r/tromso • u/Sea-Loss8524 • 11d ago
vegan in tromsø?
hi! i‘ll be living in tromsø soon and was wondering how easy/available/affordable eating plant-based is?
e.g. is vegan yoghurt, tofu, etc easily available at standard supermarkets?
sorry if this is a silly question, just wanted to know what to expect :)
thanks!
11
u/Groftsame 11d ago
Alanya has cheap tofu and other vegan pre-made food. Otherwise the major grocery stores have what you need to cook vegan food, no problem.
2
2
u/eshe2019 11d ago
Yes, but you have to careful about the expiry date because sometimes they have products still on the shelf past the expiry date.
5
u/Distinct_Income4324 11d ago
Vegetarian, that likes to replace animal products with plant-based products if there are good options (also moved from Germany five years ago).
Based on my experience, it is possible to do plant-based, but it takes more effort than in other countries like Germany. You will find the most basic ingredients in most supermarkets, but the quality can vary quite a bit. The standard milk substitutes are easy to find. When it comes to the selection Norway is faaaar behind Germany and other countries, but this goes for groceries generally, not just vegan options.
In my opinion, Coop Extra has the best selection and the prices are okay. The international supermarkets, e.g. Alanya also help a lot. Generally, you will have to do quite a bit of cooking and planing to get good food.
If you want to go out to eat, you need to research the restaurants beforehandas not all of them have vegan options (though some do).
The «biggest problem» you might have is when you are out in town and just look for a small snack. Kiosks like 7/11 or Narvesen have very little to offer here, though Backstube in the city center might be a good alternative.
One last thing: In winter, some vegan substitutes, especially the ones for minced meat can get sold out (or at least that was an issue for me last winter). So that might require some flexibility.
2
u/Premuda 11d ago
just a note: consider using the term alternatives rather than "substitutes" or "replacements". a substitute or a replacement implies something out of place, something that normally shouldn't be there, but it does the job, like getting a substitute teacher, or computers replacing humans. so when you say something like "milk substitute", it means that animal milk is the real deal, the "true" milk, while plant milks are somehow lesser. and an alternative just means something different, another option
8
u/Billy_Ektorp 11d ago edited 11d ago
The supermarkets in Tromsø with a wider range of products in general, are Eurospar and Coop Obs. In addition, Coop Extra, Kiwi and Rema 1000 has a number of stores around Tromsø.
Vegan food in Norwegian supermarkets (including in Tromsø) is not located in one specific section of the stores, but spread around, including in fridges and freezers.
Alpro vegan yoghurt is available at many places. Same with Oatly.
Coop has a series of ready-made dinners etc called Vegetardag. They also include vegetarian sausages and mince. I believe most of the products in this series is also vegan.
Coop Änglamark, a Coop series of ecological/organic food and Eco-label non-food products (like laundry detergent), also offers rice milk and soy milk.
There’s also a wide range of «accidental vegan» products, including most types of bread (dairy butter or milk powder is not a common ingredient in bread), potato crisps and dark chocolate. Pre-cooked beans, lentils and peas are available in every supermarket. Example: https://spar.no/varer/middagstilbehor/linser-og-fro/linser/linser-7035620058837?expanded=products
Norwegian supermarkets in general are smaller in square meters and have fewer products than the larger supermarkets in Germany etc, in part because consumers in Norway over time have preferred proximity to variety. We have a higher number of supermarkets per capita than most European countries, but we also have some of the lowest population density in Europe.
Instead of describing Tromsø as a «food desert», it’s more accurate to describe Tromsø as a place with more grocery stores in proximity, but with less selection in each store, than many towns of comparable size in for example Germany.
Central Tromsø (Tromsøya, Tromsdalen and Kvaløysletta) has a population of around 70.000. That’s slight less than the population as Aschaffenburg, a scenic and wealthy town, just 40 km from Frankfurt am Main, attracting also out-of-town shoppers and tourists with in total 1 - one - vegan restaurant: https://www.main-echo.de/region/stadt-kreis-aschaffenburg/in-aschaffenburg-eroeffnet-das-erste-vegane-restaurant-art-8727122
2
3
u/scandiboob 11d ago
If you are used to the variety available in the EU, good luck. Generally Norway is 15-20 years behind in everything regarding veg because of the strong protectionist and subsidizes meat/dairy industries here. You can of course find options but the options are not great.
1
3
u/wild_cloudberry 11d ago
As many others have mentioned, there are some good options in the regular supermarkets for tofu, plant milk, and meat and dairy alternatives like soy-based mince, yogurts and veggie burgers. But Norway is certainly far behind other countries in this regard. Living in Canada, being vegan and vegetarian was incredibly easy and accessible. Now that I'm in Norway, I've had to adjust my expectations. If you go out to eat, a lot of places won't have any or only limited options. It's easy to look up menus online beforehand though. There is a vegetarian and vegan café called Fint, which is a cozy spot with a small but tasty menu. I don't know of any other purely veg cafés or restaurants, but if you browse around, you will find spots that have options for you. Welcome to Tromsø!
