Signs of Deflation

While inflation remains the hot topic, the signs of deflation are everywhere. No one can ignore the steep drop in home prices, but how about the future "downsizing" of America.

Manufacturers scaling back product portions

Here are some examples of product size reductions.
• Breyer's ice cream: 1.75 quarts to 1.5 quarts
• Shedd's Country Crock butter substitute: 3 pounds to 2 pounds 13 ounces
• Dial for Men soap: 4.5 ounces to 4 ounces
• Scott 1000 toilet tissue: Sheet size increased in thickness but reduced from 4 inches to 3.7 inches, making the roll shorter
• Hellmann's Real Mayonnaise: 32 ounces to 30 ounces

• General Mills told investors about its new "Right Size, Right Price" program in which prices of cereals like Cheerios, Wheaties and Total went up while portion size went down 1.5 ounces.

• Wrigley recently announced that in next year it will gradually replace current gum with reformulated Doublemint, Juicy Fruit and other flavors in packages that will contain 15 instead of 17 sticks.

• Coca-cola, Pepsico , Shamrock Farms and Fry's Food Stores' parent the Kroger Co. have plans to start packaging soda in 16-ounce bottles and milk in three-quarter gallon jugs. Prices for these products will be lower than 20-ounce sodas and full gallons of milk.

Other manufacturers have shrunk products with no price reduction -- or publicity. Examples include dog chow, bathroom tissue, mayonnaise and ice cream.
"Some of the downsizing is sneaky," Dworsky said. "Manufacturers always tout it when they give you a bonus. But when they downsize they rarely mention it."

I long for the days of "supersize me" and ginormous boxes and bottles of food. Other than the fact that prices will remain the same, the "downsizing" of America is probably a good thing. We waste and consume far too much as it is.

Just another sign of the ongoing and future decrease in the standard of living of the US of A.