is warning major packaged goods makers that it can no longer stomach their price hikes, pitching its own private-label products to shoppers as less-expensive alternatives to suppliers’ name-brand goods. But now with the cost of cardboard cases declining by 40-50%, the cost of transportation falling by 25-30% and the cost of raw materials declining significantly, “retailers like Walmart will say ‘hey you already had three rounds of price hikes last year, why are you giving us another?’” said Burt Flickinger, managing director at retail consulting firm Strategic Resource Group. Shoppers at chains such as Walmart and Kroger were waiting longer to buy new products like bleach and kitty litter, and in some cases trading down to buy smaller sizes, or larger wholesale quantities because they want more value per unit, Clorox’s CFO Kevin Jacobsen said February 2