What The Heck Is “Slack Fill”?

Every consumer has experienced “slack fill” but might not have known the name for it. It’s the process by which food manufacturers excessively package products to give consumers the feeling they are receiving more product. It is commonplace in snack foods, cereals etc and the Center for Science in the Public Interest’s (CSPI) is taking up the fight against it. They are urging the FDA and states attorneys general to enforce their own rules against deceptive and excessive packaging. CSPI’s Executive Director, Michael F. Jacobson, stated that

“…as consumers we’ve almost come to expect that our food packages will be half full of food and half full of air. Slack fill is just one trick that food marketers employ to make us think we’re getting more for our money than we are.” [FPD]

Mr. Jacobson went further and used a box of Nabisco Ginger Snaps to make the point that since the box is half full, the shipping container used to get it to consumers would be half full too. Now it’s an efficiency issue.

But the Grocery Manufacturer’s Association (GMA) believes current packaging and slack fill is necessary in order to adhere to the FDA’s policies and to protect their member’s product in transit. They responded by saying:

“The realities are that there are a multitude of reasons why certain packages are certain sizes, including FDA food safety requirements as well as size, shape and rigidity requirements that enable products to withstand the demands of the supply chain (i.e., shipping, storing, etc.). [MediaPost.com]

The whole “slack fill” debate reminds me of the cold war where each side waited for the other side to blink. Hopefully one food manufacturer will step up and blink first so the others will follow. I understand part of the reason why food companies over package and slack fill their products; it’s all about being eye level and most importantly, it’s about occupying as much shelf space as possible. But maybe the benefits of reduced packaging & freight costs and some good marketing could change that thinking. Then it will be up to consumers to support this move.

Hunger has led me to focus on groceries but excessive packaging is found in kids toys, electronics, storage media etc. It’s everywhere. If want to see change, look on the back of the products you buy and call or email the company and ask them to reduce their packaging. Companies do listen and “reasonable” negative comments carry more weight than positive ones.