Sweden’s Minister for Gender Equality, Paulina Brandberg, is so afraid of bananas that her staff have to check beforehand that the premises she visits are 100 per cent “banana-free”.

Brandberg is not the only Swedish official to suffer from “banana phobia” – Social Democrat MP Teresa Carvalho says she feels “uncomfortable and gets cold sweats” when she sees the yellow berry.

Brandberg herself has admitted on Twitter (now X) that she has a “banana phobia”, and it is also said that her staff have to check in advance that there are no bananas in the places the minister will be visiting.