It’s only July but we’ve already seen tubs of a popular Christmas treat out on the shelves in supermarkets.
Tesco recently came under criticism from shoppers after they spotted Celebrations being sold, with people telling the retailer to ‘behave’ as there are still several months to go until December 25.
Tins and Tubs of Celebrations have been a festive favourite since the chocolates were first launched by Mars Wringley back in 1997.
However, over the last few years, you might have noticed that the iconic selection of sweets has undergone a major change — and it’s all to do with the size.
Metro.co.uk reported last Christmas that shrinkflation had caught up with Celebrations, with the tubs shrinking by 38% between 2008 and 2023. They went from 975g to just 600g over the course of 15 years, and it seems they’ve shrunk again over the last seven months.
Ahead of Christmas 2024, Mars has reduced the size of its Celebrations tub by 50g, with a warehouse worker sharing a look at the difference on X (formerly Twitter).
@ourdaysofhorror posted side by side snaps of the tubs, one at 600g and the new one that’s 550g, writing: ‘Wow! Just had a delivery of stock ready to be shipped out for Christmas. Celebrations tubs getting smaller each year!
‘@Tesco @asda gonna get a few disgruntled customers this Christmas. 600g tubs now 550g but price will inevitably go up!’
It’s fair to say shoppers already aren’t impressed, with @MonAbri2 replying: ‘Pretty soon it will just be a plastic box with one chocolate.’ While @angie_simson branded the whole thing ‘scandalous’, saying: ‘The amount of plastic in that tub for 550g of chocolates is scandalous.’
A spokesperson for Mars Wringley confirmed the change had been made, telling Metro.co.uk that the company had been ‘trying to find ways to absorb the rising costs of raw materials and operations’ but ‘unfortunately the growing pressures mean more needs to be done’.
They added: ‘Reducing the size of our products is not a decision we have taken lightly but it is necessary for shoppers to still be able to enjoy their favourite Celebrations treats without compromising on quality or taste.’
As well as reducing the number of sweets, the size of the tub itself has also shrunk in order to ‘reduce the plastic used in packaging by 17%’.
Mars Wringley could not confirm if the price of the chocolates would be reduced along with the size, as pricing is ‘at the sole discretion of the retailer’.
In other chocolate news, Cadbury has been involved in a ‘fiasco’ as fans keep mistaking the name of their new &More chocolate bars for something else entirely.
And a discontinued chocolate favourite from the 00s recently made a comeback on the shelves of Home Bargains, with shoppers proclaiming it ‘god’s gift’.
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