r/foodscam Sep 16 '24

deceptive packaging Fresh box of cereal

Post image
422 Upvotes

28 comments sorted by

103

u/bomboclawt75 Sep 16 '24

I’m almost sure that this is brand as opposed to store brand.

At some point they will have to make the box a lot smaller so that the scam is less obvious.

61

u/Barthelomule Sep 16 '24

Fresh box of LIES

22

u/DistantDolphins Sep 17 '24

Deliciously re-buyable lies :(

4

u/Zestyclose_League813 Sep 18 '24

Just depends on what the weight on the outside of the box says.

39

u/cool_weed_dad Sep 17 '24

This sub needs a rule about food sold by weight

3

u/SimpleVegetable5715 Sep 18 '24

And people shaking the bag to make the contents even more settled towards the bottom. It's a two-dimensional picture, but there's clues that's what's been done.

30

u/Valerian_ Sep 17 '24

Ok but does it weight the same as advertised?

9

u/Equivalent-Iron5824 Sep 18 '24

THAT is the point! Sold by WEIGH, not volume...

27

u/PremiumUsername69420 Sep 16 '24

How much taller was it before you let it settle and the sides bulge out beyond the confines of a box?

34

u/mosesdag Sep 17 '24

ok but come on!!! that’s barely any cereal

3

u/tropicalturtletwist Sep 17 '24

It looks that way, but those granola-based cereals are really filling. You need a LOT less of those in a sitting to feel full than you would other cereals.

6

u/DistantDolphins Sep 17 '24

It’s literally 1/2 the height of the box it came in if that

18

u/sususushi88 Sep 17 '24

Cereal is sold by weight. Weight it.

21

u/DistantDolphins Sep 17 '24

It’s still deceptive, they could half the size of the box and the cereal would still fit in with room to spare. Can’t expect everyone to carry scales around with them 24/7

9

u/Laudanumium Sep 17 '24 edited Sep 17 '24

Many supermarket just have them around ... Find them at the fresh produce.

I'll bet if you weigh the box, it's around 3% heavier then what's on the box. Product is weighed before it's filled. The line is being costly checked on weight before sending out.

It's your (well anyone's) perception, big is better/heavier. Also a big box has more colors and attractive pictures, it's basic marketing

4

u/DistantDolphins Sep 17 '24

I’m not convinced this is a good enough argument for this to not been seen as a food scam. Yes supermarkets have scales, but in the fresh produce bit, no one goes and weighs boxes of cereal, plus I wouldn’t know if 500g’s of that cereal fills the box or what, if the product isn’t filling the packaging it comes in, I should be able to see inside just how much I’m buying.

So If 60% of the box isn’t needed, they shouldn’t be allowed to sell it like that as it’s misleading & wasteful. If they cut out the unused box space they could free up 50% more shelf space for more products as well.

0

u/Laudanumium Sep 17 '24

You aren't paying for size, you're paying for weight. What does it matter if you are buying 500gr in a 12x10 box or 500gr in a 30x40 box.

And as I said the weight won't be off by more then a few grams here, and mostly you're getting more.

I work packaging frozen vegetables, our fillrate for 500gr is reject at 10gr underweight, but only .2% of 1000 packages ( that is two per 1000 ) The overweight rejection is 30gr, and 1% We have fitting packaging, because transport is expensive.

Cereal is more fragile over frozen food, so there also has to be some room in the box.

15

u/itemluminouswadison Sep 16 '24

Dump it out then dump it back in, does it fill up?

Settling is a very real thing

Also, measure the weight, does it match what's written on the box?

3

u/ReallyWTH Sep 17 '24

Some settling may occur during shipping. LOL

2

u/KBGtheMemeLord Sep 17 '24

That’s a bag

6

u/Yellowpickle23 Sep 17 '24

Not a food scam if it weighs the same as the box says it does.

With that said, HUGE asshole move on their part. Shrinkflation, they don't want to scare off buyers by higher prices, so they keep the price the same, give you less.

1

u/DeGreenster Sep 18 '24

Yeah what does the net weight say? and is the weight pretty much accurate? Who cares how much air is in the bag if the weight is accurate

1

u/ajkimmins Sep 19 '24

They sell by weight. Yes they use a big box to make it look "bigger".

1

u/coulqats55 Sep 19 '24

What cereal brand is this? Looks yummy

1

u/Nottamused- Sep 20 '24

If only somebody could fix it.

1

u/mulattoo Sep 20 '24

what cereal is this it looks really yummy

0

u/titus-andro Sep 18 '24

Food is sold by weight, not volume

0

u/as1992 Sep 19 '24

ITT: People who think not reading the weight of a product makes a scam.