Inflation has driven up the cost of living across Europe.
In Germany, each summer people turn to one indicator in particular to ascertain their bang for their buck – the price of a scoop of ice cream.
Join the queue at the local ice cream parlour anywhere from Bavaria and Berlin to the Baltic Sea, and you will be sure to hear groans about the astronomical prices that have skyrocketed yet again.
It’s hard to explain this fixation on the cost of a scoop where other nations instead complain about the price of eggs.
Perhaps it’s because people are determined to enjoy summer (which in this region is often marred by rain or the early onset of autumn) to the fullest, and the rising price of ice cream is a blatant reminder of less carefree times.
Or perhaps it’s because a scoop of ice cream is one of the first things people paid for with their own pocket money.
Michael Böhmer, who runs a café in the town of Gaggenau, to the west of Stuttgart near the French border, believes that everyone should be able to treat themselves to a scoop of ice cream.
As more people struggle to make ends meet, this conviction prompted him to take a different approach. His café now charges ice cream lovers by the gram.
Böhmer believes this concept is fairer, as it allows customers to adjust their order according to what they can afford.
Parents can order a smaller scoop for their children, Böhmer says.
He believes the new system “is a chance to show solidarity” with others.
After all, it’s up to businesses to decide how much they charge for their products, he says, which brings a certain responsibility towards society.
A fair price
The new concept also helps with book keeping, Böhmer says.
Since his staff all scoop slightly different amounts of ice cream, varying by up to 30 grammes, charging by the gramme is good news for his balance sheets.
At Café Brezels, they charge €2 ($2.2) for 100 g of ice cream, a fair price considering that a scoop from one of Berlin’s hip ice cream parlours will usually cost you at least €2.
In Gaggenau, a conventional-sized scoop weighing 80 g would cost €1.6.
On average, ice cream is still cheaper in Germany than in Spain, Italy or France where a scoop averages between €3 and €4.5, according to Uniteis, an association representing ice cream manufacturers.
‘You only pay for what you get’
Böhmer says his customers needed time to get used to ordering ice cream by the gram. “They are all surprised, but also in a positive way,” he says.
Sergis Givargis is among those impressed with the change. “You only pay for what you get.”
Steffi Wick agrees. The concept is designed “so everyone can afford it, which isn’t a given anymore these days,” she says. “That’s why I think it’s great.
Café owner Böhmer realized that his customers tend to go for smaller scoops now, weighing less than 80 g, which means sales are down, but he is okay with that, he says.
“It’s about fairness, which is much more important.”
The new approach hasn’t overcomplicated things either, the owner says.
Instead of ordering a scoop weighing exactly 91.5 g, most customers simply ask for either a small or a big scoop, he says.
