PARIS, April 19 (Reuters) - French retailers will have
to notify shoppers when products have been reduced in size
without a corresponding cut in prices in an effort to tackle
so-called shrinkflation, the finance ministry said on Friday.
Shrinkflation has become a headache for consumers and
governments alike as households have struggled to cope with
dwindling purchasing power in the face of surging inflation in
recent years.
From July, French retailers will have to display for two
months when food and other common consumer goods products like
detergent have been downsized in a way that causes the unit
price to go up, the ministry said.
"Shrinkflation is a rip-off, we're putting an end to it. I
want to rebuild consumers' confidence and confidence goes hand
in hand with transparency," Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said
in a statement.
Food prices became a major political issue in France last
year after food inflation hit a record 16% following annual
price negotiations between suppliers and retailers.
In reaction, the government passed a law to bring forward
negotiations for this year and put pressure on companies to
limit price hikes.
Supermarket chain Carrefour voluntary slapped price warnings
on some products last September to put pressure on big consumer
goods producers like Nestle, PepsiCo and Unilever ahead of
annual price negotiations.
(Reporting by Leigh Thomas
Editing by Mark Potter)
Nestlé S.A. is the world's leading agri-food group. Net sales break down by category of products as follows:
- powdered and liquid beverages (26.7%): soluble coffees (Nescafé and Starbucks brands), coffee in capsules (Nespresso), chocolate drinks (Nesquik, Milo, etc.), tea drinks (Nestea), etc.;
- pet food (20.3%): brands such as Purina, Friskies, Felix, etc.;
- pharmaceutical, nutrition and well-being products (16.4%): nutritional supplements (Resource, Boost, Nutren, Optifast, Peptamen brands, etc.), infant and maternal nutrition products (NAN, illuma, Cerelac, Nido, Gerber), ketogenic beverages (BrainXpert), (Nesquick, Fitness, Cheerios, Lion, etc.), etc.;
- ready meals and seasoning products (12.5%): frozen and chilled dishes (Lean Cuisine, Hot Pockets and Stouffer's brands), soups (Maggi), etc.;
- dairy products and ice cream (11.8%): powdered milk, sweetened condensed milk, yoghurt and cream desserts, ice cream (Nido, Nesvita, Carnation, La Laitière, Coffee Mate, Nestlé Ice Cream, Dreyers, Häagen-Dazs, Extrême brands, etc.);
- chocolates, sweets and biscuits (8.7%): Kit Kat, Smarties, Cailler, Terrafertil, etc. brands;
- bottled waters (3.6%): Nestlé Pure Life, Vittel, Perrier, S. Pellegrino, etc. brands.
Net sales are distributed geographically as follows: Switzerland (1.2%), France (3.8%), the United Kingdom (3.8%), Germany (2.4%), Europe (12.8%), the United States and Canada (35%), China (5.9%), Asia and Oceania (21.4%) and Latin America (13.7%).
NESTLÉ S.A. 
