This Halloween, chocolate lovers may face higher prices for their favorite treats, driven by a recent surge in cocoa costs. Even if prices remain stable, consumers might still end up paying more due to shrinkflation, a strategy where companies reduce product weight without adjusting prices.
Researching online ads for Halloween candy from October 2024, CBC News uncovered that major chocolate manufacturers, Mars Inc. and the Hershey Company, decreased the weight of various Halloween chocolate bar variety packs this year by up to nearly 17 percent. Despite this weight reduction, the number of candy bars in the variety packs remains the same as in 2024.
Both Mars and Hershey cited evolving consumer preferences as reasons for the product changes, without providing specific examples. In other instances of shrinkflation, companies have justified weight reductions as a means to offset increased production expenses.
Jordan LeBel, a food marketing professor at Concordia University in Montreal, highlighted that companies employ various tactics to maintain profitability without overtly raising prices. As Canadians grapple with escalating grocery costs, there are calls for greater transparency from food producers regarding product downsizing to enable consumers to make more informed decisions.
The price of cocoa has more than doubled in recent years, primarily due to adverse weather conditions in West Africa, the leading global cocoa supplier, leading to poor harvests. The small-scale nature of many cocoa farms in the region poses challenges for swift recovery and impacts supply chain stability.
Statistics Canada reports a 10 percent increase in confectionery prices, including chocolate, over the past year. Despite this, online ads for Halloween specials at a Toronto No Frills in both 2024 and 2025 showed consistent pricing for Mars “fun size” candy bar boxes. However, a closer inspection revealed a significant weight reduction in the 2025 box compared to the 2024 edition.
Further investigation revealed similar instances of shrinkflation in other Mars “fun size” packs, including a notable weight decrease in a 25-candy bar pack. Mars declined to offer a direct explanation for the weight reductions, emphasizing their commitment to delivering value and adapting to changing consumer preferences.
Similarly, analyzing ads from a No Frills store in North Bay, Ont., for Hershey’s Halloween mini-candy bars packs in 2024 and 2025 revealed weight reductions without corresponding price adjustments. Hershey attributed these changes to periodic adjustments in candy assortments to align with consumer preferences.
Calls for action against shrinkflation have been made in countries like France and Brazil, where regulations mandate notifications to consumers when products shrink in size. Canadian consumer advocate De Bellefeuille advocates for similar requirements in Canada to ensure transparency in product changes.
While implementing such regulations presents challenges, the Canadian government has initiated steps to address consumer concerns, including investigating shrinkflation through a grocery task force. Innovation, Science and Economic Development (ISED) Canada has funded research projects into harmful retail practices, including shrinkflation, and offers online tools like the Food Price Data Hub to empower Canadians with information for informed grocery shopping decisions.
