Coffee packets on supermarket shelves in Finland are now hard to miss, not only because of their rising prices but due to bright yellow security tags affixed to them.
In the Helsinki metropolitan area, some Lidl stores have adopted RF security stickers to combat theft on certain items, including on coffee products. The practice varies between stores, with products more prone to theft receiving such measures.
Lidl said that if a store notices that certain products are disappearing from the shelves more than others, they are labelled with alarm stickers.
Theft prevention measures expanding
Security measures in Finnish supermarkets have increased in recent years, according to Janne Ahtoniemi, Head of Risk Management at Lidl's competitor S Group.
Although tagging is still primarily used for pricey consumer goods such as electronics, its use on food items around Helsinki is growing.
For instance, at the Lidl in Kalasatama's Redi shopping centre, the bright stickers are hard to miss walking down the coffee aisle.
Meanwhile, in the Sörnäinen Lidl store, several food items feature alarm tags, though coffee is not among them.
Lidl has reported that theft typically targets small, high-value items such as cheese, meat, fish and alcoholic beverages, with these products often prioritised for tagging.
In some cases, stock of high-theft items is deliberately limited on shelves, with customers required to request more from staff — a tactic previously employed for products like parmesan cheese.
Supermarkets respond to rising theft
The trend of tagging food is not exclusive to Lidl. S Group stores and K-Market locations in central Helsinki, while less overt in their use of tags, are also increasing food security measures.
Ahtoniemi noted that shoplifting has risen in recent years, prompting a greater focus on product protection in S-Group stores.
Similarly, Kesko, the parent company of K-Market, has observed a comparable uptick in theft. High-value groceries, such as fish, meat and cheese, are commonly tagged, as are items like health supplements and instant coffee, which are considered particularly theft-prone.
According to Ahtoniemi, the use of security tags serves as a deterrent.
"Simply knowing that products are protected raises the threshold for theft."
Lidl also emphasises that alarm tags are just one aspect of their broader anti-theft strategy.
