Trading Standards Shrinkflation and Excess Packaging Project

Between 17 November and 12 December, Aberdeenshire Council's Trading Standards department will be assessing the effects of shrinkflation and excessive packaging. Officers will visit local businesses to check compliance with weights and measures laws and The Packaging (Essential Requirements) Regulations 2015. These rules limit packaging weight, volume, and toxic metals to reduce waste and environmental impact.

Let's talk about 'shrinkflation'
Shrinkflation happens when companies make products smaller or give you less of them but keep selling them anyway. It's not illegal - businesses can do this as long as they're honest about how much you're getting on the label. So, if they change a 500g item to 400g, it's okay as long as the new package says 400g.

However, it is also the case that short weight products remain against the law, so where businesses do not change the labelling and lower the product size or cut corners causing their products to become short weight, an offence can occur. We also recognise that from a consumer perspective this is frustrating - so we want to hear your thoughts on shrinkflation.

Excess packaging
The Packaging (Essential Requirements) Regulations require packaging volume and weight to be ‘limited to the minimum adequate amount to maintain the necessary level of safety, hygiene and acceptance for the packed product and for the consumer’. It should be designed to keep the level of hazardous materials contained within to a bare minimum; it should also be if possible designed to be recycled, composted or incinerated for energy recovery.

As such products with an excess of packaging, especially where it isn't recyclable, aren't compliant with these regulations. It’s estimated that over ten million tonnes of packaging waste is produced in the UK every single year!

Has this happened to you in a local business? What products have been affected?
We are asking members of the public to take part in our survey to let us know about any particularly bad items they have encountered. Please find the link below – the survey will be open from the 25 Nov to 6 Dec. After this time, please feel free to contact us directly via our email address.

We request contact details in the survey to follow up if a criminal practice is suspected. However, your information remains anonymous unless you explicitly allow us to disclose it. Please read our privacy notice for more information on how we use your data.

Advice for Retailers & Manufacturers
Below can be found guidance on Business Companion on compliance with these regulations, or you can contact us on trading.standards@aberdeenshire.gov.uk for free and confidential business advice from our Trading Standards team.

https://www.businesscompanion.info/en/quick-guides/weights-and-measures
https://www.businesscompanion.info/en/quick-guides/miscellaneous/composition-and-use-of-packaging