Shrinkflation, this practice by some food manufacturers that consists of reducing the weight of a product while maintaining its price or even increasing it, continues to spark controversy.
Described as a “scam” by Bruno Le Maire, Minister of the Economy, the distributor has been vigorously denouncing it for several days. Like Michel Biero, executive director of purchasing and marketing at Lidl France.
However, the manager qualifies the phenomenon: “We have to be moderate, there are not hundreds of products, but it is true that some multinationals play this game, intentionally.”
Pressure
The truth is that the distribution giants now intend to put pressure on the manufacturers. Carrefour, for example, will put labels on these lighter and more expensive products.
Lidl will not go that far because it has “very few national brands” on its shelves. But Michel Biero explains that he has the “right to reject” these products. “I say no, unless the manufacturer marks it on the packaging and at that point there are no worries.”
On Thursday, the Minister of Economy confirmed that in the text of the law to be presented in early October, aimed at advancing trade negotiations between distributors and manufacturers, “there will be a provision that will force manufacturers to appear in a very visible reducing content by maintaining the same packaging”.
If Lidl does not practice shrinkage, it can sometimes still reduce the weight of its products, but also the price. “What I can do is say: ‘I have a kilo of chicken that I sold for 10 euros, today I sell 500 grams for 5 euros.’
The delegate minister in charge of SMEs, trade, crafts and tourism, Olivia Grégoire, has already commissioned the National Consumer Council to carry out an investigation into this practice.
Source: BFM TV
