The Hungarian government’s decree on measures to combat the so-called “shrinkflation” will enter into force on 1 February 2024. “Shrinkflation” refers to the hidden raising of prices by reducing the size of products.
The measures apply to pre-packaged products that are sold by retailers in one or more sizes in a uniform appearance.
The new measures primarily affect convenience store retailers with a net turnover of more than HUF 1 billion, but also expressly impose obligations on manufacturers. Moreover, the obligations of manufacturers forms the basis of compliance. The manufacturer (or the first distributor/wholesaler in Hungary) is obliged to inform both the retailer and the National Food Chain Safety Office (in Hungarian: Nemzeti Élelmiszerlánc-biztonsági Hivatal) of any reduction of the packaging sizes of products.
