Grocery bags may be lighter

The next time you buy a three-quart jug of orange juice, check the label.

You might be a few ounces shy.

The same is true throughout the supermarket. Not only are grocery prices rising, some ice creams, soaps, margarine and other products have been slimmed down, as food manufacturers look for alternatives to raising prices to offset their own rising costs.

Of course, putting less food into packages is another way of raising the price, but it’s one that may be less apparent.

“We haven’t seen a lot of it, but we’re hearing talk of more coming down the pike,” said Dean Sonnenberg, president and CEO of URM Stores Inc., a grocery distributor based in Spokane. “I think it’s going to be inevitable.”

Last month, Kellogg began putting 2.4 ounces less in each box of Froot Loops, Corn Pops, Cocoa Krispies and other cereals. Among other products that have downsized recently: Tropicana’s orange juice containers (from 96 ounces to 89); Country Crock spread; and some brands of mayonnaise and ice cream.

Companies cite their own skyrocketing costs as the reason for the changes.

Federal statistics show food costs this summer are running 5.5 percent ahead of last year. The Bureau of Labor Statistics says changes in product sizes are taken into account for the index when possible, though sometimes the changes are hard to spot.

Ken Rogers, a Spokane man who drives a truck for Oak Harbor Freight Lines, pays attention to labels. With fuel prices rising for everyone, he expects to see higher prices and other changes such as smaller packages.

“Instead of a 16-ounce beer you’re buying 14-ounce beer,” he said. “I think it’s somewhat deceitful, although I guess everything’s buyer beware.”

Some observers say consumers are less likely to notice a packaging change than a price increase – and that’s why companies do it. But Sonnenberg said food companies are careful to avoid trying to slip something past shoppers.

“Manufacturers are wary of doing that, simply because today’s consumer is very tuned into reading labels,” he said.

The consumer advocacy blog mouseprint.org has tracked this trend for months. Among its examples: Sparkle paper towels, which changed its “big” roll to a “giant” roll while reducing the number of sheets from 90 to 84.