Some Scandinavians are liberally toasting the newly expanded EU, but cheap alcohol is proving a massive headache for Nordic governments.
Police in Finland have reported a leap in alcohol-related violence and drink driving offences since Helsinki slashed alcohol taxes by 33 percent from March 1 in preparation for EU expansion.
Norwegian Social Affairs Minister Ingjerd Schou describes the problem facing her country as a huge dilemma.
Since the Baltic countries joined the EU, groups of Finns have been going on so-called "vodka rallies" to Estonia, where supermarkets sell local brands as low as 4.5 euros (US$5) a bottle, 24 hours a day.
Before May 1, Finns could bring home one liter of liquor and 16 liters of beer, but since Estonia became an EU member the size of your car is the limit. Private consumers can import hundreds of liters of booze within the free-trade area.
Nordic people typically go on binges, but drink less by volume than continental Europeans who consume smaller amounts more often. But Nordic alcohol consumption is on a rise.
"We haven't swapped our way of getting drunk on the weekends with continental habits -- we have combined them," Schou said.
Finns' favorite in neighboring Estonia is Viru Valge at 6.0 euros a bottle, now also sold in three-liter boxes in an innovative gimmick to meet growing demand from May 1.
Finland and Denmark, both EU members, have slashed alcohol taxes to combat cross-border shopping, while EU nation Sweden and non-EU Norway are feeling the pressure to follow suit.
Now a 0.7 liter bottle of Absolut Vodka costs 254 Norwegian crowns (US$37) in Norway, 230 Swedish crowns (US$30) in Sweden, 120 Danish crowns (US$19) in Denmark and 16.15 euros (US$19) in Finland.
Some Finnish politicians argue that taxes should be raised again to redress rising alcohol consumption.
OUTRAGEOUS
Norwegians cram ferries to Denmark and endure traffic jams into Sweden to take advantage of lower alcohol prices, pushed down by competition from accession states.
"Why should I queue up in a Norwegian wine monopoly to pay an outrageous price for wine and spirits when I can get it cheap in Sweden?" said Karl-Erik Fredriksen, a 33-year-old Norwegian engineer who buys all his alcohol abroad.
There are no official statistics yet from Norway but bank records show that the number of Norwegians who swiped their cash cards through payment terminals in Swedish stores surged 67 percent in the last week of May against the same week last year.
"We are facing a huge dilemma," Schou said. "When we see what is happening around us, we realize that the Nordic way of braking drinking with taxes and limited access is losing effect. We need to look at new ways to attack the problem."
TAX PRESSURE
Cheaper alcohol also threatens generous Nordic cradle-to-grave welfare systems. People have traditionally accepted high alcohol taxes which have helped curb drinking and protect public health.
"There are limits to how long we can have higher taxes than our neighbors. Pressure is growing," said Norwegian Finance Minister Per-Kristian Foss.
His Swedish colleague has said the same.
Norway's government, headed by Prime Minister Kjell Magne Bondevik who is a teetotal Lutheran priest, has cut taxes on spirits by 25 percent. They are still Europe's highest.
Norway's 4.5 million people pay about 15 billion crowns a year in alcohol fees and taxes out of budget revenues this year of 715 billion. Norway does not need the money -- it has a vast budget surplus as the world's third-largest oil exporter.
In Norway, Sweden and Finland, wine and liquor are sold at state-run outlets. Norwegian outlets shut extra early on days before public holidays to limit holiday drinking.
In Norway, only half of the liquor consumed is bought at a state outlet. The rest is bought legally abroad, smuggled or made at home.
Toxic home-made alcohol has killed 15 Norwegians since 2002, leading some to question the deterrent value of high taxes if they spur more people to drink illegal moonshine.
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