shrinkflation

How are you preparing
jansman
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Re: shrinkflation

Post by jansman »

Arzosah wrote:
Good grief! I'm seriously impressed jansman, and humbled too. That's amazing, and congratulations. I'm planning, finally, to actually plant and harvest properly next year, now that the bulk of the building works and all the family disruptions are done. Fruit, perennials and perpetuals, thats my game, and that will help with food prices.

You have to work with what you have.Perennials are absolutely the way to go when space ,time and ( this applies to me),age starts to make itself known.Keeping on-topic,anything you can provide for yourself will help towards your personal economy.

On the Farming Today, R4 this morning there was a spokesman from the NFU.His dept.was export advice to UK farmers.He said that food inflation will certainly become a greater issue over the next couple of years.

So staying on track,Shrinkflation,and inflation too.As Preppers,what are our individual solutions?
In three words I can sum up everything I have learned about life: It goes on.

Robert Frost.

Covid 19: After that level of weirdness ,any situation is certainly possible.

Me.
grenfell
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Re: shrinkflation

Post by grenfell »

jansman wrote:
So staying on track,Shrinkflation,and inflation too.As Preppers,what are our individual solutions?
As such I don't think there is an actual solution. By that I mean anything we do won't affect the shrinkflation or whatever. We , or most on here , to one degree or another grow our own food but even if we were 100% self sufficient that won't stop chocolate bars shrinking in the same way as building a fall out shelter and buying NCB suits will make a nuclear war less likely.
That won't stop me growing my own food , repairing my own clothes , scavenging wood to heat the house but in the wider scheme of things it does very little. In some respects it could be argued that reducing the amount of stuff we buy , be it food or whatever , actually works against the economy as it means less wealth is traded , company profits drop and they are " forced" to cut corners just a little more.
There has been talk recently of the need to increase productivity . It ties in nicely with the living standards thread , better productivity means better wages so they say , but if we are more productive there should logically be more consumption and growing our own food goes against that whole ethos.
I'm reminded of a few episodes of the Good Life , one where they find they can grow enough to sustain them but then realise they need to grow soft fruits as a cash crop to provide at least some monetary income. Such an idea , a cash crop fruit or eggs or whatever , may be a practical " solution" to a problem we have no influence upon.
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Brambles
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Re: shrinkflation

Post by Brambles »

You're quite right Grenfell, there is little we can do about shrinkflation or inflation, But as you rightly say, a lot of us here do our bit to insulate ourselves from the consequences. Be that by making and growing our own food or foraging wood, or generating electricity, however small the amount. By doing this we have partly protected ourselves from the problem by relying less on things that attract shrink/inflation. But I can see that by doing so we are also adding to the problem with less input. OK, I think I've confused myself now :?
Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass, it's about learning to dance in the rain~anon
ForgeCorvus
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Re: shrinkflation

Post by ForgeCorvus »

Part of the problem is that most (All?) economic plans seem to be based on continual growth..... That way lies madness.

The more we (as in people, not as in preppers) rely on a broken system the worse its going to hurt when it all falls apart.

Look at the Weimar Republic in Germany during the 1920's, loads of money around and wages being increased all the time..... But needing a wheelbarrow to to carry the cash to pay for your groceries.

Twenty years ago I had to work for just over an hour to buy my tobacco, now I have to work for over an hour to buy the same quantity of tobacco. Bigger numbers but the same value.
jennyjj01 wrote:"I'm not in the least bit worried because I'm prepared: Are you?"
Londonpreppy wrote: At its core all prepping is, is making sure you're not down to your last sheet of loo roll when you really need a poo.
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mushroom
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Re: shrinkflation

Post by mushroom »

It's strange that while producers are decreasing the size of products (this seems to be definite thing with choclate manufacturers - Cadburys Dairy Milk and their Cream Eggs are other examples!) to keep their profit margins, most restaurants / fast food places have increased their portion sizes.

I watched some programme recently that gave statistics for how much McDonald's burgers have grown since they were first founded in the 50s! All to accomodate our expectation for larger portions now. Think to of all the super-size marketing initiatives some restaurants go to... ridiculously enormous burgers, stacks of panckaes whatever! And it all encourages food waste!
jansman
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Re: shrinkflation

Post by jansman »

mushroom wrote:It's strange that while producers are decreasing the size of products (this seems to be definite thing with choclate manufacturers - Cadburys Dairy Milk and their Cream Eggs are other examples!) to keep their profit margins, most restaurants / fast food places have increased their portion sizes.

