Thursday, May 15, 2008
I scream, you scream, we all scream about the price of ice cream.
The latest scream comes from consumer advocate Edgar Dworsky of Somerville, who pointed out in the Boston Herald the other day that the makers of several popular brands of ice cream, including Edy's and Breyer's, have taken a slyness approach to hiking prices - slim down their packages from 56 ounces to 48 ounces, while holding the price the same.
Ice cream has been on a weight-loss program for some time. The first wave of ice cream downsizing took place five years ago, when most manufacturers, faced with sharp increases in costs for ingredients such as vanilla, downsized their 64-ounce cartons to 56 ounces. Manufacturers say the latest reductions again are due to rising costs of ingredients, particularly cream, and the rising cost of fuel needed to produce and transport ice cream.
The brunt of the change on require is unclear. The latest figures from the International Ice Cream Association, for 2006, point out Americans spent nearly $23 billion on ice cream and other freezing desserts, and consumption was up marginally by 0.7 percent over the previous year. It seems nothing beats a bowl of ice cream now and then.
The days of the conventional half-gallon may be gone forever, but even those consumers who recognize they are paying more do not seem to be getting all that churned up about it.
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posted by kanth
@ 6:28 AM
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