Thankful for Co-operation

Dorchester Food Co-op (MA) staff and board members.
As we give thanks this holiday season, we especially appreciate our food co-op staff, who are working hard to ensure access to healthy, nourishing food for all of our communities.

As we gather this month, we give thanks to all who work to bring food to our tables, from farms and producers to co-op clerks, cashiers, cooks to our own kitchens and those who prepare our food. Together with our members, directors, and supplier partners, we are building a more resilient and sustainable food system. Because when you shop at your local food co-op this holiday season, you’re getting more than healthy, delicious food and gifts for yourself and your family. You are also helping to…

  • Strengthen Your Local Community. When you shop at the co-op, more of your money stays in the community, supporting local producers, and building shared wealth. On average, local products account for more than 25% of sales at our member food co-ops (compared to 2-3% in supermarkets). Last year, our customers purchased over $120 million in products from local producers, helping to build local economies.
  • Support Good Jobs. On average, food co-op staff receive higher wages and more are employed full-time than in supermarkets in our region. Over 60% of our 2,545 employees are also co-op members, sharing in the ownership of their community grocery store.
  • Build Sustainability. Your purchases support sustainable agriculture, Fair Trade, reduced packaging through bulk buying, renewable energy, and increased efficiency — contributing to a healthier environment.
  • Grow a More Inclusive Economy. Food co-ops are locally owned and democratically governed by their members — more than 185,000 people like you who live and work in our communities — empowering people to work together to build an economy that works for everyone.

Control of our food system matters and working together our co-ops are already building this system. Based on the values of self-help, self-responsibility, democracy, equality, equity and solidarity, co-operatives offer a different approach to business.  All are welcome to shop at your local food co-op, and we invite you to become a member-owner, joining with your neighbors as we work together to build more healthy, just, and sustainable communities.

To find a food co-op near you, please visit: https://nfca.coop/members

The Future is Co-operative!

This October, the Neighboring Food Co-op Association (NFCA) is joining over 65,000 co-operatives and credit unions across the United States in celebrating Co-op Month, observed nationally since 1964. The theme for 2024, “The Future is Cooperative,” was chosen by the National Cooperative Business Association (NCBA CLUSA) as an opportunity to engage co-op members, customers, employees, and policy makers about what makes co-operative enterprise unique.  As businesses that are owned and controlled by the people who use them to meet their shared needs, co-ops offer an alternative vision for a more inclusive economy that puts people and the future of our planet before profit.

Here in the Northeast, the NFCA has been working with our partners at New England Farmers Union and policy makers such as Senator Jeanne Shaheen (NH) to raise awareness about the importance of co-operatives to our regional food system.  “In New Hampshire and across the country, co-ops are critical for the success of local agriculture,” said Senator Shaheen.  “Fueling jobs, supporting our farmers and feeding our families, co-ops are an essential part of our local food systems. During National Co-op Month, we’re proud to celebrate them.”

Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) is also helping spread the word NFCA has been working with policy makers such as Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) to help spread the word.  “As a member of both a food co-op and an electric co-op, and as a proud member of the Congressional Cooperative Business Caucus, I’m thrilled to celebrate National Co-op Month and recognize the incredible impact co-ops have in Maine and across the country,” said Pingree.  “Co-ops have also played a critical role in strengthening our local food systems, increasing access to fresh, locally-produced food.”

For example, a recent survey by the Neighboring Food Co-op Association (NFCA) found that grocery co-ops across New England and New York State sell more than $121 million in local products annually — or more than 25% of sales on average.  Taken together, the NFCA includes more than 40 food co-ops and start-ups that are locally owned by 185,000 members and provide employment for over 2,545 people, more than 60% of whom are also members, sharing in the ownership of their local grocery store.  From farmer co-ops to worker co-ops, credit unions to mutual insurance, and housing co-ops to energy co-ops, co-operative businesses thrive across the U.S. economy, where one in three people are members.

“Co-operatives make a big difference in our communities across our region,” said Erbin Crowell, NFCA Executive Director and a member of the Board of Directors of NCBA CLUSA.  “But many people are surprised by how our movement and business model is also recognized around the world.”

The United Nations General Assembly recently declared 2025 the second International Year of Co-operatives, acknowledging the contribution of the movement to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the urgent need to build a more inclusive, resilient, and global economy.  Around the world, around 1 billion people are co-op members, and 10% of the world’s population is employed by co-operatives.  Because they are controlled by the people who use them to meet their needs, co-operatives are rooted in their communities. 

