Finns buy too much alcohol in bulk

According to surveys a majority of Finns reject the proposal by Finland's minister of social services to sell only light beer in grocery stores. There are better ways to influence consumer behaviour than direct paternalism, writes the liberal daily Keskisuomalainen: "True, banning the quantity discount means that consumers no longer have the excuse of it being cheaper to buy in bulk, nevertheless the huge 24-can beer cases and the crates of wine containing several litres are today justified by their being easier to transport.. If people were forced to load the same amount of alcohol into their shopping trolleys can by can or bottle by bottle, no doubt many would start having second thoughts about their daily alcohol consumption. Bulk consumption has become the norm, and it's both difficult and considered 'not normal' to open in the store. Couldn't we limit the packaging size? That way consumers would retain their right to decide how much and what they wanted to buy."

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