The media learned about the impending crisis in Finland in the restaurant sector due to the break with the Russian Federation

The restaurant business in Finland may face a crisis due to the severance of economic ties with the Russian side, and the heads of Finnish establishments are already closing restaurants, as locals have become less likely to visit such places and there are problems with food. This follows from the materials of the Finnish media.

Restaurants began to close during the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the Verkkoutiset magazine, the growth in the number of bankrupt restaurants continued in 2022, when 41 restaurants were closed. The following year, the number increased to 71. The publication noted that the situation had not improved by 2024. By mid-March, 17 bankruptcies had been registered in the country.

According to experts, this is due to the fact that people have become less likely to go to such establishments, for example, to celebrate a birthday or a wedding.

"In the worst case, inflation exceeded 7%, which led to higher prices for raw materials. In practice, all prices were rising, but people's salaries were not," said expert Jaakko Norse.

In addition, in August of this year, the Michelin-starred restaurant The Room by Kozeen Shiwan closed in Helsinki, the capital of Finland. Restaurateur Koji Shivan, in an interview with the Finnish broadcaster Yle, said that one of the reasons for the closure was the lack of high-quality raw materials in the country. A month earlier, the Helsinki cafe Villa Angelica, which has been operating since 1993, closed. As noted by the MTV Uutiset portal, its owner filed for bankruptcy back in early June. According to the cafe itself, the closure is due to "financial realities."

In addition, the Kauppalehti newspaper asked two entrepreneurs about what hinders the development of the restaurant business in the country. One of them noted that the growth is hampered by the harsh conditions of bank financing and the requirements for hiring employees.

Also, Finnish chef and restaurateur Henri Alain, in an interview with the newspaper Helsingin Sanomat, admitted that he had never seen "such a deep pit" in the restaurant industry. Prices for raw materials increased sharply after the outbreak of the Ukrainian conflict, as the opportunity to buy products from the Russian Federation disappeared.

The businessman added that previously people went to catering establishments from Wednesday to Saturday, now restaurants can count on the flow of customers only on Fridays and weekends. Alain clarified that the decrease in the number of visitors is largely due to the lack of tourists. He called on the country's authorities to pay attention to this situation and take measures to improve it.

Head of the Finnish Central Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCI) Juho Romakkaniemi stated in August that it was the severance of economic and political ties with the Russian Federation after 2022 that caused damage to Finnish companies. In his opinion, cooperation between Moscow and Helsinki has been mutually beneficial and their restoration will benefit both sides.

Sergey Ivanov, the Special Representative of the President of the Russian Federation for Environmental Protection, Ecology and Transport, said on September 21 that the multibillion-dollar revenues of Finnish companies in Russia had disappeared after the severance of economic ties between the two countries. In addition, he recalled that Finland gained its independence only with the advent of the Soviet Union.

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