Chip lovers can expect larger portions of Doritos, Tostitos, Ruffles and Lay’s as PepsiCo responds to consumer complaints about “shrinkage.”
A PepsiCo representative said CNN customers would soon see 20% more tokens in Tostitos and Ruffles “bonus” bags, while prices would remain the same. The snack brand also reportedly plans to expand its 18-count variety packs to include 20 small bags.
Consumer advocate Edgar Dworsky reported in 2021 that some Tostitos products had shrunk by an ounce or two. Years earlier, he also reported that bags of Ruffles Sour Cream and Onion Crisps had become smaller. Dworsky told CNN he was happy to see PepsiCo giving its consumers more bang for their buck.
“It’s about time,” he said. “Crisp lovers have suffered years of downsizing.”
But PepsiCo’s reasons for adding more chips to its bags may not be entirely altruistic.
The company’s snack sales fell 1% last quarter, according to CNN, which noted that the price of snacks has increased faster than that of groceries as a whole — 36% since 2020, up from 21 % for all products.
The problem has been compounded by the fact that some companies offer fewer products for the same price.
Shrinkflation, a term describing this process, has been dismissed as greed by critics, including President Joe Biden and Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren.
Research shows that potato chip sales have declined as customers seek greater value.
According to CNN, many consumers who did not limit their consumption of salty snacks turned to cheaper branded products rather than traditional chips made by multinational companies.
Fewer Doritos in your bag.
Fewer Oreos in your box.
Less toilet paper on your roll.You can’t imagine it: big companies make you pay the same amount (sometimes more) for less. This is called “Shrinkflation,” and we need to clamp down on it.
-Elizabeth Warren (@ewarren) February 6, 2024
One analyst told CNN that he expects other snack brands to follow PepsiCo’s lead in increasing the quantity of products.
PepsiCo did not respond to a request from the Daily News for confirmation.
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