Status: 01/23/2023 11:59 am
The Hamburg consumer advice center has announced the winner of the negative prize “Deceptive Packaging of the Year”. In the “Rama” 2022 there was less fat for the same price. Other manufacturers also saved on quantities.
“Rama” is the “cheat pack of the year” 2022. Since last year, the spreadable fat from the manufacturer Upfield has been sold with 400 instead of 500 grams at the same price in a can of the same size. The product was 25 percent more expensive, as criticized by the Hamburg consumer advice center.
Every year it organizes the election of the “deceptive package of the year”. This time, 34,293 people voted online for the award of the negative prize, which is twice as many participants as in the previous year, as the consumer advice center further announced.
Poorly communicated volume cuts
According to the consumer advice center, the “Leerdammer” sliced cheese came second as a deceptive package. Its content shrank from 160 to 140 grams, although “permanently 1 slice more” had been promised.
The water softener “Calgon”, the “Goldbears” from Haribo and “Pringles” chips came in third to fifth. Here, too, poorly communicated volume reductions or a different dosage recommendation (“Calgon”) were reasons for a nomination.
“Price transparency more important than ever”
The list of nominees goes back to tips and complaints from the past year. “Price transparency is more important than ever, especially in times of crisis like these, when the cost of living has risen sharply,” says consumer advocate Armin Valet. In the past year, significantly more references to “less-in tricks” from companies have been received, it said.
The Hamburg consumer center called on the legislature to better protect consumers from hidden price increases. Stricter rules are needed: Packs must always be full, only in exceptional cases should a technically necessary airspace be allowed. With reduced filling quantities, the packs would also have to be correspondingly smaller, demanded the consumer advice center.