Shrinkflation: Government will force distributors to report practices on packaging

Will consumers next year be better informed about the quantities contained in the packages they buy? The government wants more transparency about the practice of “shrinkflation” that many agri-food producers are now accustomed to.

What does it consist of? Reduce the volume of product in packaging, while maintaining the price, or even increasing it. The commercial maneuver is certainly legal, but is causing outrage among households that have been suffering from severe consumer price inflation for more than a year.

“This is a fraud, this is scandalous,” Economy Minister Bruno Le Maire said indignantly in France Info on September 7. Essentially, you get less and pay more. This practice is growing, but we are not here to line the pockets of industrial giants. »

Therefore, the Executive has just notified the European Commission of a draft decree that it plans to impose on distributors (and not to the manufacturers themselves) add a warning to packages when this practice is proven.

Carrefour already does this

“If the Commission does not comment on the proposed project, publication in the Official Journal could take place at the end of March 2024,” said the office of Trade Minister Olivia Gregoire, thus confirming the BFM information. Distributors themselves regularly condemn the practice, and some, such as Carrefour, have even installed visible displays informing consumers of the changes that certain products may be subject to. »

This warning may take the form of a label, such as affixed “directly to the packaging” or “attached to or placed adjacent to the product,” which will clearly state the weight reduction. Thus, the buyer will be able to read, using symbols “of the same size as that used to indicate the price of the product”, the fact that “the quantity sold has increased from such and such a quantity to such and such a quantity”, indicating – as a percentage or in real value – rising prices.

In case of non-compliance with the new rule, distributors will be subject to “an administrative fine, the amount of which can reach 3,000 euros for an individual and 15,000 euros for a legal entity,” the draft resolution specifies. However, convenience stores and small local grocery stores will not be affected.