ABSTRACT
The size of food and beverage portions and packaging has increased significantly in recent years: by over 60% for salty snacks and by 52% for sodas, for example (Nestle, 2003; Nielsen & Popkin, 2003; Rolls, Morris, & Roe, 2002). The supersizing trend has been identified as one of the key drivers of the obesity epidemic and related health concerns (Ledikwe, Ello-Martin, & Rolls, 2005; Young & Nestle, 2003). Partly in response to these concerns, and partly out of cost considerations, some marketers have reduced product sizes. Their initiatives have been successful in some cases, but have backfired in others. For example, TGI Fridays’ downsized “Right Portion, Right Price” menu garnered a positive consumer response, whereas Ruby Tuesday’s downsized portions led to a sales dip and were discontinued just five months after introduction (Deutsch 2007; Horovitz, 2007; Martin, 2007). In some instances, marketers have been accused of deceiving consumers by charging the same price for a smaller size (Grynbaum, 2014).
