Same Prices, Smaller Portion Sizes, Reduced Value: Egregious Shrinkflation Examples

The fresh fruit and vegetables on your weekly shopping list aren't the only goods falling victim to skyrocketing prices. Amidst supply chain issues, the ongoing climate crisis, and avian flu outbreaks leading to unmanageable prices for eggs, grocery shoppers are feeling the heat when it comes to outlandish prices for popular items reduced in size.

Content creator Melissa Simonson, however, has not allowed major corporations to employ dirty "shrinkflation" tactics that go unnoticed.

Indeed, Simonson has dedicated her social media accounts to identifying popular products that everyday Americans purchase that have undergone shrinkflation tactics from the major companies who provide them.

Keep reading to learn more about these everyday products that have fallen victim to shrinkflation, and how Simonson recommends you stay aware of the many diabolical tactics that corporations utilize to extract as much money as possible from you with the least amount of effort.

In one of Simonson's videos published in March 2025, she begins by calling out Clif Bars, which shrunk their 12-pack of bars down to a package of 10 bars, while selling them for the same price. It should be noted, that in some locations, 12 packs of bars are still sold online.

"Oreos," Simonson addresses next, "are outrageous." Pointing to a half of an Oreo cookie with a minuscule dollop of cream, she implores the brand: "Stop it, Oreos, we see what you're doing."

Next, Simonson castigates the Cascade brand of dish detergent. Displaying a screenshot of a value size tub that was originally priced at $22.68 for a package of 62 dishwasher pods, the individual subscribed to that product was not too pleased to have their subscription altered to a pack of 57 pods priced at $26.12 — with a discount applied.

There are much better vegan and cruelty-free dish soaps that are safer for the environment, anyway.

"We're gonna charge you more, and we're gonna give you less," Simonson summarizes after explaining the Cascade dishwasher pod debacle.

Indeed, the biting quote perfectly captures the frustration and powerless that consumers feel when paying either the same price or a higher price for a sizable reduction in quantity or size of a product.

Kellogg's is called out next for selling popular cereals for the same price, albeit with a smaller amount of cereal, yet deceptively packaged in an even larger box. Certainly, the next time Kellogg's seeks to trumpet any sustainability or green initiatives, consumers should meet these claims with enormous skepticism for their greenwashing tactics.

It is important, too, to understand the concept of "skimpflation" in relation to the unethical shrinkflation tactics forced upon consumers. As Simonson explains in the video above, the more appropriate term to use for a cotton swab that features noticeably less cotton on the end of the stick — but is still sold in the same quantity as its comparatively beefier former version — is "skimpflation."

Essentially, the brand is skimping out on providing consumers with the same quality products as they once did.

From a precipitous decline in the quality of ingredients to product names that are inherently deceptive to consumers — such as California olive oil that is made from a pitifully small percentage of California olives — Simonson has a vast library of videos that empower consumers to make informed choices.

The next time you get an uneasy feeling in the pit of your stomach when recalling that older versions of products had far fewer quality control issues and better ingredients, trust your gut.