Fika : the cornerstone of the Swedish Coffee Culture
The different coffee cultures developed around the world hide behind interesting stories: from Scandinavia comes the mandatory coffee break, which has its roots in ... illegitimacy!
Although not everyone can boast that they have influenced the rest of the world with their coffee culture, such as the Italians, the Portuguese or even the Americans, the Scandinavians have developed their own distinct coffee culture. Besides, both Finland and Sweden are firmly among the countries with the largest per capita consumption of coffee - coffee in the Scandinavian countries takes on an important role in the day, both from a gastronomic and a social point of view..
The Swedes particularly love filter coffee, which usually accompanies sweets like traditional cinnamon rolls. The call for a coffee in the afternoon, along with the necessary snacks, is a key component of the Swedish social life. As in many other countries, afternoon coffee is an opportunity to reunite friends, chat, exchange and tighten relationships. What distinguishes Swedish coffee culture from the other countries is coffee break - or, in Swedish, "fika".
Fika is nothing more than a traditional coffee break, but it is indicative of the importance of coffee for the everyday routine of the Swedes that the coffee break is not just a tradition but is fully integrated into the working life of the Swedes. There are not a few companies in the Scandinavian country that have established as mandatory not one, but two breaks for coffee! Fika is not only dictated by Swedish coffee culture but is thought to increase efficiency, productivity and concentration of employees, both because of the stimulating effect of coffee and the relaxation they offer.
The roots of coffee in Sweden have been identified since 1670, but it took about 100 years to make coffee the most popular beverage in the country. However, in the late 18th century, the Royal authorities would impose heavy taxes on coffee, which the Swedes would refuse to pay, thus banning the beverage. Bans were imposed and removed year after year, while a series of tough taxes made the cost of coffee unbearable for the average Swedish.
The Swedes resorted to conspiratorial solutions to the Black Market in order to be able to supply the precious coffee beans. Things became particularly difficult in the years of the reign of Gustav III, who, convinced of the harmful properties of coffee, used to deliver large amounts of coffee to the delinquents. When everyone realized that coffee consumption was anything but harmful to health, the bans were stopped definitively, and the policy of taxation was greatly relaxed.
Since that time, at the beginning of the 19th century, coffee has been rooted in the everyday life of the Swedes through fikas, coffee and sweet gatherings during which every other activity goes to second place. The word fika itself has its roots in the times of illegality: as coffee in Swedish is called kaffi, coffee smugglers in the years of prohibition spelled coffee as a "fika", reversing the syllables - or, at least, this is what the popular Swedish tradition!
Today, of course, no one is thinking of banning coffee, but the two mandatory coffee breaks are a good idea - who would not want two stimulating coffee breaks during his shift? The Swedes, passing through fire and iron for their favorite fika, show us the way!
