Waitrose shoppers revolt as supermarket's toilet rolls become latest victim of shrinkflation
- Have you noticed an example of shrinkflation? Email [email protected] or [email protected]
Shoppers have been left flushed with anger after finding out posh supermarket Waitrose has decreased the size of their loo rolls.
Waitrose, owned by the John Lewis Partnership, cut the price of its own brand toilet roll from £5 for nine rolls to £4, claiming they were passing savings on to their customers.
But one eagle-eyed shopper David Winskill weighed the new and old loo rolls only to find they were now 40 per cent lighter.
Mr Winskill told The Times: 'I had just got home and taken them out of the packet to put away and it just felt less substantial. I was not about to start counting out the individual sheets, so I thought I would weigh them and it was 40 per cent different.
In the latest row over shrinkflation, which occurs when brands and supermarkets reduce the size of the products while charging the same amount for them, Waitrose has decreased the number of sheets per roll of its own brand lavatory paper from 240 to 190.
Waitrose has decreased the number of sheets per roll of its own brand lavatory paper from 240 to 190, while only dropping the price by £1
Waitrose, owned by the John Lewis Partnership, has come under fire from customers who have noticed the decrease in size of the Essential White Ultra Soft Bathroom Tissue
Although the product has become one pound cheaper, it has also reduced in size.
Mr Winskill, 68, added: 'I couldn't believe it... because they are smaller they will run out more quickly, so the reduced cost is meaningless. We're paying less to get less, and being told it is a better product.'
After noticing the stark difference, Mr Winskill approached Waitrose's customer services team.
Despite shopping at Waitrose in Crouch End, north London since it opened in 2009, Mr Winskill was left disappointed with their response.
'I was offered a £10 voucher and told that my views were very important, but it's Waitrose's way of fobbing us off,' he said.
'A touch of honesty and humility would be appreciated.'
Hundreds of loyal Waitrose fans have rushed to give the Essential White Ultra Soft Bathroom Tissue a similarly scathing review online.
At the time of writing this article, the product has received 293 one-star reviews, with many claiming they would give the new loo roll zero-stars if they could.
One angrily wrote: 'Poor quality since it’s been changed. Less sheets per roll and much flimsier. Don’t recommend and won’t be buying again in future.'
Waitrose shoppers have rushed to the supermarket's website to leave negative reviews
A spokesman for Waitrose said its 'embossed' toilet rolls were in line with those sold by competitors
A scandalised shopper said: 'This loo roll used to be really good quality and relatively good value. Now it is scratchy and has reduced massively in size. I used to only buy Waitrose toilet roll but not anymore! I would leave zero stars if I could.'
Another up-in-arms customer slammed the change in product as a 'colossal mistake' for the high-end supermarket chain.
A spokesman for Waitrose said its toilet rolls were in line with those sold by competitors.
Describing the change in product, he said: 'We recently embossed our rolls to give an improved texture, while also cutting the price to reflect the reduction in sheet count.
'We sincerely apologise if our partner's approach didn't reflect this standard and we're certain it wasn't their intention.'
But Waitrose is not the only one to have come under fire for alleged shrinkflation.
Food bosses at Arla, Unilever and Kraft Heinz were accused by MPs of taking shoppers for 'mugs' at an Environment, Food and Rural Affairs committee hearing.
Products across supermarket shelves have allegedly decreased in size including Hellman's mayonnaise which has gone from 800g to 600g.
Barry Gardiner, who led the line of questioning during the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (EFRA) committee hearing over profits made during the cost-of-living crisis
Bosses of Unilever and Kraft Heinz were accused of taking shoppers for 'mugs' at an Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (EFRA) committee hearing for shrinking their products
It was also revealed that Fairy's non-bio laundry powder XXL box was imposing secret price hikes on consumers by reducing the pack from 4,225g to 3,900g without any corresponding fall in price.
British favourite PG Tips The Tasty Decaf pyramid teabags went from containing 180 bags to just 140 at a number of supermarkets.
Also becoming noticeably smaller was Lurpak butter box, which went down from 500g to 400g.
Bas Padberg, the UK managing director of Arla Foods, tried to argue that the reduction in size was to help customers who are on a cheaper budget.
'It is really trying to serve consumers that are tightening their belts... to allow them to continue to get access to the product, and it was effective in that sense,' he said.
But most shockingly Listerine Fresh Burst mouthwash was reduced from 600ml to 500ml.
To add insult to injury, the product went up in price at Tesco by 52p, equating to a price rise of 46 per cent per 100ml.
A survey by Which? found 77 per cent of shoppers had spotted shrinkflation, where products are downsized without an equivalent price drop.
Which? retail editor, Ele Clark, said: 'While some popular products are subtly decreasing either in size or quality, the same can't be said for their prices – which means shoppers are inadvertently paying more for less.'
Which? also discovered that many products were downgraded to include fewer expensive ingredients - a phenomenon called skimpflation.
Customers already battling with the cost-of-living crisis are now claiming their favourite products are looking and tasting slightly different.
