Washington, DC (CNN) — Cookie Monster has taken a stance on a very real and controversial trend in the US economy — and he hates it.
The gluttonous blue Sesame Street character known for gorging on cookies expressed his dismay at “shrinkflation” Monday in a post on X. Cookie Monster is apparently feeling the pain of high prices and an elevated cost of living, which have led to, among other things, the downsizing of certain consumer goods without an accompanying drop in their price.
“Me hate shrinkflation! Me cookies are getting smaller,” Cookie Monster wrote. “Guess me going to have to eat double da cookies!”
He may be right.
OREO Double Stuf Chocolate Sandwich Cookies saw a 6% decrease in size by weight from January 2019 to October 2023, according to a report from Democratic Sen. Bob Casey in December, using Labor Department data.
His report also showed that goods ranging from cleaning products, coffee and candies to sugar and frozen foods decreased in size last year, with household paper products experiencing the most shrinkflation.
“Household paper products, like toilet paper and paper towels, are 34.9 percent more expensive per unit than they were in January 2019. Of that total cost increase, 10.3 percent is due to producers shrinking the size of rolls and packages,” the report said.
It’s not a new phenomenon: During times of high inflation, companies increasingly prefer to reduce the size of their products rather than to hike the price, as a way to cut costs. Research indicates that consumers are more sensitive to when prices change than they are to when products become smaller.
Continued…
Approved ~ MJM
