Shoppers will pay 3 times extra for his or her favorite snacks in smaller packs as meals giants money in on fats jab increase

The best things come in small packages – as food producers are increasingly finding.

Shoppers are willing to pay more than three times as much for their favourite snack if it comes in a reduced size, according to research from trading platform eToro reveals.

Demand for these micro treats is rising, largely thanks to the appetite suppressant effect of GLP-1 weight-loss drugs like Ozempic and Mounjaro.

About 2.4 million people in Britain are already taking these medications, but this is expected to more than double to 7 million – or one-in-eight of the population – by the end of 2027.

The changes in customers’ dining and snacking habits – plus the decline in impulse purchases – is encouraging food manufacturers to ‘package downsize’, as eToro dubs the new trend.

This latest version of ‘shrinkflation’ is a way to keep the custom of those who have grown fussy on ‘fat jabs’, while protecting or even boosting profits and margins.

It is also a means of attracting people on stretched budgets who still want to spoil themselves.

Etoro’s data shows that as many as 14 out of 15 smaller formats of popular foods – such as baked beans, crisps and cereals and soft drinks – cost more per gram, litre or item than the regular version.

You can expect to pay £1.10 for a 32.5-gram pack of Walkers Ready Salted crisps – which is 238 per cent more expensive than a 150 gram pack at £1.50.

If you prefer Pringles a 40-gram pack of this potato snacks retails for £1.15 but this is 90 per cent more than the £2.50 165-gram pack.

A 1.75 litre bottle of Coca Original costing £2.65 may seem off-putting to someone wants less of everything. 

But the restrained alternative – a pack of four 330ml bottles is £4.35 – which is 118 per cent more per litre.

Sam North of eToro said: ‘It will be fascinating to see how this development plays out, as more people start to use weight-loss medications and inflation weighs on purchasing choices. 

‘It may be that consumers will continue to be content to pay less. But investors in food businesses will be watching very closely for any signs that consumers sense that they are being taken for a ride,’ he added.

Small is certainly proving beautiful for Magnum, the world’s largest ice cream company which was spun off last year from Unilever.

To allay investors’ concerns about the challenge of weight-loss drugs to its products, Magnum has developed bite-sized products, like Magnum bonbons.

At Tesco, a 204ml Gold Caramel Billionaire carton costs £5 which works out at £24.51 a litre. A pack of three 85ml Gold Caramel Billionaire ice cream sticks costs £4.25, the equivalent of £16.67 a litre.

Mondelez, the US giant behind such brands like Cadburys’ and Toblerone, is another company quietly adapting to the threat from GLP-I by offering ‘mindful indulgences’.

But Pladis – the privately-owned company whose range include McVitie’s, Jacob’s Crackers and other biscuits – recently reported a fall in profits from £181million to £49million, in part because of the impact of Ozempic.

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