You pay the same. You carry the same bag. You get home and the food finishes quicker. That is the new reality in many Ghanaian markets.
What we are really talking about
Shrinkflation is hidden inflation. The price tag stays; the quantity inside quietly drops. A pack that was 500 grams becomes 400 grams at the same twenty cedis. A drink that was 500 milliliters is now 400 in the same bottle.
In its more deceptive form, it shows as skimpflation, where not just size but quality is cut, more cassava in the kenkey, less oil in the shito, thicker plastic and deeper grooves at the bottom of the gallon to make it look full. For the shopper who does not carry a scale, the change is almost invisible. For the household budget, it is very visible.
Why it is a grievous marketing sin
Marketing rests on one thing, perceived value. People do not just buy a product, they buy the belief that what they get matches what they paid. Good marketing aligns that belief with reality. Shrinkflation deliberately breaks that alignment.
There is also the idea of fairness in exchange. Consumers feel good not only when the product is good, but when the deal feels honest. When they discover later that the olonka was adjusted or the loaf was made smaller, that good feeling turns to feeling cheated.
Trust, which is the foundation of relationship marketing, is withdrawn. This is why it is grievous. In a market where most transactions have no receipt and no return policy, trust is the contract. Once you play with trust to protect margin, you mortgage your brand equity. Equity takes years to build and one market day to lose.
What happens to those who do it
At first, it works. Consumers are more sensitive to a price increase than to a small size cut, so sales do not drop immediately. The trader survives the month. The factory keeps its workers. Then the market talks. In Kumasi, Accra, Takoradi, word of mouth is still the biggest advertising channel.
One woman notices her gari finishes in three days instead of four. She tells two neighbors. Those two tell the church group. The seller who cut size quietly becomes known as the one who does not give full measure. Loyalty ends.
People do not confront, they just walk to the next stall and never return. What was saved in grams is lost in lifetime customer value. Brands that become known for honest measure, even when times are hard, earn moral equity. People queue for them because they are sure.
How it touches households, society and the nation
In the home, it hurts nutrition and planning. Most Ghanaian families spend more than half of their income on food. When four sachets are needed where three used to be enough, mothers must find extra money or reduce portions.
Budgeting becomes guesswork. In society, it breeds cynicism. When everyone suspects everyone is cutting, no one trusts anyone. The market shifts from relationship to transaction. Search cost rises. People spend more time checking, comparing, arguing.
That is bad for commerce. For the nation, it distorts the story we tell ourselves. Official inflation is now down to 4.6 percent after the crisis years. That recovery is real, driven by stable cedi and fuel relief. But if local products are shrinking while price is flat, the inflation households feel is higher than the figure reported.
It also damages Made in Ghana. If a local 5-kilogram bag of rice is actually 4.5 kilograms, the imported 5 kilogram bag at a similar price suddenly looks more honest. Local pride suffers.
It is already in our markets
Look closely and you will see it. The ball of kenkey is smaller for the same price. The olonka of gari has been adjusted to hold less. The common biscuits that were eight per pack are now seven. Bottled malt and soft drinks have moved from 500 to 400 milliliters without change in bottle shape.
Portions of waakye, gob3 and fried rice have reduced while the price held. Sachet water and cooking oil show same price but lower volume. These are not isolated cases, they are a pattern.
What other countries have learnt
Other economies stopped preaching and started demanding transparency. Brazil now compels manufacturers to print clearly on the pack for six months that content has changed, stating old and new weight. Austria requires a shelf notice for sixty days that unit price has risen because size dropped.
The European Union makes unit pricing compulsory, so every tag must show price per kilo or per litre in bold. You cannot hide a size cut when the per kilo price jumps. Developing countries have done similar. India treats quantity as a consumer right under its Consumer Protection Act. The principle is the same everywhere. You can change size when costs rise. You cannot hide it.
How we can handle it here
The fix is not complex, it is honesty and enforcement. Locally, we must bring back one true measure. One olonka must weigh the same in every market. Assemblies and market leaders should certify scales, weigh bread and verify oil gallons.
It is small daily work, but it rebuilds confidence at the stall. Regionally, councils with Ghana Standards Authority should audit and teach. Not to punish, but to publish what is happening.
A simple poster each month showing the standard weight of gari, rice and oil keeps everyone honest. Nationally, we need three firm rules. Make unit pricing compulsory so every shelf shows price per kilo or per liter.
Require disclosure for sixty days whenever size drops at the same price. And give consumers a simple channel to report with a photo when they suspect shrinkflation. If you must cut size because flour or fuel is high, say it. Move from 500 to 450 grams and tell the buyer. In an economy now moving from crisis to stability, honesty will sell more than a hidden cut ever will.
By Dr. Ebenezer Arthur Duncan
The writer is a lecturer at University of Professional Studies, Marketing Department
