Oh boy, I would call it an "art of 'meaningless journalism'". There are a numerous reasons, for the bland "bag lunch" (literally "the food pack" (matpakke)) -

Oh boy, I would call it an "art of 'meaningless journalism'". There are a numerous reasons, for the bland "bag lunch" (literally "the food pack" (matpakke)) - where do i start? - the sandwich price in the shop is 4-8 quid, make the math, cook at home - sky high prices in the cafes, etc - weak selection of meats /cheeses in local shops (agricultural-protectionism/limited EU import) - high prices on meats /cheeses in local shops + 4x of the EU average (agricultural-protectionism/limited EU import) - the poor past + jante thing - the stubbornness of general local population - "(grand)parents always did it like that" - strong creeping low-profile nationalism - "norwegian way", "buy norwegian", "eat norwegian, etc" - everybody is making "foodpack" why should i stick out - 30 mins - not enough time for anything(cafe, etc) - sparse cafes and cantinas etc. - most cantinas serve just this specific company or this specific office building. More often than not, you are not expected to go into the other company's cantina. - some work places are way too far from any cafe, etc.(say you are a tree logger) - automatic thing, don't have to think much - going out (work, hiking, skiing, whatever) - take a foodpack. You dont know when/where you next meal will be "thinking" as most of Norway is non-urban. Army rations taste probably like 10x better than the typical bland norwegian foodpack. But you can continue to gourge on the "Norwegian" propaganda on bbc and elsewhere. p.s. Downvote all you want, reality hurts, huh?