It started with the crackers. The boxes on the grocery store shelves were shrinking. Or was I getting bigger, trapped in some weird Alice-In-Wonderland fantasy? I was paying the same or more for a box of crackers that was noticeably smaller— Barbie-small in fact. Which would be cute if I too was Barbie-small, living in my Barbie house, with a hunky but tiny Ken… friend? But I’m not.
Who Are They Trying to Fool?
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I resented the burgeoning prices and shrinking packages enough, but the real issue was I felt they were trying to fool me. Maybe they think I’ll get used to these new packages and forget about the old ones. Or maybe they just know how easy it is to take advantage of busy parents. If you’re like me, your goal is to get in and out of the grocery store as quickly as possible to get it over with (I’m the one half riding on my cart and pretending not to run like a kid at a pool).
Ice Cream You Scream
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Well, I got past the cracker thing (kind of), I actually don’t buy many crackers anyway. But when those tiny containers infiltrated the ice cream aisle, I decided they had gone too far. Ice cream is sacred territory, even for a vegetable lover like me. It has always come in a half-gallon container as long as I have been alive (don’t ask). This was sacrilege! And yet, like everyone else, I did nothing but gripe to myself, and watch as my teenage son consumed the 1.5 quart container in two or three servings.
It’s on the Rise
Now my bread is shrinking, and yes, size does matter. I’ve discovered this the hard way. Oh, but those yeasty, airy types are so much more clever than the cracker people, or so they think. Rather than downsizing the package, they just sliced the loaf thinner. Who would ever notice? I did when I tried to spread peanut butter on my favorite wheat bread, and it ripped in my hand. And when I pulled a piece out of the toaster, it was so thin that a corner of it tore off and fell into the place where other lost crumbs call home, venting their charred existence every time I use the toaster.
You Have a Voice— It’s Called Food Dollars
What can you do? Call or email the manufacturer. You may feel like the lone ranger, but if it’s bothering you and me, there may be thousands of other people who are of the same mind. Also remember that whether its package sizes, HFCS or genetically modified products that are unlabeled, your food dollars do count. And you don’t need to go further than the end of your basket to vote. Let the scanner do the talking, and eventually someone will take notice.
