Americans most hungry for Swedish cinnamon rolls
85 percent of the Americans who are interested in Sweden are curious about Swedish coffee culture "Swedish Fika", which includes cinnamon rolls, cookies, and coffee treats.
Photo credit: Jim Hofverberg, Visit Sweden
This is shown by a survey conducted by Visit Sweden*, among people abroad who are interested in Sweden as a travel destination. After Americans, travelers from neighboring countries Norway and Finland are the most interested in the exotic coffee culture, but the interest from Germans and French is not far behind.
Visit Sweden recognizes that the Swedish fika tradition is popular among international travelers and often highlights princess and strawberry cake, cinnamon rolls, and cookies as something you must not miss during a visit to Sweden, not least during “cinnamon bun day”, taking place today on October 4.
*Visit Sweden Potential Traveler Target group Analysis 2021
Apparently, the average Swede, eats cakes and pastry equivalent to 316 cinnamon rolls per year!
In Sweden, 'fika' is an essential part of everyday life. In fact, it's so sacred that two coffee breaks per day are an unwritten rule in many Swedish workplaces. And, while newcomers to Sweden are often sceptical about fika at first, many end up admitting that some of the best ideas are hatched on fika breaks.
The Birth of the Cinnamon Roll Day
Nothing says fika more than a cup of coffee and a cinnamon roll. The cinnamon roll or bun (or 'kanelbulle' in Swedish) was first created after the First World War, but, as the ingredients (flour, sugar, egg, butter, cinnamon and cardamom) were expensive and hard to find, it did not become popular until the 1950s. These days, it's the ultimate symbol of Swedish home cooking and, as any Swede will tell you, the smell of newly baked cinnamon buns is the best in the world.
The cinnamon bun is so popular that, in 1999, a collective of Swedish baking ingredient producers known as Sweden’s Home Baking Council announced that October 4th would henceforth be Cinnamon Roll Day ('Kanelbullens dag').
For more information:
- About cinnamon rolls and where to get the best ones in Stockholm and Gothenburg.
- The Swedish fika tradition and how to fika like a Swede.
- A selection of related images: imagebank.sweden.se
Visit Sweden has an official assignment from the Swedish government to market Sweden as a destination. Our vision is that Sweden by 2030 is the world's most sustainable and attractive destination built on innovation. Visit Sweden is a limited company with 50 employees across the world. The Company is based in Stockholm and the turnover 2022 was SEK 159,9 million.Welcome to Sweden, a destination of a different nature.
