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WASTE

Unwrapping Denmark’s first zero-packaging food store

Inspired by the success of zero-packaging stores across France, a pair of visionaries will open Denmark's first food store of its kind in Copenhagen this August.

Published: 1 April 2016 08:56 CEST
Unwrapping Denmark's first zero-packaging food store
Løs Market will be opening in Copenhagen this summer. Photo: Submitted

Denmark did not fare well in the latest Eurostat report on waste in Europe. According to the study, Danes led the EU in 2014 by producing a tremendous 759 kg of waste per citizen. The figures are pretty staggering, especially considering Denmark’s northern Norwegian neighbours wasted only 423kg in the same year.

But there are eco-friendly changes underway in Denmark. The country has cut its food waste by 25 percent over the past five years and recently made global headlines for opening the world's first supermarket exclusively selling excess food.  

Now two pioneers are bringing another revolutionary concept to the shoppers of Copenhagen in another first for the nation.  

The organic food store Løs Market will introduce an innovative zero-packaging concept to Copenhagen this August, hoping to reduce the Danes' oversized trash output.

Løs Market founders Frédéric Hamburger and Constance Leth found the inspiration to create their zero packaging store in France and Germany.

“The inspiration came from France where around 500 organic shops are selling goods in bulk in containers already,” Hamburger old The Local.

“Through our visits to these stores we could tell that people are now ready to buy without packaging because many are now tired of plastic and packaging, especially in Denmark,” they continued.

Denmark is already familiar to the concept thanks to the rich abundance of pick-and-mix sweets stores scattered across the country.

Løs Market will adapt that tried and true concept with a unique twist by essentially replacing those sugary cavity creators with organic cereals, fruit, vegetables, wines and over 400 other organic products.

Customers will be encouraged to bring their own containers to the store for dry goods, with Løs Market also offering biodegradable paper bags for shoppers who don’t have a spare one to hand. When it comes to liquids, consumers will be given a refillable bottle to reuse until their thirst for wine, olive oil and soap is sated.


Løs Market will allow customers to bring and re-use their own containers. Photo: Submitted

Although changing Danish shopping habits is going to be far from an easy task, the Løs Market founders are confident the zero packaging shopping experience will be as successful with Danish consumers as it is with the French.

“It’s going to be a long road to change people’s buying habits, but when we see all the people willing to buy without packaging in France, we are quite optimistic that we will create the same ‘movement’ in Denmark,” Hamburger said.

Løs Market has launched a crowdfunding campaign ahead of its planned August opening.

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FOOD AND DRINK

Five dishes that every newcomer to Denmark should try at least once

Denmark may have a stellar reputation as a world leader when it comes to fine dining, but it’s also home to plenty of hearty dishes. Here are a few you should try.

Published: 19 April 2024 17:30 CEST
Five dishes that every newcomer to Denmark should try at least once

With dozens of Michelin stars scattered across the country, world-famous restaurants like Noma and Geranium and Bocuse d’Or winning chefs, it’s not surprising Denmark is known as a gastronomical destination.

But that doesn’t mean there aren’t many simple, traditional meals that make up an important part of the culinary landscape.

Danish dishes often reflect the country’s agricultural roots, its heavy use of pork and fish and common “meat and two veg” style of meal composition.

Here are a few dishes that are time-honoured favourites in Denmark and, as well as tasting great, might tell you a bit about the Nordic nation’s past and present.

Frikadeller

Frikadeller is Denmark’s answer to Sweden’s köttbullar or meatballs, made famous worldwide by their presence in IKEA cantines.

The Danish version consists of ground meat – commonly pork – rolled into a ball with salt, egg and seasoning like thyme and cumin, fried on a pan. There are other variations and styles but this seems to be the most common.

Usually, the frikadeller are pressed flat to make them more cylindrical than ball-shaped.

They can be served with anything from a salad to pasta or a slice of rye bread, but seem most at home with boiled potatoes, gravy and some cabbage or beetroot.

Look out also for fiskefrikadeller – where the meatballs are made of fish.

Karrysild med æg

Curried herring with egg might sound like a potent mix of ingredients and it can be an acquired taste, but once you’ve got used to it you may join many Danes in favouring it as a rye bread topping on occasions like Easter lunches.

It’s easy to make – you chop up the herring (which can be bought in pre-marinated jars at supermarkets, if you prefer) and mix it with a creamy dressing consisting of mayonnaise, crème fraiche, curry seasoning and red onion.

Mix in some chopped boiled eggs or serve them alongside the curried herring for your finished article. If you want to add a fancy twist, include some chopped apple in the cream for a bit of extra crispness.

Curried herring with egg. Photo: Vibeke Toft/Ritzau Scanpix

Brændende kærlighed

Translating literally to “burning love”, brændende kærlighed is a classic Danish winter dish that will, as advertised, warm you up on cold nights.

It includes buttery mash potatoes and usually a side of pickled beetroot, but its crown it the topping: a hefty portion of chopped bacon, fried up with onions, pepper and sometimes a little chili.

Make sure the bacon is as crisp as possible.

READ ALSO: Five classic Danish cakes you need to try

Grønlangkål

Kål is the Danish word for cabbage. Grønlangkål or “green long cabbage” isn’t a type of cabbage in itself but a way of preparing and serving regular green cabbage, often at Christmas dinners or as a side with a pork-based main like glazed ham, the giant medister sausage or the aforementioned frikadeller meatballs.

Prepare by finely chopping the cabbage, mixing with cream, butter, sugar and muscat, and sautéing on a pain until it is soft.

Grønlangkål (top right of picture) with medister sausage and leverpostej (pate). Photo: Nils Lund Pedersen/NF/Ritzau Scanpix

READ ALSO: Påskefrokost: What are the essentials of a Danish Easter lunch?

Hotdog

Although it wasn’t invented in Denmark, the Danes have certainly made a version of the hotdog their own.

There are a few types which could be considered typically Danish, but the hotdog with rødpølse (“red sausage”), remoulade relish, pickled cucumber and dried fried onions is a classic and arguably the Scandinavian country’s signature street food.

You could also try a fransk hotdog or “French hotdog”, a somewhat blander affair in which the sausage is placed into a hollowed out miniature baguette, usually with ketchup or mayo.

Although fast food has diversified hugely since the hotdog’s arrival in Denmark over a hundred years ago, it is still as popular as ever – just ask the country’s police officers.

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