During the week leading up to Easter, Norwegian stores faced a shortage of eggs, prompting a surge of Norwegian shoppers to flock to Swedish supermarkets for the traditional Easter food.
According to a report by Nettavisen, the Nordby shopping center in Sweden, situated just over the border approximately 100 kilometers (62 miles) south of Oslo, was inundated with "desperate" Norwegians eager to stock up on eggs.
The Maxi-Mat food store in the shopping center ran out of eggs on Tuesday, while the neighboring Nordby Supermarket had to enforce a limit of three 20-packs of eggs per household, as per the news outlet.
Swedish stores not only had better stock of eggs, a key ingredient for many Easter dishes, but they were also selling them at a more affordable price, Nettavisen noted. Ståle Løvheim, the head of the Nordby shopping center, explained to Nettavisen, "It's far cheaper than you get in Norway — if you can get eggs in Norway at all, that is.
The last time I was in Norway, the store was empty of eggs."
In Sweden, a 20-egg pack was priced at 39.90 Norwegian kroner ($3.70), approximately 30% less than in Norway.
Reports suggested that concerns about overproduction of eggs in Norway led to farmers being compensated to reduce production.
This, combined with the impact of bird flu, contributed to the shortage.
As Easter approached, egg prices soared in many parts of the world due to a market affected by disease, high demand, and rising costs for farmers.
Norway, consistently ranked among the most expensive countries to live in, is known for its high cost of living, particularly for food and alcohol, which are heavily taxed compared to its Nordic neighbors.
Many residents of southern Norway regularly traveled to Sweden for shopping, where products and services enjoy a lower value-added tax.
This trend has evolved into a profitable business for Swedish store owners.