Snickers bars are back being made in Australia again, but the beloved chocolate bar has become the latest victim of shrinkflation as the maker looks to cut costs.
Mars Wrigley Australia moved its manufacturing of Snickers bars to China while the company’s Ballarat factory was undergoing an upgrade. In August it brought the bars back home – but the higher cost of manufacturing means they have shrunk.
While the chocolates will still cost consumers $2, the locally made chocolates weigh 44g, compared with the ones produced in China, which were 50g.
Some stores such as Woolworths are still stocking 50g bars, while Coles has transitioned to the 44g bars.
A spokesperson for Mars Wrigley Australia said cost increases were to blame.
“Like many Australian businesses, we are facing unprecedented cost pressures right across our operations, driven by a range of external factors,” the spokesperson said.
“While we continue to absorb cost increases, changes to product weight is sometimes necessary to ensure we can continue to supply our much-loved chocolate bars to Australian consumers.”
The company did not confirm whether wage differences between the two countries were a factor.
Mars Wrigley Australia is one of the country’s biggest alongside Nestlé Australia and Mondelēz Australia.
The company had been criticised online for moving the manufacturing offshore in May of 2021, but the spokesperson said it was only a temporary measure while the Ballarat site underwent a $100m revamp.
“As a proud Australian manufacturer, where possible we make our products locally across our two manufacturing sites in Ballarat and Asquith,” the spokesperson said.
“Our Ballarat factory has been producing some of the country’s most-loved brands including M&M’s, Maltesers, Mars, Snickers and Pods for more than 43 years.”
The spokesperson would not say if any of these other locally made products had also shrunk recently.
