Posted On: Wednesday - February 8th 2023 6:26PM MST
In Topics: Inflation
I've been under the weather for a couple of days. My forced partaking of high doses of one my wife's concoctions for the Kung Flu PanicFest probably helped, but it definitely had a side effect too... that is TMI...
At the same time, the usual Chicken Soup can't hurt, and I like the stuff. I wonder if it's nothing but the salt that helps. I know the readers will tell us to make our own, but my wife didn't have the time just now. This canned stuff is full of salt! I remember figuring each can has about 3 or 4 days worth of the sodium you need.
My wife kindly went out and bought 4 cans. I was of the understanding that she was getting cans of the classic Campbell Soup. It's her reporting to me of 3 dollars a can (not on sale) that had me flabbergasted. By the time I found out it was not Campbell's, but 13 oz cans of Progresso, well, this inflation note post was already in progress in my head. I had to go to the store and check out the Campbell's Chicken Noodle, because I have a price data point on it from 43 years ago, and I want to compare
It's $1.99 per 10.75 oz can at the normal price. Now, I've seen it for closer to $1.75 or so, but not much less, even before the Biden* inflation surge. Don't ask me how I remember this, but in 1980, this stuff was (normal price) 35¢ to 40¢ per can (of what size, though?) I input 38¢ to $1.99 over 43 years into the MoneyChimp calculator: Average 3.9% inflation counting compounding. Well, 1980 was still within the large inflation years before the effect of Paul Volcker's putting the lid on took effect. That's only 1 or 2 years though, and then the Biden surge of late may have brought it up that 25¢ in 2 years. OK, even taking 45¢ to $1.75 over 40 years gives us $3.5% average.
What about that shrinking size deal that Peak Stupidity dubs Inflation by Deflation? I just wouldn't think a non-round number like 10.75 oz was the original size. Wouldn't it have started at 12 oz? I just spent 10 minutes, but I've spent half an hour before on the search engines to no avail on this question.
I'm not a connoisseur of Pop Art to begin with, but at least Andy Warhol could have put some detail in those soup can paintings. We could have gotten the size circa 1962, 60 years back. He didn't even paint the label showing the huge amount of Sodium! Painting the full label for nutrition information should be required by law in Pop Art.
I wonder how much inflation there has been in Andy Warhol paintings?
PS:I'd written about Campbell's soup before, Real life inflation anecdotal-data(?):
I'd bought canned Campbell's soup back 30 years ago to eat as supper for $0.45 to $0.55 per can. They are now in the range of $1.00 to $1.55 for a smaller can, and yeah, you have to have a good memory to catch these things (the shrinkage especially - 12 oz down to 10.75 oz.) On a per-mass basis, at the price mid-range, that soup's gone up in at an 3.5% annual rate.Note that I assumed the size change from 12 oz to 10.75 oz, but I haven't been able to verify that. Note that with a smaller time range and different starting and ending pricing, I got about the same value, a 3.5% annual inflation rate.
* Yeah, I know the President doesn't spend the money, but it's not like you'd ever hear "tighten our belts" or "put a lid on spending" out of that guy's mouth (or any other President in a couple of decades).
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[UPDATED: 02/21:] When I wrote this post, I did a quick search to find anything I'd written about soup. (Yeah, good luck with the lack of any search features. Sorry for that, readers.) Anyway, I did find a paragraph in post from 4 1/2 years back later on, so I inserted an update here.
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Comments:
Moderator
Friday - February 10th 2023 6:02AM MST
PS: "Two cans of soup, including the piratical Illinois and Cook County sales taxes, seven bleeping dollars! We are doomed." Whewww! Those are 13 oz. (the one's we had), and they are heartier, but still... I hope they are appreciated by someone.
Moderator
Friday - February 10th 2023 6:00AM MST
PS: Mr. Corrupt, if you have a way to send me to somewhere on the internet with these pictures/article, I'd appreciate it. I guess these are ACTUAL printed out photos of yours?
Al Corrupt
Thursday - February 9th 2023 7:07PM MST
PS
Looking at old pics it appears that in the 70’s and 80’s standard size was 11.5oz.
Looking at old pics it appears that in the 70’s and 80’s standard size was 11.5oz.
MBlanc46
Thursday - February 9th 2023 1:24PM MST
PS Last autumn, the Scouts or some youth outfit was outside the supermarket collecting food for the needy (whoever they are). I added a couple of cans of Progresso vegetable soup to the trolley. Two cans of soup, including the piratical Illinois and Cook County sales taxes, seven bleeping dollars! We are doomed.
Moderator
Thursday - February 9th 2023 8:25AM MST
PS: "Ancient proverb-if you crown a clown he doesn't become king, the kingdom becomes a circus." I like that one, H&SC. Thanks!
Hammer and Sickle Circus
Thursday - February 9th 2023 7:36AM MST
PS Some prices coming down at the Sack-N-Save with most of my staples almost doubling in price since the clown got crowned.
This is probably shelf space concerns more than anything and the Stupidity is so Peak, people don't remember $2 a gallon, Trump sitting at a table with Putin and Xi with everybody smiling, and lower grocery prices.
If you are watching sodium then canned soup is not a good choice.
Ancient proverb-if you crown a clown he doesn't become king, the kingdom becomes a circus.
This is probably shelf space concerns more than anything and the Stupidity is so Peak, people don't remember $2 a gallon, Trump sitting at a table with Putin and Xi with everybody smiling, and lower grocery prices.
If you are watching sodium then canned soup is not a good choice.
Ancient proverb-if you crown a clown he doesn't become king, the kingdom becomes a circus.
Moderator
Wednesday - February 8th 2023 7:48PM MST
PS: Haha, Alarmist. Probably just the salt again or something. I try to watch salt intake. For years I figured I was doing fine not pouring any on food, but, yeah a can of soup a day ... just fooling myself.
The Alarmist
Wednesday - February 8th 2023 7:08PM MST
PS
Yeah, shrinkflation sucks.
BTW, you need matzoh balls to unlock the magic of Jewish Penecillin.
Yeah, shrinkflation sucks.
BTW, you need matzoh balls to unlock the magic of Jewish Penecillin.