Less Tide for same price?

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: Tide, America’s best-selling laundry detergent, has slimmed down. With no “new and improved” fanfare or notice to consumers, Procter & Gamble has cut the weight of its powdered detergent by 20% with no corresponding reduction in price. The downsizing looks very much like a stealth price increase, but P&G officials say that’s not the case. The officials say they were able to improve their powdered detergent formula so a 70-ounce box of Tide can now clean as many clothes as the old 87-ounce box.

“It’s a very positive development for the consumer,” said Ross Holthouse, a spokesman for P&G. “We’re not taking out 17 ounces. We’ve realigned the formula so in bulk it weighs 17 ounces less. We’ve come out with an overall improvement in cleaning performance.”

Manufacturers often make such claims, but usually they are accompanied by new advertising or product packaging to draw attention to the change. Tide didn’t do that. Its new 70-ounce box is the same as the old 87-ounce box, except the new box weighs a little more than a pound less. At many stores, the old and new boxes sit side by side on the same shelf at the same price. Holthouse said similar weight reductions have been accomplished with the company’s other powdered detergents, including Gain, Cheer, Bold, and Ivory Snow.

P&G, which bought Boston shaving firm Gillette last year, reported strong quarterly results last week, fuelled in part by price increases on many products. The Cincinnati consumer-products giant didn’t detail the price increases but said net sales in its fabric care and home care unit increased 9% to $4.35 billion. Powdered detergents like Tide are part of the fabric and home care unit.

With rising energy prices narrowing profit margins at most manufacturers, companies have been busy raising prices. In June, the Consumer Price Index, which tracks inflation at the retail level, rose 0.2% from the previous month and was up 4.3% compared to a year ago. Dozens of manufacturers, from Poland Spring to Frito-Lay to virtually every ice cream and tuna fish company, have used downsizing in the past to slip a price increase by their customers. It’s an effective tactic as most consumers remember a product’s price, not its net weight.