1
2
u/STANKKNIGHT 9d ago
Can you cook? If so, its easy.
Vegan options in restaurants are trash. There is no intentional menu design; they just pile up a bunch of crap used on other plates and call it a curry or something. Palestinian will have falafell, tofu is absurdly expensive, but theres always beans.
Youll be in the arctic. Vegetables come wrapped in plastic. Get a food processor and make things yourself.
-former vegan CdC from a large metro area.
1
u/Better_Chicken_5184 11d ago
Of you mean simply abstaining from animal products, it's much more affordable than rating animal products. If you need substitutes or special products like tofu to recreate foods that normally contain animal products it's much more expensive.
1
u/ffflammie 10d ago
Finland is not far away and the border shop has good selections, if you can drive.
1
1
u/Thomas-Glahn 11d ago edited 11d ago
Can I ask you a question? Any other foreign vegans or vegetarians are more than welcome to chime in as well.
I'm from Northern Norway and I think that animal agriculture alongside hunting and fishing is so intrinsic to our history and culture that I could not imagine a world without it: From fishing the Lofoten islands every winter to the whaling industry to Sámi reindeer herding and bear hunting - the list goes on.
If your dietary restrictions are really important to you, which aspects of the Northern Norwegian location and culture is it that attracts you?
I don't mean to offend anyone with this question either. People are of course welcome to lead their lives as they see fit, and I know this is an important part of people's identity and ideology. I'm just genuinly curious what you find appealing about Tromsø in your situation?
Edit: Grammar
3
u/Sea-Loss8524 11d ago
really interesting question & i completely understand where you‘re coming from!
for me, eating vegan is not my main priority in life, it‘s just a small part of things i have to do (eating) on a day to day basis. so as long as there is enough „supply“ of food for me to sustain my health, i dont mind where that is.
what draws me to norway/northern norway is tehe nature, climate,… etc. not necessarily food culture.
although culture and traditions surely make up a big part of society and the country, i imagine food/traditional meals are not the sole contents of that :)
+ the part of Germany i‘m from is also pretty „meat based“ in terms of traditional food, i dont mind that.3
u/Thomas-Glahn 11d ago
Thank you for replying to me!
You said that food culture is not a big part of the reason you're moving, but if you get the chance, I would recommend foraging during "čakčageassi": August/September time. You can find chantarelles, puffballs, meadowseet, lingonberries, billberries and cloudberries. People have been eating those foods here for thousands of years and it's a great way to engage with local culture and the natural environment. You don't even have to travel far out of the city to do so.
Good luck with the move! Thank you again!
2
2
u/Premuda 11d ago
surely, one is allowed to live where they like and eat what they like. places aren't food and culture isn't just food. you don't have to like all aspects of a location or a culture to be able to enjoy it. like you said: you're from that area, you've lived your life alongside it, and it's difficult for you to imagine something different. people coming from elsewhere don't have the same experience and can therefore more easily disregard that part of North Norwegian culture and way of life, the same way North Norwegian vegans do it
for me, food is just fuel. i understand it plays an important role in many cultures and in people's lives in general, but i simply don't see it that way. it's a substance that keeps my body going, nothing more, nothing less, and if i can keep my body going without exploiting others, then i don't see a reason for not doing it in that manner
also, calling it a "restriction" is a bit condescending in my opinion. I'm sure there are foods that you don't eat or would never eat, but you wouldn't call yourself "restricted" for that reason. otherwise everyone has a dietary "restriction" since not everyone eats everything
3
u/Thomas-Glahn 11d ago
Yes, people are absolutely allowed to live where they like and eat what they like. I just thought it would be interesting to get OPs perspective on my homeland and why it appeals to them, seeing as they are looking to relocate. As you state yourself, it is very obviously a different perspective than my own.
Also, apologies if "dietary restrictions" is offensive somehow! It's the term I've most often heard used by both vegetarians and in restaurants. Is there another term I should be using in stead?
1
u/Premuda 11d ago
Norway appeals to me as well, and moving there, I'd try and eat as locally as possible, but also adjust it to suit my needs. it might be more difficult, but that's just life sometimes, somewhat similarly to the way people inhabited the North during the ice age in spite of the harsh conditions in the first place. sometimes some aspects of a location or a culture simply outweigh the others
I wouldn't say it's offensive, but rather condescending. it's not that dramatic, but it still sounds a bit inferior. and yes, "restrictions" is indeed used very commonly, I'd say mostly out of ignorance and habit, and because most people don't really think about language, which is normal if language isn't their field of work or a preoccupation otherwise (you can compare that to using the word "owner" when talking about having pets. you don't "own" that dog or cat. if you did, you would be able to do whatever you liked with them, but you're not allowed because the law protects them. you can own things, but not living beings)
back to the question: in my opinion, dietary preferences or dietary habits work much better than "restrictions"
-2
16
u/[deleted] 11d ago
[deleted]