"Toilet paper is shrinkflation at its absolute worst," laments writer Mark Dent over at the Hustle. His deep dive into the ever-dwindling size of the rolls confirms what many have suspected for some time. Yes, your toilet paper is probably running out more quickly, and Dent has brought the receipts. He began by going on eBay and tracking down a package of Charmin Ultra from 1992 with 170 single-ply sheets per roll. By comparison, a regular roll today has 56 sheets and even a "double" roll 154, he writes. As part of his quest, Dent connected with consumer advocate Edgar Dworsky, whose collection of vintage TP goes back even further. In the '70s, a Charmin roll had 650 single-ply sheets, but began shrinking consistently over the years. It was down to 400 in 1979.
Roll size tells one story, but another undeniable marker of shrinking TP is how much it weighs. Dent writes that a four-pack of Scott, which advertises 1,000 sheets per roll, weighs about a pound, down from 2 pounds a decade ago. "They know consumers are not net weight conscious," says Dworsky. "They know they're price conscious. So if they can try to avoid raising the price by giving the consumer less, that's what they do." The story explores all facets of the issue: smaller sheets, prices in the pulp industry, confusing lingo ("mega," "double, "super mega," etc.) and more. But the takeaway is that consumers are paying more money for less product when compared to years ago. (Read the full report here.)
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