... just one of 2,500 shrinkf lation products

THE Office for National Statistics has identified more than 2,500 products which have shrunk in size in recent years.

The products include chocolate, soft drinks, disposable nappies and toilet rolls. The figure compares with just 600 products in the study where the pack size had increased.

Toblerone has widened the gap between its famous triangles so there is less chocolate in each bar. Sharing bags of Maltesers have shrunk by 15 per cent and bags of Doritos have been cut from 200g to 180g.

Many manufacturers have shied away from blaming Brexit. But experts say the sudden drop in sterling is behind many of the switches, coupled with a desire to maintain profit margins.

‘The economics of production are obviously complex but currency swings and the cost of raw materials are going to be a big factor, with Brexit right at the heart of that,’ said Jamie Cartwright, of law firm Charles Russell Speechlys.

But he said the public reaction to Unilever’s attempt last year to cut a deal for higher prices with Tesco had made suppliers nervous.

He said: ‘There was a huge backlash last year when Unilever tried to raise the price of Marmite.

‘The message was: should I change the ingredients or the size of the pack before considering inflation-busting price increases?’

The ONS monitors changing pack sizes so it can include any shrinkage in its price inflation figures each month.

But it does not usually specify which brands have made changes.