October is National Co-op Month — a great time to stop in at your local food co-op to learn more about how co-operatives are built for this moment!
Every October, your Neighboring Food Co-ops join with the more than 65,000 co-operatives and credit unions across the United States in celebrating Co-op Month, a celebration of this unique business model and its contribution to communities across our country. The U.S. Department of Agriculture first proclaimed National Co-op Month in October of 1964, reflecting the importance of co-operatives to America’s rural communities.
Since 1971, U.S. Co-ops (formerly the National Co-operative Business Association) has continued this tradition, promoting co-operative enterprise as a trusted, proven way to do business and build resilient, inclusive communities. Under the theme, “Built for This Moment,” this year’s Co-op Month is a reminder that the first co-ops were organized to address the social and economic challenges of the Industrial Revolutions of the 1800s. Successive waves of co-operative development have often responded to the market failures of their times, enabling people from all walks of life to work together to meet their needs and achieve their aspirations. From electric co-operatives powering rural America when investor-owned corporations saw it as unprofitable to farmer co-ops supporting small family farmers locked out by corporate monopolies, worker co-ops securing livelihoods in unstable job markets to credit unions enabling working people and immigrants to meet their financial needs, housing co-ops retaining affordable shelter amid rampant speculation to food co-ops building community food security, co-ops are a proven response to uncertain times.
Stop in at your local food co-op during Co-op Month to learn more about what makes co-operatives different. And while you’re there, look for the “Go Co-op” and “Co-op Trade” signs that identify products made by co-operatives. You may be surprised by what you find, including dairy products from Cabot Creamery Co-op and Organic Valley, produce from Deep Root Organic Co-op and Pioneer Valley Growers Association, fairly traded products from Equal Exchange and Dean’s Beans, organic wines from La Riojana, gardening supplies from FEDCO, naturally fermented vegetables from Real Pickles — and many others!
Across the NFCA Co-operative Identity Education Survey and conducted interviews, staff the NFCA has a similar opportunity at a regional level. Co-ops still value education and are asking for shorter, flexible, and locally relevant educational resources that will strengthen their identity. These resources along with initiatives that increase co-op visibility, like adding co-op to their names or utilizing the “.coop” domain, will deepen awareness within their members and their greater Northeast region.
Visit our website to learn more about Co-op Month and how co-ops and credit unions enable people to Build a Build a Better World, together.