happens when a product gets smaller but its price stays the same, or does not fall as much as the size. The word combines shrink and inflation. Instead of a visible price rise, you get a quiet one: less in the packet for the same money.

Why companies do it

When costs go up, a company can raise its prices or shrink its products. Shoppers tend to notice a higher price straight away, but a few grams missing from a bar is easier to miss. Some economists defend shrinkflation as a rational way to deal with rising costs when customers are very sensitive to price. Consumer groups criticise it as sneaky. Shrinking products can also hide real price rises from some official inflation measures.

A related trick has its own name: skimpflation, when the size stays the same but the quality is cut, for example with a cheaper recipe.

The British sweet hall of shame

Sweets and chocolate have produced some clear examples:

• The Mars bar. In 2008 the standard UK bar went from 62.5 g to 58 g. Mars first said the change was designed to help tackle obesity, then later acknowledged the real reason was rising costs. It went down to 51 g in 2013 and to 40 g in 2026.
• Toblerone. In 2016 the UK 400 g and 170 g bars lost two peaks and gained big gaps, becoming 360 g and 150 g in the same box at the same price. After an outcry, the shape was restored in 2018. See the Toblerone gaps.
• Terry's Chocolate Orange. In 2016 the UK orange went from 175 g to 157 g by leaving an air gap between the segments, while the price doubled in some shops. In 2025 it dropped again, to 145 g. See how Terry's left York.
• Creme Eggs. In 2015 the multipack went from six eggs to five, with a smaller cut in price, at the same time as the chocolate was changed. See the Creme Egg recipe row.

How to spot it

• Check the weight on the pack, not just the size of the box.
• Compare the price per 100 g, which shops must show on shelf labels.
• Be wary of new packaging, which is often when a pack quietly shrinks.

Why we sell by the 100 g

This is one reason we sell our pick and mix by weight. Every sweet has a clear price per 100 g, and you choose how much you want, so there is no box to hide a smaller bar in.

For why costs have been rising in the first place, see why chocolate got so expensive.

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