‘The Bertolli meals are not enough for 2 people anymore’: Shopper speculates that Stouffer’s family-size frozen meals are getting smaller
If you've ever felt like product sizes are getting smaller but end up either staying the same price or costing slightly more, then you're not alone. "Shrinkflation" is very real, and while it's certainly not a new phenomenon, a lot of folks noticed during the great post-COVID-19 supply chain crisis that a lot of their most frequently used products were considerably 'shrink-flated.'
A viral TikTok posted by Shae (@shaelovve) touches on this phenomenon. In the seven-second video clip, Shae casts a suspicious look at a Stouffer's frozen meal while a voice overlay from Cardi B saying, "That's suspicious, that's weird" plays.
@shaelovve it’s giving both babe 🤣💁🏾♀️
♬ original sound - datz suspicious, datz weird
The text overlay on the clip reads: "Trying to figure out if the family sizes got smaller or if I got bigger."
The Daily Dot has reached out to Shae and Stouffer's via email for further comment.
Shae doesn't appear to be the only consumer who's taken issue with Stouffer's recently. In 2022, a Redditor accused the company of "price gouging" in a post stating that the cost of frozen meals from the brand skyrocketed in a short period of time.
They reference how Nestle, a company not necessarily known for its ethics as its CEO once said they thought the idea of water as a human right was extreme, owns Stouffer's.
Taking a look at different Stouffer's lasagna products from now (the beginning of 2023) and 2015, there does appear to be some discrepancies in items with similar descriptions. The 2023 Party Size Lasagna with Meat & Sauce, which boasts "2x the meat" weighs in at 90 ounces. A 2015 Party Size Five Cheese Lasagna from Stouffer's weighed 96 ounces.
There are other Reddit users who have noticed a discrepancy in Stouffer's Party Size lasagnas from the 2000s versus 2022, too.
AARP reported that some products have been hit worse by 'shrinkflation' than others, naming toilet paper, paper towels, cereals, detergents, pre-packaged snacks, shampoo and conditioners, and yogurts with the worst hits. One needn't look too far to find blatant examples of shrinkflation, either. Dollar Tree customers have pointed out that they're now paying more for less product at the popular discount retailer.
TikTokers who viewed Shae's clip expressed that they, too, felt like they've been receiving less and paying more for the same products over the years.
User @forgottenblueberry wrote, "my husband and I were just complaining about how the Bertolli meals are not enough for two people anymore."
Another wrote, "They got smaller. In the words of my oldest teenager 'I can eat this by myself. Bout to file taxes as head of household mom because it says family.'"
For some, they felt validated after watching Shae's post.
User @alimariee08 remarked, "I KNEW I WASNT TRIPPING WHEN I WAS LOOKING AT THEM AT WALMART.. I KEPT TELLING MY HUBBY IS IT ME OR ARE THEY REALLY SMALLER."
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