Having a Buzz On
Being Swedish comes with a lot of traditions and manners; not thinking too much about oneself, standing on the right side of the escalator (definitely needs some reinforcement), watching Donald Duck on christmas eve, and happily waving to other Swedes when you encounter them abroad to name a few. Another very important part of Swedish culture is the holy essence, the one and only socially and legally acceptable substance to make you have a buzz on, alcohol. It is hard to imagine most Swedish holidays without it, and most Swedes rarely go a weekend without having a glass or two. Okay, to be honest a glass or two is probably on the low end for most. From starting High School, you socialize into thinking that it is perfectly tolerable, and almost admirable, to get absolutely hammered every Friday and Saturday. And when watching football. And during Midsummer. And on Christmas. I find it quite fascinating that with such a relaxed and encouraging cultural relationship with alcohol, we still have some of the western world’s strictest alcohol policies.
Two weeks ago I went to Copenhagen to visit some friends and explore the city. Since we were only going to be there for 2 days, we had a strict schedule on what we were supposed to do, when to meet up with our friends, when to have dinner, and when to go out clubbing. Going to Denmark generally does not feel as if you’re going abroad: the buildings look pretty similar, everything costs pretty much the same, and Danes dress like Swedes and behave like Swedes (some would argue that we can even understand each other but I’ll leave that to the Scanians). Due to our very strict schedule, we started our day in the capital by quickly getting the lunch out of the way. We went into the closest supermarket and I started looking after the lunch section. That’s when I remembered: There is. Cold beer. In. The supermarkets. As a fascinated naive little Swede, I enthusiastically grabbed my girlfriend to show her the shelf that in my mind was taken straight out of my dreams. We grabbed one ice cold beer each, and almost forgot to grab some lunch before we walked out of the store. I almost feel as though I don’t need to say this, but we continued toward the closest park and had our best lunch in a long time. Continuing our day, and eventually night, people were happily drinking beer all over the city, with numerous advertisements for Tuborg and Carlsberg scattered around the city. When we went back to our hotel for the night, around 2:30, we even stopped at a 7-11 to grab some beers on our way home. For a place that in many other ways was so similar to the Sweden where I had grown up, this particular part of society was something almost taken out of a weird dream.
So why is it that Sweden and Denmark, whose cultures surrounding alcohol are not that fundamentally different, have such vast differences in alcohol policies on the political level? In both Sweden and Denmark, alcohol has been regulated since the early 19th century. In 1914, Sweden introduced the “motbok”, a ration book for alcohol, and in 1955 Systembolaget was founded, cementing the restrictive monopolistic policies. On the other hand, while Sweden has continued with its strict laws and regulations, Denmark has liberalized its alcoholic policies over time. When it entered the European Communities in 1973 (the predecessor to the European Union), Denmark felt the need to further decrease regulations concerning alcohol in order to appease European policies. Today, the difference in alcohol accessibility in the two countries is substantial. While you can get all forms of alcohol in bars in Sweden from the age of 18, you have to wait until the age of 20 to be able to shop in Systembolaget, which in turn has very restrictive opening hours. Alcohol advertisements are also heavily restricted, and you can not drink alcohol in public spaces without risking a fine. In Denmark however, not only can you drink freely in bars from the age of 18, but you can drink in public spaces and buy beer and wine 24 hours a day in any store from the age of 16.
This liberal attitude towards alcohol in Denmark may not be the most important distinction between the two countries. In pretty much every other aspect of society: education, religion, values and economy, they are pretty much indistinguishable. But it still shows that there are some fundamental differences between the basic assumptions of the two neighbors, that historically have been very close to each other. While Sweden has wandered towards more liberal policies, the social democratic roots of a caring state are still very much present in many parts of society. What this suggests is that the supposed societal benefits of regulating alcohol consumption are higher than the benefit of having the individual freedom to buy alcohol whenever you want. If you come from a country where this is not the case, it might seem like a big infringement on individual liberty. However, in Sweden, there is majority public support for Systembolaget and its monopoly status. Whether this will change as the world continues to become more international, with people regularly crossing borders and experiencing other ways of serving alcohol as in Denmark, only the future will tell.
https://www.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:1284204/FULLTEXT01.pdf
https://sv.wikipedia.org/wiki/Systembolaget#F%C3%B6re_Systembolagets_bildande
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_alcohol_consumption_per_capita
https://www.omsystembolaget.se/folkhalsa/samhalle/alkoholpolitik/sa-sager-folket/