# Peanut butter crackers have shrunk after 60 plus years **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** food-cooking\ **Created:** [November 12, 2025, 3:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/peanut-butter-crackers-have-shrunk-after-60-plus-years/1024799 "2025-11-12T03:38:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2025, 12:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/peanut-butter-crackers-have-shrunk-after-60-plus-years/1024799/41 "2025-11-16T12:40:47Z")
> [@Beckdawrek](#): > > When I volunteered at the concession stand we unpacked loads snacks. Chips, crackers and candy. Unless ordered properly the crackers came imprinted “not for resale individually”. It’s possible that I’m mistaken, but I have long believed that “not for resale individually,” or “not labeled for individual sale” on single serving packages of snacks simply means that you shouldn’t bother looking for a nutritional information chart (calories per serving, vitamin and mineral assays, etc.) because it won’t be there. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2025, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/peanut-butter-crackers-have-shrunk-after-60-plus-years/1024799/42 "2025-12-15T20:41:30Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > And, yes, 4 instead of 6 _is_ really obvious, _once you open the package_; OK, I’m sitting here with a box of Lance brand Captain’s Wafers that I just picked up at Dollar Tree. Trust me, it’s pretty obvious that this box is 2 crackers long and 3 crackers wide, and there’s no way it could be 3x3, unless you easily confuse a 2x3 rectangle for a square. Just to get the message across, it’s got a pic on the top of the box with a roughly actual size of a top view of 2 crackers, and that pic occupies ~1/3 of the top of the box. It’s clear that if you open it up from the top, as intended by the design, you’re going to be looking at 6 crackers. Each layer would have to be either 2 6-packs or 3 4-packs. Either way, each layer of the packs will have 12 crackers. And it’s pretty obvious there’s room for 2 layers of whichever size of pack they are. And just to make it super-clear, on the pic of the crackers, it says, “6 packs of 4 sandwiches.” In terms of crackers, it’s about as clearly a 4x3x2 box of crackers as it could possibly be. Damned if I know how it could be mistaken for anything else. The only way this box _could_ be deceptive would be if they had a bunch of extra packing material around a bunch of small crackers. But you open up the box and it’s wall to wall crackers, no wasted space. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2025, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/peanut-butter-crackers-have-shrunk-after-60-plus-years/1024799/43 "2025-12-15T20:47:58Z")
> [@RTFirefly](#): > > The only way this box _could_ be deceptive would be if they had a bunch of extra packing material around a bunch of small crackers. Or if, as per the OP, you instinctively buy the same item as you always have, and _don’t look closely at it_ until you get home. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2025, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/peanut-butter-crackers-have-shrunk-after-60-plus-years/1024799/44 "2025-12-15T21:19:10Z")
I learned my lesson and look carefully at the cracker box before buying. They won’t get me a 2nd time. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2025, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/peanut-butter-crackers-have-shrunk-after-60-plus-years/1024799/45 "2025-12-17T01:47:23Z")
If it’s something you get frequently enough to “buy the same item as you always have,” who needs to look ‘closely’ to notice that that item is 2/3 of the size it used to be, and has a different shape? I’m surprised you don’t routinely wind up with Miracle Whip when you meant to buy mayo. Or vice versa, as the case may be. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2025, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/peanut-butter-crackers-have-shrunk-after-60-plus-years/1024799/46 "2025-12-17T01:48:55Z")
> [@RTFirefly](#): > > I’m surprised you don’t routinely wind up with Miracle Whip when you meant to buy mayo. Or vice versa, as the case may be. Do note that this is not _my_ topic, and I am _not_ the person who was unpleasantly surprised by fewer crackers in the packages. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2025, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/peanut-butter-crackers-have-shrunk-after-60-plus-years/1024799/47 "2025-12-17T18:24:56Z")
When I resumed living in North America after ~20 years abroad, I was shocked by how many of the things I had enjoyed earlier had shrunk. Hostess cupcakes and fruit pies are at least 30% smaller than they used to be. Cans of Campbell’s chunky soups no longer line up with the ones stored in my pantry, and I need at least two tins of tuna to make a decent amount of sandwich filling. A simple can of Coke is a dollar at my local convenience store, and more if I try to get it from a vending machine! Lord, how the mighty have fallen! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/peanut-butter-crackers-have-shrunk-after-60-plus-years/1024799.md?page=2)