Not Fooled

Lately, I’ve been noticing the prices rising 10-20% at the grocery store.  I’m amused that the government doesn’t show this in their Consumer Price Index and inflation reports.

I’ve also notice a lot of subtle price increases that fly under the radar.  These hidden price increases piss me off more than the blatant price increases because there is an attempt to fool the consumer.

Notice the cereal box on the right is skinnier.  I paid the same price for both; the one on the left just a couple of weeks earlier.  The new one on the right contains 8% less cereal by weight.

There are people sitting around in a conference room, in a corporate office somewhere, making these decisions on how to deceive the consumer.  Doesn’t anyone have conscience anymore?

I recently bought a pint of sorbet, except it wasn’t a pint.  It was 15 ounces, one ounce short of a pint.  The next time I went to the store, I looked at the variety of frozen desserts and ice creams.  They all looked roughly the same size, but there was quite a variety of actual net content ranging from 13 to 16 ounces.

Sometimes I wish I was blissfully unaware of what’s going on.