If the outside of a food package is the same, especially for a food you don’t buy very often, do you notice? Longtime Consumerist readers might, but most people wouldn’t. Last year, spice giant McCormick quietly shrank down the contents of its boxes of black pepper, but kept using the same size container. Tiny competitor Watkins noticed, and filed a federal lawsuit against McCormick accusing it of false advertising. A judge decided this week that the lawsuit could go forward. [More]
the spice must flow
Watkins Sues McCormick Over Pepper, Makes Federal Case Out Of Grocery Shrink Ray
By 6.10.15
You know what a McCormick ground pepper tin looks like if you’ve ever bought pepper or browsed an American spice aisle. They’re rectangular and have spouts on each end for sprinkling or pouring the contents. Yet have you noticed how much pepper there is in the container? Competing spice-seller Watkins is paying attention, and it’s accusing McCormick of shrinking all sizes of its pepper containers by 25%. [More]
