The incredible grocery shrink ray - why what you buy is getting smaller

The incredible grocery shrink ray - why what you buy is getting smaller

Do you ever feel like your groceries are getting smaller while your bill is not?

It's not an optical illusion. Some of the items you may regularly buy really have been shrinking, but their prices have stayed the same.

Cadbury has admitted to downsizing its Family Share bar from 250g to 230g but keeping the original £1.38 price.

Strongbow packs that used to come with 18 cans now come with 15 - but cost the same. There are fewer Birds Eye garden peas to a bag, and economy packs of Pampers Baby Dry nappies are four nappies lighter than they were.

The manufacturers are blaming the growing cost of raw ingredients. They say they don't want to pass on price increases - so this is a handy way round it.

So while supermarkets are going out of their way to lure consumers with price cuts in some areas, manufacturers are simply cutting quantities in others.

It seems underhanded to say the least to squeeze a few pence more out of already cash-strapped consumers by sneakily reducing what we get for our money.

Jeff Allder, policy expert at the National Consumer Council, says:

"In America it is known as the grocery shrink ray and this is one trend from the US that we definitely don't want too much of over here."

Have you noticed your groceries have been shrinking? Should manufacturers be more honest? Would you switch brands if you felt you were getting.....continued below

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