Whenever I go abroad, I try to find what dish is native to the region, and although Denmark has its classic meals, nothing beats it pastries and chocolate. 

Danish chocolate is considered a delicacy, especially when inside a pastry.

 Why It’s Newsworthy: Chocolate is a delectable treat, but is it something everyone can enjoy? With the high prices, chocolate is declining in pastry use and in common purchases at the market.  

It is delicious to consume and even better to enjoy. The only reason most chefs do not use chocolate in their recipes is because of the tax on chocolate. 

Chef Frederick Terrible, a French chef who teaches classes to advanced and inexperienced bakers, shared why most chefs choose to not use Danish chocolate. 

“Because of the price,” said Terrible. “Danish pastries, you can see when you are in town, that it is quite expensive.” 

The common price of chocolate at one of the cheapest Copenhagen stores is 1,7 DKK per gram, or 27 cents per gram in U.S. currency. For the common Danish shopper, this can add up over time. 

A Danish local, Sebastian Brehmer, shared his thoughts on Danish chocolate. 

“I believe the chocolate here is great, but it can get quite expensive at times because of tax,” said Brehmer. 

Tax is included in every pricemark in Denmark, which can come in handy when trying to be on a budget. Compared to the grocery stores, handcrafted chocolate can be even more expensive.

The most common chocolate shops in Denmark are Summerbird, Peter Beier and Lagkagehuset. These stores are what premium bakers and bakeries choose to make their creations with. 

Although the stores previously listed are the most common, they do not have a lot of locations around the city. Shops that are strictly for chocolate are a rarity, and when I had the opportunity to stumble into one, I left with a smaller wallet. 

This is not from my love of the food, but from buying three pieces that cost almost $10 USD each. 

Chocolate is an internationally loved treat, but it is hard to enjoy when taxes are high, and the product gets more expensive every year. 

“Ten years ago, 15 years ago bakers tried to make it as cheap as possible, and they tried to compete a little too much with the supermarkets, and as soon as the product is too expensive, bakers began to get inventive with ways to keep their ingredients cheap,” said Terrible.

So, when bakeries and supermarkets are competing with each other, the products can become less valuable. But today, this form of competition has caused the opposite. Chocolate on all sides is expensive, even to the common customer. 

Grace Mains is a junior majoring in journalism with a minor in Law, Jurisprudence and the State.