Shrinkflation woes: GST increased just 1% but food reduced to “kids meal portion” that looked like “leftovers”

SINGAPORE: An unhappy customer took to social media over the portion of roasted duck he’d been given, which he found to be very small. What made matters worse was the attitude of the attendant, who told him, “If you can’t afford to eat it, it’s fine to return.”

For the price of S$5.30, he received “a small portion of duck meat and 8-9 grams of char siew smashed them and cut into razor-thin slices,” Mr Jaden Leong wrote in a post on the COMPLAINT SINGAPORE Facebook page about his meal order on Jan 29 from a stall called Famous HK Style at Kimly Coffee Shop at Blk 365 Sembawang Crescent.

Attaching a photo of his order, he asked readers if it had been worth the price he paid.

Moreover, when he asked the attendant about the smallness of the portion of food in his order, Mr Leong claimed in his post that the attendant answered back with, “If you can’t afford to eat it, it’s fine to return the food, I will refund the money to you.”

Mr Leong added that while the Goods and Services Tax (GST) had recently increased by one per cent, the food served had been reduced to “such (a) small portion.”

The Independent Singapore has reached out to Mr Leong, as well as to the Kimly Group, for further updates or comments.

Netizens commenting on his post appeared to agree that the portion Mr Leong received was indeed small, and one commenter even called it a “kids meal portion” that looked like “leftovers.”

“I understand that prices increase due to the so-called ‘9% GST’, but I don’t understand why the portions decrease. Shouldn’t it be the same? Haizzz,” wrote another commenter.

Others chimed in to say that the meat slices in the meals they had ordered, including chicken rice, have become noticeably thinner than before.

A number of netizens advised him to simply return the order and get a refund, given the small portion size and the attitude the stall attendant had reportedly displayed.

Many have complained about higher prices but smaller sizes of meals or even packaged food, a phenomenon known as “shrinkflation.”

One netizen complained that his food portion had decreased by as much as 40 per cent, while another wrote that the packet of large fries ordered from McDonald’s was only half-full. /TISG

Read also: Shrinkflation: “I know GST rose by 1%, but the (food) amount decreased by 40%!” — Customer complains