Blaming a lack of competition in the retail sector, Norway's Minister of Agriculture Sylvi Listhaug told the country's Aftenposten newspaper that food in Norway is too expensive.
While food prices in Norway rose 5.4 percent in the past four months, according to Statistics Norway, the country has also been challenged by falling oil prices which led it to devalue its currency. According to Listhaug, however, lack of competition is responsible for the rise in prices. Norway has long been considered the wealthiest of the Nordic countries, largely because of its oil sector.
"We have high food prices in Norway and the government is now looking into the value chain to see if competition can be strengthened," Listhaug told Aftenposten.
With only three supermarket chains in the country, Norway suffers from a "high concentration" in retail, according to the minister.
Norway has also lost 11 percent of its food exports following its sanctions against Russia and Russian counter-sanctions, according to the German-Norwegian Chamber of Commerce.
