Mitt Kök Crosses Boundaries

Standing out in a forest of food magazines and TV programs takes work and planning. And it helps to have a partner. So was the thinking when Sweden’s TV4 and daily newspaper Expressen decided to launch a new TV food concept for TV4’s morning magazine program in combination with a magazine – Mitt Kök, which means “my kitchen” in English.

The Mitt Kök concept will focus on popular food that is anything but stingy. “We’re not afraid of butter and cream,” says Anna-Clara Welander, responsible for the project at Expressen. “Cooking should be a pleasure. And we’ll be highlighting Swedish food and Swedish raw ingredients.” The new magazine will cost SEK 15 – well worth the price, Welander says – and published every weekend.

The TV channel is bringing in two new chefs for Mitt Kök, who will be looking at everything from old traditions like bark bread to new traditions like kebab pizza. The show will be part of the morning magazine program lineup twice Monday to Friday and once on Saturdays. “Even if it feels like everything’s been done already with food shows, this is really version 2.0 of our dinner tips program – it’s a new way of presenting food with new recipes and new way of carrying it out,” says Mattias Hägerlund of TV4. “And we’re going deeper into the food culture of Sweden.”

The magazine and TV program will share some of the same content and the branding is being done in cooperation between the two. “The cooperation is a new challenge for us,” says Welander. “TV4 and Expressen come from different cultures with slightly different target audiences. But it’s great fun and it’s going to be exciting and a great learning experience for us.”