“Shrinkflation” is all too common these days, but thanks to one savvy grocery shopper, deceptive ice cream makers are getting their just desserts.
In general, shrinkflation refers to items shrinking in size and quantity while their price remains the same, and it turns out that even our favorite frozen treat isn’t immune from this arguably shady business practice.
Melissa Simonson (@realmelissasimo) frequently discusses shrinkflation and other economic concepts that affect our day-to-day lives on her TikTok account. And in a recent video, during which she wanders the frozen aisle of the supermarket, she explained exactly what it means when ice creams are described as “slow churn.”
“One thing companies do to save money in grocery stores, especially in the ice cream section is that they will put more air into the ice cream, and they’ll create an amazing slogan or campaign calling it ‘slow churn’ or ‘deluxe churned’ or ‘whipped,'” she explained. “This means that they’ve pumped more air into it and some people put it that way because it makes it easier to scoop out. […] Whipped is just short for less in there but easier to serve.”
@realmelissasimo Which do you prefer? #icecream #skimpflation #shrinkflation #marketing #groceryshopping ♬ original sound – Melissa Simonson
The concept of slow churn products was previously called out in a 2009 article by Slate, with journalist Jill Hunter Pellettieri writing, “In the ice cream business these days, ‘churned’ is just a clever marketing ploy, a euphemism for low-fat.”
Meanwhile, a reporter on the news station Chronicle 5 WCVB claimed that churning ice cream in this way leads to “more ice, and less cream.”
This definition of slow-churned ice cream is also corroborated on Quora, as one user notes how “the slower churning process is believed to produce a denser and creamier texture with fewer ice crystals.”
So, it looks like Melissa definitely has a point, although it’s not explicitly stated that slow churning is always intentional in this way. Nonetheless, numerous commenters decried what they called the “corporate greed of America.”
“Those ice creams used to be 99 cents just a couple years ago,” one commenter wrote.
“Don’t forget, they’re paying less to ship all of these products too!” another added.
“This is the kind of information everyone needs to see,” a third noted.
But not everyone was necessarily against whipped food in principle, as numerous commenters pledged their love for other whipped products like whipped cheese in particular.
Melissa didn’t immediately respond to Daily Dot’s request for comment via TikTok comment.
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