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 the company's US parent, Mondelez.
Mondelez cited higher costs for ingredients, energy, and packaging, as well as broader inflationary pressures. A spokesperson said the company sought to absorb costs where possible but had to make the “difficult decision” to reduce the weight for the first time since 2012 to maintain competitiveness and quality.
The reduction comes as the UK faces its worst cost-of-living crisis in 30 years, with inflation reaching 6.2% last month and forecast to hit 8% in April. Cadbury joins a growing list of manufacturers resorting to “shrinkflation” – reducing product sizes while maintaining prices – to offset rising expenses.
Recent examples include Walkers reducing the number of crisps in multipacks, Persil offering fewer washes per box, and Tesco cutting the weight of its mozzarella cheese. According to the Office for National Statistics, 206 products shrank in size between September 2015 and June 2017, most of which were food items.
Cadbury previously reduced the size of its 49g bar to 45g in 2012 and its 140g bar to 120g a year earlier. In 2015, the company cut its Creme Egg packs from six to five with only a 20p price reduction.
