The Swedes are well known for the way they regard Denmark as an off-licence, but for the most part they are not big border shoppers, as the Danes are with Germany, the Germans are with Poland, the Poles are with … etc.
But in recent months, prices have skyrocketed – at a faster pace than any of their neighbors – which explains why flocks of Swedes have been seen crossing the border into Norway to fill their shopping bags, reports NRK.
Traditionally, Norwegians would go shopping in Sweden, driven by its famously favorable exchange rate. However, food prices in Swedish supermarkets have risen by an average of 20 percent over the past year, prompting customers to look for cheaper supplies elsewhere.
The most important products Swedes buy are fruit and vegetables, but meat, bread, fish, cheese and butter are also cheaper in Norway.
Expensive cauliflower
While the average 20 percent increase in food prices could be defined as ‘steep but manageable’, the real problem facing Swedes is the astronomical increase in the price of specific products.
Cauliflowers, for example, are 80 percent more expensive than they were a year ago. Butter and sugar are almost 50 percent more expensive.
While Norway and Denmark share several supermarket chains, such as Rema 1000, Spar and Meny, Sweden has its own brands and as such may be more susceptible to its own peculiar price fluctuations.
Admired locals
This new trend has not gone unnoticed by Norwegians – especially those who live close to their Swedish cousins.
The small town of Ørje, located approximately five kilometers from the border, has experienced increased trade in its supermarkets.
– The Swedes buy everything from butter to Norwegian fish balls and fruit and vegetables, says Anders Fjeldsted, manager of Ørjes Rema 1000.
Denmark suffers from high prices
With a single passage of the Øresund Bridge now costing 440 Danish kroner, it is unlikely that the Swedes will soon arrive in Denmark to get their weekly shop.
That said, food inflation has also been high here, hitting a record high of just under 16 percent in August last year.
It has now fallen to around 15 percent, but food prices continue to skyrocket around the Nordic nations.
Source: The Nordic Page