The biscuit manufacturer Bahlsen has just cleared the racism debate about its “Africa” waffles, and there is already new anger. Because the relaunch of the popular sweet was apparently accompanied by a massive, hidden price increase, as the Hamburg consumer center criticizes.
The dark chocolate covered waffles called “Africa” sparked a racism debate on social networks last year. Although Bahlsen had explained that the name only refers to the raw material cocoa, which comes from Africa, the criticism had not decreased. Because of the negative associations, Bahlsen decided to rename the product after more than 60 years on the market. The new name is “Perpetum”, which is derived from the Latin adjective “perpetuus”, permanent.
Hidden price increase of 34 percent
However, the price per gram was not very consistent in this campaign. Many consumers had complained that the manufacturer had used the product relaunch to reduce the filling quantity per pack, writes the Hamburg consumer center in an Instagram post. At a constant price of 1.99 euros, the Perpetum waffles now contain only 97 grams instead of 130 grams, which means that the waffle biscuits have become 34 percent more expensive.
“We think that’s really bold, because according to the list of ingredients and nutritional values nothing has changed in the recipe,” write the consumer advocates. “Particularly annoying: the pack is practically the same size, and the number of waffles is almost identical. At first glance, everything seems to be fine. But the individual waffles have become smaller. This is how you lead your customers behind the scenes Light.”
Manufacturer Bahlsen justifies the hidden price increase with increased costs. A Bahlsen spokesman for the consumer association explained that the decision was made to reduce the filling quantity “in order to be able to continue to produce this product economically”. The changeover took place in April and May. “Between raw materials and supermarket shelves, there are many factors that influence our fixed costs if we do not want to compromise on quality,” is the general explanation.
Armin Valet from the consumer center in Hamburg, who has been denouncing the cases of hidden price increases by the manufacturers for years, is not convinced by the cost argument. The consumer advocate argues that higher costs could honestly have been passed on through a transparently higher price. Then Bahlsen could also have saved the costs of converting to a new pack size and a new size of the individual tablets.
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