Cadbury fans have hit out at the chocolate giant after it was revealed that it has reduced the size of Dairy Milk sharing bars by 10%.
Parent company Mondelez blamed rising inflation in the production of its chocolate as it reduced the size of its larger bars from 200g to 180g. The popular chocolate bar, while now smaller in size, is still being sold for £2.
Mondelez said the shrinkflation – reducing the size of a product but keeping its price the same in order to improve profitability – was the first by Dairy Milk in a decade, reports WalesOnline . In 2012, a 49g bar was reduced to 45g but the price remained 59p; a year earlier the 140g chocolate bar was reduced in size to 120g.
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Shoppers have been left disappointed with the news and many have taken to social media to share their thoughts. Among them, one person said: “It’s reported that Cadbury has shrunk the size of its Dairy Milk sharing bars by 10%, but will not reduce the price for customers. Easy option for me no more of these bars! I'll stick to a #Yorkie”.
A second wrote: “So Cadbury as shrunk the size of its dairy milk sharing bars by 10%, but not reduced the price, well Cadbury there’s a f****** easy way round that problem, do what I’m gonna do, stop f****** buying it.”
A third added: “Cadbury has shrunk the size of a dairy milk bar??? Tragic” and a fourth said: “I can cope with rising fuel costs, rising electricity bills and rising gas prices but the thought of smaller Dairy Milk bars really does take the (chocolate) biscuit.”
Another wrote: “I’m outraged that they're making the dairy milk bars smaller even if I can't remember the last time I bought one”.
The shrinkflation comes as the cost of living crisis gathers pace, with accelerating food inflation placing pressure on UK households. Last week, Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation struck a new 30-year-high of 6.2% for February and is expected to soar beyond 8% in the coming months.
A Mondelez spokesman said: “We’re facing the same challenges that so many other food companies have already reported when it comes to significantly increased production costs – whether it’s ingredients, energy or packaging – and rising inflation.
“This means that our products are much more expensive to make. We understand that consumers are faced with rising costs too, which is why we look to absorb costs wherever we can, but, in this difficult environment, we’ve had to make the decision to slightly reduce the weight of our medium Cadbury Dairy Milk bars for the first time since 2012, so that we can keep them competitive and ensure the great taste and quality our fans enjoy.”
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