– It felt like I was going to beg for food, says Nina Jeanette Lauen. In a closed Kiwi store in Moss, those who need it can buy food for free. Lauen had not imagined that there would be so many there. So many who needed help, just like her. – You have an image in your head of who comes here, at least I did. But it is completely ordinary people who come here. It is important to get it across, she says. She is glad she sought help. Photo: Julie Helene Günther / news For Lauen, it was a long time coming to seek out the offer, but today she is glad that she did. – When I got to the counter and was welcomed with open arms, I started to cry. – The man sitting at the till was like a cozy grandfather, he said: “You don’t have to look at it as begging for food, you can look at it as preventing food waste”. That made it a little easier. Several need help Lauen is not alone in needing help. 69 percent of food helpers answer that there are more people who collect food now, compared to before the pandemic. This is revealed in a recent survey by Fafo and the Institute for Social Research. Ine Lindberg in the Church’s City Mission and Bjørn Løvdahl in the Salvation Army are very satisfied with the cooperation in Moss. Photo: Julie Helene Günther / news Of the eight municipalities they examined, the largest increase in people needing help is in Moss. – In the last year, we have seen that those who previously managed from month to month no longer do so. They have no buffer, says Major in the Salvation Army Bjørn Løvdahl. Free grocery store The free grocery store in the center of Moss looks like any other store. The shopping baskets remain from the shop that was once there. Food products are on the shelves. They are sourced from various suppliers who, for one reason or another, cannot be sold to ordinary stores. The freezer counter in the store is similar to the one in most other grocery stores. Photo: Julie Helene Günther / news Instead of those who need food assistance being handed a food bag, they can pick up the food themselves in the store. – It is very nice to be able to choose what to eat. There may be a lot of food in a food bag that you don’t like, says Lauen. The shop is a collaborative project between several actors in the city, among them the Salvation Army, the Church’s City Mission and the Gospel Centre. The offer has been popular ever since its opening in August. – We are the store that does not want more customers, says Ine Lindberg. She leads the collaborative project, which has been named “Community for food”. The shelves contain food that has been sourced from various suppliers in the area. Photo: Julie Helene Günther / news Lindberg says they are concerned that everyone who comes should feel that it is okay to get help. – This is also why we focus on food waste. It is much better to focus on “help us with food waste”, than to stand in line like poor people. Then we stand together for something and that does something to dignity, she says. More young people Up until now, the shop has only been open during the day. But now they have seen a need to stay open in the evening as well. – Those who come in the evening are younger and are at work, says Lindberg. Ine Lindberg leads the collaboration project Community for food. Photo: Julie Helene Günther / news They register over 160 new households a month. There is therefore no doubt that there is a need for help, the initiators believe. But they do not hide the fact that they cannot know for sure whether everyone who comes needs it. – We cannot refrain from taking good measures for fear that there is someone trying to take advantage of us, says Lindberg. But they have some control systems. Everyone who comes to the store must prove that they live in Moss, Våler or Råde. – No one should go hungry in our district. It is also recorded that they come and how many children there are in the household. Giving back For Nina Jeanette Lauen, visiting the store was a good experience. – It felt degrading. It did. But the way I was received here, it was nothing dangerous. She hopes more people will dare to seek help if they need it. Photo: Julie Helene Günther / news Now she wants to do what she can to make it easier for others. That’s why she now helps out in the shop. – I will only pick up food here again if I absolutely have to. Now it’s also easier, now that I can help here. Then I feel like I’m giving something back.
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