Shrinking products, rising prices: Food-specific quantity adjustments in the Consumer Price Index
Description: Shrinking products, rising prices: Food-specific quantity adjustments in the Consumer Price Index
The Consumer Price Index (CPI) measures changes to the prices and quantity of products over time. When a product is sold in a smaller quantity than before, but for the same price, this is often referred to as shrinkflation.
When a change to product sizing is captured, adjustments are made in the CPI to account for the impact on price. This process is referred to as “quantity adjustment.”
Most quantity adjustments made from 2021 to 2023 were for products in the food component of the CPI.
From 2021 to 2023, 29.6% of eligibleNote 1 grocery items tracked in the CPI experienced shrinkflation.
During this period, nearly half (49.5%) of instances of quantity adjustments occurred in 2022, when grocery inflation reached its highest annual average in 41 years (+9.8%).
Distribution of quantity adjustments made to food products, by yearNote 2
| Year | Distribution of instances of quantity adjustment by year |
|---|---|
| 2021 | 24.4% |
| 2022 | 49.5% |
| 2023 | 26.2% |
A much higher proportion of name-brand products (77.6%) than house-brand products (22.4%) experienced shrinkflation.
Food products with the most instances of shrinkflation
Product
Margarine
Pasta mixes
Cookies and crackers
Mozzarella cheese
Breakfast cereal and other cereal products
Cheddar cheese
Source: Statistics Canada, Consumer Price Index.
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