3 ms·

I read the article, but it is not clear what kind of co-op they want to create. Is it a brick & mortar, delivery? Is it making deals with local farmers & home

I read the article, but it is not clear what kind of co-op they want to create. Is it a brick & mortar, delivery? Is it making deals with local farmers & homesteads, or buying from large distributors at discount? I have participated in co-ops that were delivery only, local only. It was not always the cheapest, but for planning meals it worked out. The quality was almost always better if I just walked down to the large chain grocery store.

qrush 4y ago
We're definitely aiming towards a brick & mortar - but we are still figuring out distribution and more (and will continue to do so until we're open for business)
- WaitWaitWha 4y ago
  I have also seen co-ops where members could opt to do labour for both membership and food. And, although co-ops on the surface sound democratic, they can never achieve full democratic votes. I have participated with where I get to pick what I wanted from a pre-determined list that I had no immediate input to (the co-op "buyers" were), and I have also seen the list extended to "for the future". There was one where I got what I got, and had zero choice in what was in the basket. There was one where my "basket content" could be exchanged with anyone else within co-op, e.g. I had too much sugar beets and member X had too much kohlrabi. We wanted what the other had, bam! exchange made prior to delivery. This also helped with waste reduction. Good luck!
bombcar 4y ago
So I've seen a couple of different kinds: 1. The one they're working on results in a "grocery store" when done - it's coop run and handles working with distributors, etc. It often ends up "feeling" like a Whole Foods or similar, as the "non-direct" farm products end up sourced from similar distributors. 2. The "farmer's market" type - where you end up with basically a continual farmer's market - this one can grow into being more of a "grocery store" but is often quite limited on the products available; think almost entirely local farm produce and nothing much else. 3. The "community supported agriculture" type - where you pay a flat fee and get a box every week/month/whatever, but don't really have much choice what's in the box. These can be the "closest to the farm" as you're literally getting boxes of whatever they're harvesting. However, they're often only active during harvest periods and you don't control what's in them. The third one is the only one I've seen be consistently higher quality (and if I had to rank them it would go 3,2, 1) because the farmers pick the super ripe stuff for the CSA because they know it will be delivered and eaten in a day, not packed into a truck for travel across the country. You can also end up with strange fruits you've never heard of before, but still exist.
- bmj 4y ago
  The coop in my city (I've been a member for over 30 years) does a very good job of bridging your first two descriptions. It is a full service grocery store, but there is an emphasis on local producers. Not all of the produce or meat is local, but much of it is, and the staff always highlights the number of local producers available on the shelves. The coop also has the largest bulk food section in the area (it puts the bulk section at Whole Foods to shame).
  - bombcar 4y ago
    Bulk foods and understanding tare weight on empty containers is one place coops can really shine. Being able to restock your pantry with no packaging waste is wonderful.
WaitWaitWha 4y ago
> The quality was almost always better if I just walked down to the large chain grocery store. edit: The quality was almost always better *than* if I just walked down to the large chain grocery store.

qrush 4y ago

We're definitely aiming towards a brick & mortar - but we are still figuring out distribution and more (and will continue to do so until we're open for business)

WaitWaitWha 4y ago
I have also seen co-ops where members could opt to do labour for both membership and food. And, although co-ops on the surface sound democratic, they can never achieve full democratic votes. I have participated with where I get to pick what I wanted from a pre-determined list that I had no immediate input to (the co-op "buyers" were), and I have also seen the list extended to "for the future". There was one where I got what I got, and had zero choice in what was in the basket. There was one where my "basket content" could be exchanged with anyone else within co-op, e.g. I had too much sugar beets and member X had too much kohlrabi. We wanted what the other had, bam! exchange made prior to delivery. This also helped with waste reduction. Good luck!

bombcar 4y ago

So I've seen a couple of different kinds: 1. The one they're working on results in a "grocery store" when done - it's coop run and handles working with distributors, etc. It often ends up "feeling" like a Whole Foods or similar, as the "non-direct" farm products end up sourced from similar distributors. 2. The "farmer's market" type - where you end up with basically a continual farmer's market - this one can grow into being more of a "grocery store" but is often quite limited on the products available; think almost entirely local farm produce and nothing much else. 3. The "community supported agriculture" type - where you pay a flat fee and get a box every week/month/whatever, but don't really have much choice what's in the box. These can be the "closest to the farm" as you're literally getting boxes of whatever they're harvesting. However, they're often only active during harvest periods and you don't control what's in them. The third one is the only one I've seen be consistently higher quality (and if I had to rank them it would go 3,2, 1) because the farmers pick the super ripe stuff for the CSA because they know it will be delivered and eaten in a day, not packed into a truck for travel across the country. You can also end up with strange fruits you've never heard of before, but still exist.

bmj 4y ago
The coop in my city (I've been a member for over 30 years) does a very good job of bridging your first two descriptions. It is a full service grocery store, but there is an emphasis on local producers. Not all of the produce or meat is local, but much of it is, and the staff always highlights the number of local producers available on the shelves. The coop also has the largest bulk food section in the area (it puts the bulk section at Whole Foods to shame).
- bombcar 4y ago
  Bulk foods and understanding tare weight on empty containers is one place coops can really shine. Being able to restock your pantry with no packaging waste is wonderful.

WaitWaitWha 4y ago

> The quality was almost always better if I just walked down to the large chain grocery store. edit: The quality was almost always better *than* if I just walked down to the large chain grocery store.