Don’t look now, but quart jars of Kraft Miracle Whip are no longer 32 ounces.
*MOUSE PRINT:
And, Kraft mayonnaise has similarly shrunk to 30 ounces too.
*MOUSE PRINT:
Kraft held out for almost four years, resisting the temptation to downsize to 30 ounces like its competitors did starting in 2006. (See our old story about Hellmann’s/Best Food mayonnaise.) Why did Kraft finally downsize? Presumably it was not so they could afford to distribute those two little Miracle Whip samples in some of yesterday’s home delivered Sunday newspapers.
According to a customer relations representative, they wanted to “consolidate and reduce packaging” because that is good for the environment, and they wanted to be able to offer the product at the “best affordable price.” There is nothing like a thoughtful, environmentally conscious company, is there?
More formally, a spokesperson from Kraft corporate affairs said, in part:
“Across our Miracle Whip line we recently did a broad overhaul of our packages and sizes. We do this periodically to make sure we’re offering the best possible mix of product sizes and prices. Among the things we consider are how to make them as efficiently as we can while also offering sizes that work for our consumers and our various customers’ store shelving.
 As a result, we have totally eliminated some package sizes of Miracle Whip. And in some cases we have slightly decreased or slightly increased the size of our packages.  In general, the changes we made are in keeping with what has already occurred in the rest of the category.”
No matter how you spin it, consumers are paying the same price but getting less. In my book (or blog), that’s a backdoor price increase.
Why not just tell truth? They cut size to increase or maintain profit. There is nothing wrong with doing that, but lying about it really stinks.
I’m kind of curious which ones’ sizes “slightly increased” and how that affected their prices. Even though the size increase was ‘slight’, I doubt that same word would apply to the cost, or maybe I’m just a cynic.
Edgar replies: Ron, here is the unquoted part of the statement from Kraft:
If they keep the number of servings per jar the same, they can even say fewer calories per serving! (For the reduced sizes only.)
In my book, that’s called inflation and it’s one of the most basic principles of economics. I believe I first learned this in 7th grade, which was a long time ago.
There are two options for a company (which, while we may not like it, is in existence solely to make a profit):
1) Product remains the same, price increases.
or
2) Product size changes, price remains firm.
While I appreciate the heads up, these types of articles get old and I almost feel like it’s “filler” for those weeks where a better story couldn’t be found. This is what happens when the good times don’t roll. I really like what this site tries to do; however, I feel that it could serve us better than to tell us repeatedly that as time goes by, prices go up… we all know that by now. Let’s forget about economics and get back to the misleading mouse print (exposing the strings and catches buried in the fine print).
Edgar replies: J… this is anything but “filler”. The fine print of the net weight statement is something that many people do not check everytime they buy a product. Some may well not notice the subtle shortening of the Miracle Whip jar by a mere 1/2 inch. Couple that with the price remaining the same, and you have the perfect scenario for a manufacturer pulling a fast one on the consumer. Do feel free to use the submission link on the left when you find good examples of nasty fine print.
This appears to be happening with Tuna Fish. The 6 oz cans of Star Kist I use in my recipes shrunk to 5 oz. This throws off the recipe.
Repackaging does not help the environment, it creates more waste! I have to buy more containers to get what I did before. I’d much prefer prices go up a little
I never thought of this before, though I read this blog regularlarly, but smaller sizes actually may benefit the customers (or at least hurt them less than outright price increases) because it gives the customer something they can still afford. If the price of a 32 oz jar went up to the point that I could no longer afford it, it would help to have an affordable 30 oz jar and cut down on my servings instead of having to buy the 16 oz jar (and probably paying 75% of what the 32 oz jar costs) and halving my serving sizes.
That said, it should not be done clandestinely, and they should keep both sizes on the market (at the new higher prices) until it becomes apparent that most people buy the smaller size, at which point they would discontinue it. I won’t insist on this last point because it undoubtedly costs more to maintain more sizes of your jars, so focus groups and pilot programs may be substituted.
Note to Skippy: Check Costco the next time you go (if you go). Their name brand solid albacore tuna is now 7 ounces. Those two extra ounces is a lot!
As for the Mayo, I guess the one consolation is not having to use the whole jar for a recipe, so the missing ounce won’t make much of a difference. However, their deceptive way of downsizing is inexcusable!
It is in no way a filler story. They labeled the new jars NEW PACKAGE BUT SAME GREAT TASTE yet still show content in small print. why not say NEW SMALLER PACKAGE BUT STILL SAME GREAT TASTE AND SAME PRICE. In this economy where so many are out of work or have taken salary freezes or even reduction, companies like this raise their prices instead of taking it out of the profits which are huge. Do not forget how the oil prices when up and so did their pricing but when oil went down their price did not or not at the same proportion as when it went up. Retailers like WalMart are criticized for controlling the vendor pricing but it looks like we need stores like this to protect us.I am not implying that WalMart is a saint though. Look at Hagen Daz ice cream, they went from 16 oz to 14 oz while dairy prices have pretty much remained constant. Inflation is one thing but this is not an Inflation driven price increase only. If so, how do they justify the money spent on advertising? Seems to me that in a capitalist society we need laws for every thing or we loose everything.