Shrinkflation Hitting Hong Kong Consumers

Shoppers are seeing shrinkflation in many items they buy

How is it only now that the Hong Kong authorities realise that consumers are suffering from shrinkflation, where they pay more for less volume or weight of a product?

The Consumer Council has found a number of supermarket products have shrunk by as much as 30 percent, with 16 products having price increases of up to 26.2 percent.

The consumer watchdog released its report on Tuesday and said retailers had the responsibility to let shoppers know of the changes in packaging and price.

Consumer watchdog released report Tuesday

"The council is of the view that consumers are the ultimate stakeholders affected and the party to pay, and agents have the responsibility to clearly state volume or weight changes of goods on the packaging or at the point of sale," said Victor Lam Hoi-cheung, chairman of the publicity and community relations committee.

In its report the Consumer Council chose 62 products from its "Online Price Watch" tool with volume or weight changes between January 2021 and July 2024, with products ranging from food, daily necessities and pet food.

Of the 62 products, 58 had downsized by 1.3 percent to 30 percent, and 25 items had a reduction in content by at least 10 percent.

Kellogg's Frosties cereal had downsized the most, from 250 grams to 175 grams, a change of 30 percent. 

This cereal had the biggest drop in size

Another was Tulip's Hot Dog Skinless Sausages, where the mass of the sausages dropped from 250 grams to 200 grams, a change of 20 percent.

Meanwhile McVitie's Club Orange had its price per millimetre had jumped 26.2 percent; its content was reduced from eight sticks at 176 grams to seven sticks at 154 grams, and the price increased from HK$33.50 (US$4.30) to HK$37.

Responding to the council's findings, McVitie's distributor said the price of Club Orange increased due to the rising cost of ingredients, logistics and other factors.

Shrinkflation seemed to happen a lot during the Covid-19 pandemic, but the Consumer Council only made a report about it now? While it is understandable that practically everything costs more, it is also understandable why Hongkongers are flocking across the border to Shenzhen to shop, causing shops in Hong Kong to close because they don't have enough business.

It's a vicious cycle and it's a race to the bottom that's happening very quickly...