Three major laundry detergent manufacturers have concentrated their powdered detergents by reducing the proportion of inactive ingredients in the detergent formulas. The concentrated detergents will be sold in smaller packages. In explaining the change, the manufacturers cited the desire to reduce cardboard packaging and other production costs. Market analysts predict that the decision of three manufacturers, who control 80 percent of the laundry detergent market will eventually bring about the virtual disappearance of old-style bulky detergents
Which one of the following, if true, most strongly supports the prediction made by the market analysts?
(A) Most smaller manufacturers of laundry detergents will consider it too expensive to retool factories for the production of the smaller detergent packages. ----
However, they are after all 20% of the total and therefore their relevance is inconsequential. (B) Many consumers will be skeptical initially that the recommended small amount of concentrated detergent will clean laundry as effectively as the larger amount of the old-style detergent did ---
as the choice admits, any such thing, if at all, may happen initially, but cannot impede the overall advantage of smaller packing. (C) Some analysts believe that consumers will have to pay a greater cost per load of laundry to use the new concentrated detergent than they did to use the old-style detergent --
Higher cost is not provided in the prompt. Therefore, this point is out of scope. (D) Major supermarkets have announced that they will not charge the detergent manufacturers less to display their detergents even though the detergents will take up less shelf space -----
irrelevant since the prompt does not imply the reaction of the Supermarkets. Even if it were possible, that would not increase the overall cost and hence is neutral in impact.
(E) Consumers are increasingly being persuaded by environmental concerns to buy concentrated detergents when available in order to reduce cardboard waste -- T
his is a strengthener since waste management is turning out to be expensive these days and any positive factor will be boon in the long term interest and hence this choice will eventually drive out the bulky packages.
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