Cadbury has reduced the size of its family-size Dairy Milk chocolate bars by 10%, from 200g to 180g, while keeping the price unchanged. The move, attributed to rising production costs and inflation, was announced by US-based parent company Mondelez.
Mondelez cited higher costs for ingredients, energy, and packaging, as well as broader inflationary pressures. A spokesperson said the company had sought to absorb costs where possible but decided to reduce the weight for the first time since 2012 to maintain competitiveness and quality.
The reduction comes as the UK faces a cost-of-living crisis, with inflation reaching 6.2% last month and forecast to hit 8% in April. Cadbury joins other manufacturers in using 'shrinkflation'—reducing product size while maintaining price—to offset rising costs.
Previous examples include Walkers reducing crisp multipack sizes, Persil offering fewer washes per box, and Tesco cutting mozzarella cheese weight. The Office for National Statistics reported that 206 products shrank in size between September 2015 and June 2017, mostly food items.
