Uncrunched

A couple of months ago I bought a large size Tang at Costco. This last week I bought another one. It has a good shelf life and, why not.

I didn’t notice anything until I put the new one next to the old one.

It’s quite a bit smaller. I noticed both said “Makes 22 Quarts.”

But the old one has 72 ounces of Tang and the new one has just 60 oz.

Is the new Tang more concentrated? Is that how less Tang powder makes the same volume of liquid Tang?

No. The nutritional information shows both with 88 servings (22 quarts). The new one is 70 calories per serving. The old one is 90 calories per serving.

Clearly, Kraft wants you to think you’re getting the same amount of Tang for the price (22 quarts), but the only way they make that happen is by having the customer dilute it about 20% more than before.

They even made the scoop smaller (a serving is half a scoop).

I’ve been reading about food inflation, particularly how some companies are selling packages with slightly less in them at the same price. A few ounces here, a few ounces there. Apparently we just tend to grab the same thing as before, and are more likely to notice a price change than a slight decrease in volume. Particularly if the packaging size stays the same.

But this is the first time I’ve seen a company actually try to pass off less product as not less.

I don’t see how this would differ from a milk producer only filling up 80% of a gallon container with milk, and adding water to make it a full gallon.

Anyway, nothing I’m going to get upset about, but it’s clear that companies are trying just about anything to hide inflation.

Yeah I agree with the President, it’s “repugnant and cowardly” to use children in political messages.

Sarcasm aside, as far as I can tell from reading between the lines, both sides of the debate are in favor of more police in schools. This is something the Democrats used to love (even Senator Chuck Schumer), so there doesn’t seem to be anyone to oppose it. I thought it was hypocritical of David Gregory to trash the idea since his own kids are guarded by armed security. Perhaps now he’ll be in favor of it via President Obama’s executive order.

I’d love to see any data on violent crime incidents in schools with and without police being present. I think that’s far more important than listening to the Democrats and Republicans bitch at each other.