Denmark scraps taxes on coffee, chocolate as inflation bites
COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AFP) – Denmark said Friday that it would scrap taxes on coffee and chocolate to ease the economic burden on households struggling with rising food prices.
“We have chosen something that will have an immediate effect on Danes, who will immediately feel that they have more money at their disposal,” Deputy Prime Minister Troels Lund Poulsen told broadcaster TV2.
Dropping the taxes will lower the cost of a packet of coffee by an average of five kroner (80 US cents), according to officials.
Considered Denmark’s oldest tax, a specific tax on chocolate applies to all products containing cocoa, confectionery, candied fruit and chewing gum.
The tax varies depending on the sugar content.
According to official statistics, the price of chocolate jumped by more than 25.3 per cent year-on-year in July, while coffee prices soared by 35.5 per cent.
Overall, food prices rose by 6.5 per cent year-on-year in the same month.
The government expects that scrapping the taxes will reduce tax revenues by around 2.4 billion kroner ($376 million).