I watched some programme recently that gave statistics for how much McDonald's burgers have grown since they were first founded in the 50s! All to accomodate our expectation for larger portions now. Think to of all the super-size marketing initiatives some restaurants go to... ridiculously enormous burgers, stacks of panckaes whatever! And it all encourages food waste!
Going back to my earlier post: Restaurants CAN increase portion sizes as the raw materials are so damned cheap.We are selling beef and pork into restaurants at prices from 25 years ago.That's how cheap food has gotten! However,when dealing with restaurants,those products are still not cheap enough! And heaven only knows how little they pay for fruoit and veg.
In three words I can sum up everything I have learned about life: It goes on.

Robert Frost.

Covid 19: After that level of weirdness ,any situation is certainly possible.

Me.
Stonecarver
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Re: shrinkflation

Post by Stonecarver »

jansman wrote:
mushroom wrote:It's strange that while producers are decreasing the size of products (this seems to be definite thing with choclate manufacturers - Cadburys Dairy Milk and their Cream Eggs are other examples!) to keep their profit margins, most restaurants / fast food places have increased their portion sizes.

I watched some programme recently that gave statistics for how much McDonald's burgers have grown since they were first founded in the 50s! All to accomodate our expectation for larger portions now. Think to of all the super-size marketing initiatives some restaurants go to... ridiculously enormous burgers, stacks of panckaes whatever! And it all encourages food waste!
Going back to my earlier post: Restaurants CAN increase portion sizes as the raw materials are so damned cheap.We are selling beef and pork into restaurants at prices from 25 years ago.That's how cheap food has gotten! However,when dealing with restaurants,those products are still not cheap enough! And heaven only knows how little they pay for fruoit and veg.

If raw materials are so cheap then why are consumers getting less and less all the time? Are companies just pocketing the extra money they save from shrinking products or is there some hidden inflation we cannot see. Or is it something else. Frankly cant see what reason there is .Wages are stagnant and most input costs are low. Heck most corporations hardly pay tax!
Not worried about powering the whole house,just eating hot food,getting a brew,seeing through the dark,and staying warm.
Jansman
jansman
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Re: shrinkflation

Post by jansman »

I can only speak about restaurants. I know that they have to gross at least 70% profit on a meal.I also know that they want ever cheaper ingredients. Its likely that to get the GP,then they chip the suppliers,chip the portions and increase the price.

Moving on to other goods,say Mars Bars or Persil wash powder,those firms have to make profits like the restaurants- or they die.However ,in those cases,they reduce the pack size as customer resistance is such that customers won't pay more.They know that customers will migrate to other brands,as they are fickle ( can you tell I have worked many years in food retail?)As I said earlier,the psyche of British consumers has been cheap,cheap,cheaper. I don't like paying more,but that's the way it is.

Regarding raw materials being cheap,its true.Now they are going up in price from a low base-point.The fact that stuff has been SO cheap for years,and now its going up,is why it is being noticed by the populace at large.
In three words I can sum up everything I have learned about life: It goes on.

Robert Frost.

Covid 19: After that level of weirdness ,any situation is certainly possible.

Me.
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Deeps
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Re: shrinkflation

Post by Deeps »

jansman wrote:I can only speak about restaurants. I know that they have to gross at least 70% profit on a meal.I also know that they want ever cheaper ingredients. Its likely that to get the GP,then they chip the suppliers,chip the portions and increase the price.

Moving on to other goods,say Mars Bars or Persil wash powder,those firms have to make profits like the restaurants- or they die.However ,in those cases,they reduce the pack size as customer resistance is such that customers won't pay more.They know that customers will migrate to other brands,as they are fickle ( can you tell I have worked many years in food retail?)As I said earlier,the psyche of British consumers has been cheap,cheap,cheaper. I don't like paying more,but that's the way it is.

Regarding raw materials being cheap,its true.Now they are going up in price from a low base-point.The fact that stuff has been SO cheap for years,and now its going up,is why it is being noticed by the populace at large.
Because we're a selfish bunch who want it all, good wages and cheap stuff, it leaves us more cash for the essentials like a new phone and a big telly. :lol:
Maybe an element of stirring there but people, especially in the 'first world' have got used to a great lifestyle and anything that compromises that is a threat.
jansman
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Re: shrinkflation

Post by jansman »

Bang on Deeps.In the UK food is about fourth on the list of household priorities.https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulation ... gmarch2016

On the graph in that link,food comes in below recreation.Tells a tale.Its because the price has meant it doesn't ( or wasn't) take up a great percentage of income.When we first got married,my grandmother told us that the secret to security was," rent first,food second,everything else third."

That ,anecdotally,shows how priority has changed.
In three words I can sum up everything I have learned about life: It goes on.

Robert Frost.

Covid 19: After that level of weirdness ,any situation is certainly possible.

Me.