Swedish FIKA & The Japanese Tea Ceremony

I had a chance to compare the Swedish FIKA ritual to the Japanese Tea Ceremony when I presented my book and spoke on fika at Courmand Awards, co-organized with Umeå Food Symposium, in Umeå, June 2-5, 2022.

If the Japanese Tea Ceremony, reflects the culture of Japan and the soul of the Japanese people, then FIKA shows the culture and soul of us Swedes. Can we learn from how the Japanese have used their tea ceremony to brand Japan? Could FIKA be used to communicate that Business Sweden’s descriptors of Sweden: Equality; Sustainability; Co-creation; and Innovation, are for real

Magnus Skoglöf's photos created a backdrop for my presentation. Cecilia Kusoffsky's logo provided a reminder that this was all about FIKA. Award-winning professional photographers Per-Erik Berglund and #Leif Milling documented it all.

Photo: Leif Milling

Photo: PerErik Berglund