Are you hungry for the next part of my Australia vs London vs Sweden series where I compare culture differences between the 3 countries? It’s time to talk about.. FOOD! I mean, who doesn’t like food? It’s also a fantastic way to get a good feel for a new country and its culture so here we go!

So what’s the differences between Australia, London and Sweden when it comes to food? Well, it turns out to be a lot!

THE SEASONS:
One of the biggest differences between the countries is that Australia is extremely seasonal when it comes to food. There’s seasonal differences in both the United Kingdom and Sweden as well, but not at all at the same level. Australia produces most of its own products, which both reduce the environmental impact and supports the Australian farmers/businesses. However, it can be extremely frustrating to not be able to cook certain dishes because it’s impossible to get hold of some of the ingredients or to be forced to use substitutes.

The United Kingdom and Sweden, on the other hand, have both a limited food production and are therefore forced to import some of its food. The price and quality will change depending on the season, but almost all of the products will be accessible year around.

WHERE TO SHOP:
All countries do most of their food shopping in large grocery stores and the shops are all fairly similar. However, a large chunk of the vegetables and fruits in Australia is bought from the farmers markets/similar. It’s usually cheaper and it’s a lot more to choose from. We even buy most of our fish from the markets, because the range is a lot better than in the supermarkets. The food markets is something that I will really miss once we move back to Europe.

However, the UK has a few good markets as well that I really like. But it’s more for nicer produces, like special cheeses, homemade jams etc. than everyday stuff. The best would obviously be a mix of these two! Sweden has the occasional farmers market, but it doesn’t have the same market culture as in the other two countries.

PRICE:
Now, this is a tricky comparison. Australia can be both insanely expensive when it’s not in season and extremely cheap when it’s in the right season. The price in the UK and Sweden do change as well after the seasons, but not at all as dramatic. It’s more the quality that changes over the seasons. Meat in general is a lot cheaper here and seems to keep a higher quality than in Europe. Australia can possibly be both the cheapest and most expensive country, while the UK is slightly cheaper than Sweden.

How is it where you live?

Do you want to know more about the culture differences between Australia, London and Sweden? I’ve also talked about: Transportation