Riksdag Vote Approves Alcohol “Farm Sales” Despite Public Health Warnings
On April 23, Sweden’s Parliament (Riksdag) voted in favour of introducing so called alcohol farm sales, in a move that jeopardizes the future of the country’s successful and evidence-based alcohol policy model. According to Accent, 154 members of Parliament voted for the proposal, 129 voted against, 19 abstained, and 47 were absent. The law will take effect on June 1, 2025, and be evaluated after six years.
Undermining the Alcohol Monopoly: EU Legal Risks and Public Health Threats
This decision threatens to dismantle Systembolaget, Sweden’s state-owned alcohol retail monopoly, which has long been a cornerstone of the country’s alcohol policy. In an opinion piece published in Dagens Nyheter, Lucas Nilsson, the chairman of IOGT-NTO, a Movendi International member organization, warned that this is a calculated political gamble with Swedish public health.
Mr Nilsson cited the European Court of Justice’s precedent in the Visnapuu case in Finland, which showed that if alcoholic products are sold both directly at the production site and via a national monopoly, the monopoly loses its legal justification under EU law.
In fact, the Swedish Ministry of Social Affairs’ own legal analysis also concluded that the farm sales proposal would remove the retail monopoly exemption. This is currently granted to Systembolaget under Article 37 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU). Once the monopoly is lost, Sweden must comply with Article 34 on the free movement of goods, effectively forcing open the market to private alcohol retail, including international producers.
Dangerous Shift Toward a Market-Driven Alcohol Environment
Part of the success of Sweden’s alcohol policy is that the profit maximization agenda is removed from alcohol retail. But when the monopoly falls, privatized alcohol retail will be pursuing profit maximization – with dire consequences for the people and society.
Systembolaget plays a crucial role in Sweden’s public health strategy by removing profit motives from alcohol sales.
According to Movendi International, alcohol retail monopolies like Systembolaget are globally recognised tools that prevent alcohol harm by reducing the physical and economic availability of alcohol.
Evidence shows that retail monopolies can reduce per capita alcohol use, prevent violence, reduce alcohol-impaired driving, and lower the overall burden of alcohol-related disease.
For example, according to a BMJ study, the existence of Systembolaget helps save up to 1,400 lives per year in Sweden.
Countries with alcohol retail monopolies experience less violence, fewer hospitalisations, and better public health outcomes compared to liberalised alcohol markets.
A brand new report from Germany – a country with a profit-driven alcohol retail and a government captured by alcohol industry interests – reveal the massive alcohol burden that is much heavier than in Sweden.
The report, published by the German Central Office for Addiction Questions (Deutsche Hauptstelle für Suchtfragen, DHS), paints a grim picture:
- Alcohol leads to ca. 47,500 deaths each year in Germany.
- More than one-fifth of the adult population has high-risk alcohol use.
- Alcohol harm costs the German economy over €57 billion annually.
- But the annual government revenue from alcohol taxation amounts to only €3.2 billion.
- 50.4% of alcohol sales, amounting to €5.82 billion, stem from high-risk alcohol use, highlighting how much the alcohol industry in Germany depends on heavy consumption for its profits.
- Germany’s per capita alcohol excise duty revenue is about 79.8% lower than the €218 per capita collected in Lithuania.
- But a modest 5% price increase on alcohol could generate €1.4 billion in additional tax revenue each year.
Poor Political Justifications, Strong Industry Influence
Despite three previous investigations over nearly 20 years reaching the same conclusion, that introducing alcohol farm sales would dismantle the monopoly, the current center-right Swedish government has moved ahead. As reported in Dagens Nyheter, the government claimed that farm sales are not equivalent to retail sales. However, the government’s own proposal contradicts this claim by explicitly defining farm sales as a form of retail.
Furthermore, IOGT-NTO has described “farm sales” (Swedish: Gårdsförsäljning) of alcohol as a manufacturing scam that gives manufacturers of alcoholic beverages the opportunity to sell alcohol directly to the customer.
“Gårdsförsäljning is a scam. It would turn into garage sales of alcohol in urban areas.”
IOGT-NTO report “TROJAN HORSE OF THE ALCOHOL INDUSTRY“
Moreover, as Dagens Nyheter reports, the World Health Organisation (WHO), has also repeatedly warned the Swedish government about the potential consequences of undermining the monopoly, emphasising the risk of expanding alcohol availability and the resulting harm. Therefore, as Lucas Nilsson states, by giving opportunities for farm sales, this decision becomes a situation where “the population loses and the alcohol industry wins.”
The decision taken by Parliament today is a historical mistake,” says Lucas Nilsson, President of IOGT-NTO in a press release, reacting to the parliamentary vote.
We have a system that saves lives – but instead of protecting it, the Riksdag chooses to play a venture with our most important alcohol policy instrument. These are short-term policies that risk more children suffering from alcohol damage, more people suffering from alcohol-related illnesses and more people dying as a result of alcohol damage”
Lucas Nilsson, President, IOGT-NTO
Farm Sales Conditions and Future Legal Challenges
As Accent reports, under the new rules, farm sales will be permitted under specific conditions.
- Eligible producers must remain financially and legally independent from larger alcohol manufacturers and stay under set production limits: up to 75,000 litres of liquor, 400,000 litres of beverages with up to 10% alcohol content, or 200,000 litres with higher alcohol content.
- Sales are capped at 0.7 litres of liquor, 3 litres of wine, 3 litres of beer, or 3 litres of other alcoholic beverages per customer.
The new law is expected to be challenged in court, reports Dagens Nyheter. Portugal has already filed a formal complaint, and the European wine industry has signaled intentions to pursue legal action against Sweden.
The Price of Dismantling Evidence-Based Alcohol Policy
This development puts Sweden on a path that directly threatens its internationally praised alcohol policy model. Systembolaget’s evidence-based structure has prevented alcohol harm for decades.
Movendi International notes that ensuring common sense limits for alcohol availability limits through structural measures, such as limiting retail outlet density and opening hours, ensuring higher prices, and banning advertising, are the high-impact, proven strategies for alcohol policy making.
The Swedish Parliament’s approval of farm sales trades a proven, people-focused health policy for alcohol industry interests. As Filip Nyman, a member and local chairperson of IOGT-NTO district east, stated outside Parliament during the vote, as per Accent reporting:
It was not we who lost today, but the Swedish people.”
Filip Nyman, a member and local chairperson of IOGT-NTO district east
The decision risks lives, increases alcohol harm, and opens the door to further erosion and worsening of a successful and proven alcohol policy model that only benefits the alcohol industry while putting people’s health at risk.
Sources
Accent Magasin: “Debatt i riksdagen om gårdförsäljning – hyckleri“
Accent Magasin: “Avgjort: Riksdagen klubbar förslag om gårdförsäljning“
Dagens Nyheter (DN): “Regeringen ägnar sig åt ett vågspel med folkhälsan“
Cision/IOGT-NTO: “Riksdagen röstar ja till gårdförsäljning – ett historiskt misstag för folkhälsan“
MSN Sweden: “Skarp kritik från IOGT-NTO: Vågspel med folkhälsan“