FREE FOOD ALL YEAR ROUND: Børge Roum has a fridge full of food the grocery chains throw away every night. He is also the largest financial contributor to the MDGs. Photo: Helge Mikalsen / VG
Børge Roum (39) has a cupboard and fridge full of food, which hasn’t cost him a penny. – I don’t spend money on food, says the man who is MDG’s biggest financial contributor in Oslo.
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Børge Roum (39) is MDG’s biggest financial contributor in Oslo, despite the fact that he lives on the bare minimum and gets his food from what the shops throw away. Roum challenged his party with a promise to give NOK 175,000 to the election campaign if others could contribute the same. The collection ended up generating NOK 700,000. Roum lives north of central Oslo, works part-time, and earns around NOK 15,000 net per month. He does not spend money on food, but chooses to collect food waste from the shops. Show more
Today, VG brings the overview of what central parties have received in financial support in connection with the local elections:
The Conservative Party leads with NOK 22.9 million. Ap follows in second place, with NOK 16.1 million. FRP NOK 14.8 million, of which NOK 10 million is disputed money from unknown donors.
Here you can read how much the various parties receive: (Further down in the case, you can see who are the biggest donors).
Then we looked at the MDG, and found gold: The biggest donor in Oslo is an unknown party hero, Børge Roum, a so-called “dumpster diver”, who lives on a minimum – from food the shops throw away.
– This is the rubbish for grocery stores, he says and opens the fridge and dry cupboard, which are overflowing with groceries.
We visit him in his apartment north of central Oslo.
– Every day, employees go around and remove food that expires the next day – or for other reasons must be thrown away. Right after they have closed and left, I go into their garbage containers and pick what I want, says Roum.
FREE JOY: Free food and drink abounds in Roum’s kitchen. Photo: Helge Mikalsen / VG
He manages with little, earns around NOK 15,000 net per month and has NOK 10,000 in housing costs. Equally, he is therefore the person who has contributed the most to his party, MDG in the capital.
He challenged his party team:
– I give NOK 175,000 to the election campaign, if others collectively contribute the same amount, was the challenge.
After less than a week, there was NOK 175,000 on the table from other donors, who gave up to NOK 10,000–20,000 each.
175,000 became NOK 700,000
After a short time it was doubled again from smaller donors.
– In total, his campaign raised NOK 700,000, says an impressed Sirin Hellvin Stav, the party’s city councilor for the environment and transport in Oslo.
NOK 175,000 is by far the largest contribution to the MDGs in Oslo this year. And the total amount that Roum’s campaign ended up with is more than twice as large as the party’s largest private contributor, Jens Ulltveit Moe, has given to MDG centrally: NOK 320,000.
The difference between Ulltveit Moe and Roum is that the former is a billionaire – the latter is as far from it as is almost possible.
RELAXED: Roum has a simple life philosophy: Work little and instead spend time with friends. Photo: Helge Mikalsen / VG
– I have a 40 percent position in a voluntary organization and some freelance stuff, says Roum.
He is not sure how much he exactly earns in a year.
– Around NOK 200,000. I get paid around 12,000 a month from the voluntary organization and a few thousand as a freelancer.
– Then you have 5,000 to live on a month?
– Yes it’s all right.
– You have to spend money on trams, wine at Polet and beer with the guys?
– I cycle and do not drink alcohol.
– What do you spend money on?
– Actually to make the world better. Mostly through donations and buying something from companies that try to do things in a more ethical way.
He explains how it is possible to give NOK 175,000 with such a small income.
– I have hardly bought anything in 15 years. And I never spend money on food, so it is possible to save up, even if you have little.
Here you can read who gives the most to the various parties:
– Is down 2–0 from the start
His generous contribution pales in comparison to what other parties are experiencing.
– I think the most hair-raising thing is that the FRP accepts NOK 10 million from unknown donors – and that it is allowed. This is really an Americanization that we do not want in this country, says Roum.
Stav says she also finds it problematic.
– The FRP gets 10 million from a secret organisation, the Labor Party gets millions of kroner from LO, and the Conservative Party has many rich uncles who are concerned with tax cuts and pour millions into their election campaign. It is clear that money helps to decide elections – it is like a football match where we are 2-0 down from the start.
She still thinks they can win the battle:
– Fortunately, we still manage to compete, because we have hundreds of people who take action every day in the election campaign, and we have a lot of ordinary people who donate money. And then we also have superheroes like Børge who both donate and campaign a lot.
VARA: Roum is a deputy member of the district committee in the district of Grünerløkka and has been involved in MDG since 2012. Photo: Helge Mikalsen / VG
Roum thanks both for the praise and for the free food, although he is critical of the grocery system throwing away so much.
He says shelf life dates are set far too short.
– The goods last much longer than we think. The chains’ practices contribute to a system that causes the chains to throw away much more food than they should.
– Are there stores that do not throw away?
– They have become a little smarter, including that they sell almost expired goods at half price, but most people throw away a lot of food every day.
Although food prices do not worry him, since he eats for free, he is worried about what is happening in the Norwegian food market.
– Government after government has allowed a concentration of power with only three major players. Then they can do as they want.
– The three compete?
– They do, but it’s quite easy not to get too far apart in terms of price.
GRAIN COLLECTION: Different types of grain are collected in juice bottles from Bergen. Photo: Helge Mikalsen / VG
– Are you keen on a job fraction of over 40 per cent, or is this the good life for you?
– I would probably like something bigger, but I think we work far too much and are far too focused on making money, when we know that it is friends and good social networks that really give life meaning. We should spend more time with friends and acquaintances.
Cycle path joy
We walk with him out into the street, where the cars whiz by in four lanes.
– This makes me happy, he says and points to a large excavator.
– Now there will be a great cycle path outside here. It also makes me very happy to see so many people now cycling in our city.
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Published: 09.09.23 at 22:26
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2023-09-09 20:26:30
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