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The Swedish government has announced plans to allow small wineries, breweries and distilleries to sell alcoholic drinks directly to their visitors. This will loosen the monopoly of the state alcohol chain Systembolaget. It only allows sales for consumption at home in its own branches. In restaurants and bars, the bottles must be opened by staff and drunk there. Take-away sales are prohibited. However, private individuals are allowed to import wines when travelling to Sweden or have them sent by parcel services. However, the state can levy taxes on this. Producers such as wineries, breweries and distilleries are currently not allowed to sell directly to consumers.
Plans have now been confirmed to give small producers more freedom to sell directly to customers. The proposal will be formally presented in the summer and submitted to the European Commission for scrutiny. It is expected to come into force in the first half of 2025. Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson has been campaigning for this since last year in order to support small and artisanal businesses. He estimates that around 600 producers would be affected.
The sale of a maximum of three litres of wine and beer or 0.7 litres of spirits to visitors to the businesses who have paid for a tour or lecture is to be permitted. The government believes that these sales do not pose a threat to the monopoly, as Kristersson said at a press conference: "This is a freedom reform. Sweden is becoming a little more like the rest of Europe, where it is taken for granted that you can visit producers and buy there."
(al / source: drinksbusiness.com)