Grocers in Skåne are raising the alarm that the theft of meat has increased dramatically recently. They claim that organized leagues are behind it and are now demanding forceful action from the authorities.
– It’s not just a package that goes missing, but fridges are ransacked, says shopkeeper Andreas, who has reported 10-15 thefts this year alone.
Since the turn of the year, reported shop thefts throughout the country have increased by 17 percent compared to the same period last year, according to Brå’s preliminary figures. Shop owners in Malmö feel particularly hard hit and today called a crisis meeting with, among other things, the police and the municipality.
– We see that it is the same leagues that return at regular intervals. Just in time for us to fill the fridge, the leagues are back.
Ending up on the Marketplace
The municipality participates in the meeting because it supervises the less accurate restaurants, which the shop owners believe buy the stolen goods. Other goods end up on the Marketplace, for example, and the traders want to see that the police act faster and more forcefully on all reports that are made.
– I understand the frustration and it is from the questions that I will take with me internally, says Peter Saarmann, municipal police in Malmö.
According to the industry organization Livsmedelshandlarna, meat thieves cost grocery stores three billion every year. The thefts ultimately affect the customers, says Andreas.
– The customers have less to choose from and in the end we don’t have a good range at all.