41. Waitrose Sausage
Product Price: $3.26*
Purchased at: Waitrose Limited (British Grocery Store)
Made by: Waitrose & Partners
Twitter user @olivepowell was very disappointed at a Perigord Walnut Saucisson Sec that she picked up from Waitrose Limited, a chain of British grocery stores. When you look at the unopened package, everything appears fine. However, when opened, it’s clear that the saucisson is half the size of the box.
Waitrose Sausage @olivepowell / Twitter.com
The saucisson is technically a thick, dry-cured sausage, but this definitely is more of a snack-size option. @olivepowell said she was “disappointed” at the “misleading packaging,” tweeting at Waitrose that she felt “robbed.” To their credit, Waitrose responded quickly, stating that they were “sorry” for the error and asking for the product information and @olivepowell’s address, likely to mail her a new one and fix their mistake.
42. Chocolate Covered Strawberries
Product Price: Unknown
Purchased at: Greek Grocery Store
Made by: Unknown
Loukoumi is a traditional Greek (or Turkish, depending on who you ask) delight, and the package that one unhappy shopper received was a dark chocolate-strawberry type of dessert. The package came in a reasonably large box, so it made sense the shopper thought it would have more or larger loukoumi.
Chocolate Covered Strawberries @u/Kimonas_K / Reddit.com
When the buyer opened the package, there were only three small chocolates with nothing else. While it’s unclear where the buyer bought it from or how much it cost, this packaging definitely counts as deceptive. For those who are skeptical now about buying loukoumi online, there are tons of make-your-own recipes.
43. Family Finest Pepperoni Pizza
Product Price: $6.99*
Purchased at: Walmart
Made by: Family Finest
This is yet another case, just like the ASDA pizza, of a pepperoni pizza lover not getting what they paid for. The Family Finest Take ‘n Bake Pepperoni Pizza ended up only having pizza on the top-right quarter of the package (the one with the vent). The premium sliced pepperoni only covered a couple of slices, leaving just plain mozzarella cheese and sauce on the rest.
Family Finest Pepperoni Pizza @u/ink-a-doodle / Reddit.com
Alas, it’s always hard to tell whether this packaging is laziness or just intentional. And, it’s hard to tell whether the pepperoni covers the whole pizza, as you can’t exactly rip open the box in the middle of the store.
44. Panda Ice Cream Bar
Product Price: $1*
Purchased at: Unknown
Made by: Unknown
When it comes to ice cream bars, as any ice cream truck fan knows, there is usually at least some difference between what is in the package and what you actually get. It’s a spectrum, and this panda ice cream bar is at the far end of it. The panda ice cream bar doesn’t even resemble a panda, nor is the general shape even accurate.
Panda Ice Cream Bar @u/artistbot / Reddit.com
This panda ice cream instead looks a little like a faceless Mickey Mouse, something that lawsuit-happy Disney would likely not be too pleased about. It’s likely that this panda bar melted and re-froze, causing weird changes.
45. Panda Lollipop
Product Price: $0.50*
Purchased at: Unknown
Made by: Unknown
Another panda product that didn’t turn out as people expected, this panda lollipop was only a panda on the packaging. When the purchaser took it out of the package, it was just a white circle lollipop. The red-and-black design on the packaging was what made it look like a panda.
Panda Lollipop @u/boarqing / Reddit.com
At least with the panda ice cream, there was an excuse—melting and refreezing. Judging from a quick Amazon search, there aren’t many panda lollipops around. The closest you can get is a black-and-white swirl Fun Express sucker for $12.99 for 24. Cute, but, alas, not an actual panda bear.
46. Waitrose Roasted Pepper & Halloumi Wrap
Product Price: $4.17*
Purchased at: Waitrose
Made by: Waitrose Partners
Another questionable Waitrose package on this list is that of the Halloumi & Roasted Pepper. When the shopper bought the package, she assumed that it would be one sandwich. However, what she got were two mini sandwiches: one in Halloumi (a type of brined cheese that is easy to fry and grill, so people often use it as a replacement for meat) and one in roasted pepper.
Waitrose Roasted Pepper & Halloumi Wrap @u/Ahmad_nagy / Reddit.com
About one-fourth of the sandwich was missing when compared to the packaging. However, this looks less like deceptive packaging and more like a bad marketing idea. Perhaps Waitrose thought that the two flavors wouldn’t go well together?
47. Specially Selected Pate
Product Price: $20.01*
Purchased at: Grocery Store
Made by: Specially Selected
One buyer bought pate made of brussels and caramelized shallots. The pate in question looked like one long piece of pate. But, when the buyer opened the package, they found that almost one-third of the pate was missing, and the long piece was really just two tiny pieces packaged next to one another, making this more of a snack than a meal.
Specially Selected Pate @u/NoFixedName / Reddit.com
Pate, for confused Americans, is a European paste, loaf, or pie that is made of a forcemeat which usually contains liver. The pate here is Belgian in origin. You can buy food like it from specialty stores around the world (and at stores like ALDI in America).
48. ASDA Hickory Smoked Pork Ribs
Product Price: $5.21*
Purchased at: Asda.com
Made by: ASDA Groceries
This ASDA Hickory Smoked Pork Rib Rack with Bacon, Cheese & BBQ Sauce looks half-eaten. Hopefully, the buyer was only planning a meal for one or two people, because that is all the ASDA package has to offer. The size of the package made it appear that an entire rack of ribs would be waiting when opened.
ASDA Hickory Smoked Pork Ribs @3eelec / Twitter.com
Instead, the ribs only filled half the package. Though the ribs are “oven-ready in thirty minutes,” that probably doesn’t make up for having to pay twice as much to get the same amount of food that one package’s marketing promises.
49. Missing Cookies
Product Price: Unknown
Purchased at: Unknown
Made by: Unknown
As one Reddit commenter noted, the packaging saved the maker of these biscuits the price of having to make four more. One unhappy shopper went to purchase a container of biscuits. The packaging made it seem like there would be four rows of biscuits, all filled.
Missing Cookies @u/avidgunner / Reddit.com
However, when the buyer opened the package, there were four missing, hidden by the label on the packaging. Perhaps the manufacturer weighed the cost of making a label and the cost of making four extra biscuits and found the former cheaper. Either way, this definitely counts as packaging that is slightly on the deceptive side.
50. Good Day Chunkies
Product Price: $0.67*
Purchased at: Unknown
Made by: Britannia
At first glance, it’s a little hard to tell what you’re looking at. However, the Good Day Chunkies, made by Britannia, are an unusually-shaped cookie package that could only be deceptive. The package makes it seem like there should be three identical rows of “Chunkies,” but only the first and last cartons are full.
Good Day Chunkies @Surbeeee / Twitter.com
The middle carton is halved, something that can go unnoticed in a package like that. Twitter user @Surbeeee was the unlucky buyer, and she was not too happy, saying, “Try having a good day” after you discover “this #scam packaging.” Judging from the package, it definitely does seem like a scam.
51. Cerono Extra
Product Price: $5.99*
Purchased at: Beijing Bars
Made by: Beijing Cerono Trade Limited Company
This obvious knockoff of Corona Extra beer was discovered on tap at various bars in Beijing over the years, primarily by American tourists who immediately noticed a major difference in taste and texture from the original name brand.
Cerono Beer @GildedZ / Corona Extra Beer @nangnaint | Twitter.com
Interestingly, the price of “Cerono,” which inexplicably to be Mexican-made beer brewed locally in Beijing, mirrors the original brand as well. If you’re not even saving money, then why would you ever settle for this bizarre knock-off?