Coca-Cola fans’ love for the fizzy stuff continues to grow — even as the containers it comes in keep whittling down.
On Tuesday, the company reported an increase in sales at the start of the year, raking in $12.5 billion over three months and raising shares by 5% — a notable find, considering the simultaneous steadily rising costs of cans, bottles and packaging.
Increased conflict in the Middle East has also contributed to this price hike, as certain supplies, like PET plastic and aluminum, have become more difficult to acquire.
While other food and beverage companies struggle amidst changing times, company chief John Murphy disclosed that Coca-Cola has kept afloat — and thrived — due to selling slightly smaller bottles and cans of its products.
The practice is colloquially known as “shrinkflation,” meaning that the price appears lower, but consumers are really getting less for their money.
In a conference call with reporters, new Coca-Cola CEO Henrique Braun said that even under increased financial pressure, Coke fiends have held on tight to their favorite fizz. Still, he acknowledged this hasn’t been the case for everyone.
“While many consumers remain resilient, others are under pressure due to persistent inflation, greater macroeconomic uncertainty and volatilities driven by the conflict in the Middle East,” he explained.
Coca-Cola isn’t the only snacktime guilty pleasure that has undergone shrinkage.
A Reddit user recently shared comparison photos of two Chick-fil-A Deluxe Sandwiches — one from today, one from 2021 — where the latest version featured a significantly flatter patty.
“I went back to the store and told them that it looked like someone stepped on it … they remade it and still failed to make it at least resemble the photo I posted,” said the poster.
“Happened to every corporate entity in the world,” said one commenter, while others called it the latest iteration of “shrinkflation.”
In yet another instance, attentive Costco shoppers realized that the chain’s new brown butter sugar cookies, which currently include 21 cookies for $7.99, used to be sold in packs of 24.
“21 count? Man first they came for the muffins and then they came for the two dozen,” one rebuffed shopper wrote on Reddit.
It’s not just in the US, either.
Last summer, an “annoyed” Domino’s customer in Ireland went viral after pulling out a tape measure to prove that his BBQ Chicken-and-Bacon pie was not actually 7 inches, as he had assumed he was paying for.
“I went back down to work and realized it looked smaller than seven inches,” the pizza fanatic had said.
In addition to scaling back on serving sizes, Coca-Cola has been making other changes as well — such as focusing more on milk, tea and low-sugar drinks to meet changing consumer desires.
The company remains the top soda in the US in terms of sales, according to last month’s Beverage Digest sales report.