“The decision by the General Assembly could not be timelier. The innovative contributions of co-operatives for sustainable development will be crucial for accelerating progress in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals as we approach 2030,” said Li Junhua, Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs. “The second International Year of Cooperatives will be an opportunity to mobilize all stakeholders to support and expand co-operatives everywhere, strengthening their contributions for a better world.”

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” signs on the shelves that identify co-op made products. You may be surprised by what you can find, including dairy products from Cabot Creamery Co-op and Organic Valley, fresh produce from Deep Root Organic Co-op, fairly traded coffee from Equal Exchange and Dean’s Beans, La Riojana wines, seeds and bulbs from FEDCO, naturally fermented vegetables from Real Pickles — and many others!

For more information on Co-op Month and to find a food co-op near you, visit https://nfca.coop


Other articles in the October 2024 ENews

Celebrate Democracy

With National Voter Registration Day coming up in a couple of weeks — and national elections in just a couple of months — Food Co-ops across the Northeast are working together to enliven our democracy.

Food Co-ops are more than just a place to find healthy, local food. They are also community hubs, bringing people together to accomplish greater things than they can alone.  As enterprises that are democratically governed by their members — the people who shop and work there — co-ops are uniquely positioned to support participation in our democracy.  And with important national, state and local elections coming up in November, the Neighboring Food Co-op Association (NFCA) is proud to partner with National Voter Registration Day again this year, encouraging co-ops across the Northeast to join national celebrations on September 17.  

As campaigns heat up, elections this Fall will determine the outcome of questions big and small: from the role of our federal government in issues of social justice, food systems, and climate change to local issues like buying a new ladder truck for the local fire department.  Unfortunately, every year millions of eligible voters are unable to cast a ballot because of frustrating stumbling blocks like missed deadlines, outdated information, changing laws, or other easily fixable paperwork problems.  As National Voter Registration Day Partners, food co-ops can make sure that voters and soon-to-be voters know that election 2024 is far bigger than the two names at the top of the ballot and help them participate.    

From Urban Greens Co-op Market in Rhode Island to Flatbush Food Co-op in Brooklyn, NY, and Franklin Community Co-op in Massachusetts to Hanover Co-op Food Stores in New Hampshire and Vermont, co-ops across the Northeast are spreading the word in social media and organizing locally, providing information tables for voter registration and election information.

“Co-operatives have a long, non-partisan, tradition of empowering our communities,” said Becca White, Public & Government Affairs Associate at Hanover Co-op Food Stores.  “Our co-ops don’t work without our members’ voices, and neither does our greater democracy. We’re excited to provide information and improve access to the vote, the most vital form of citizen participation in our nation.”

Co-ops are participating in National Voter Registration Day by:

  • Signing up as a National Voter Registration Day Community Partner.
  • Promoting #NationalVoterRegistrationDay in social media, encouraging people to get out and vote in November.
  • Including a story in their e-news, reminding people to check their registration status.
  • Organizing a voter registration table outside .
  • Inviting local policymakers to speak at your co-op’s annual meeting or other event.

Strengthening our civic democracy is particularly relevant we look toward the International Year of Co-ops in 2025 and efforts by the global co-operative movement to help achieve the UN Sustainable Development Agenda by 2030.  A plan of action for “people, planet and prosperity,” the agenda includes 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), such as Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions, which promotes “peaceful and inclusive societies, providing access to justice for all and building effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels.”  Working together, co-ops can enliven democracy and help build more healthy, just, and sustainable food system and an economy that works for everyone.

Share this story in social media or in your e-news and add information about what your co-op has planned for Voter Registration Day.  For more information and resources, visit https://nationalvoterregistrationday.org.


Other articles in the September 2024 ENews

CEW Series: Credit Unions are Co-ops, Too!

Credit Unions are Co-ops, Too! Follow-up Questions

Credit Unions are Co-ops, Too! Follow-up Questions

Name
Name
First
Last

CEW Series: The Evolution of Co-operative Identity

 

The Evolution of Co-operative Identity Follow-up Questions

The Evolution of Co-operative Identity Follow-up Questions

Name
Name
First
Last

CEW Series: Rochdale & The Early Co-operative Movement

 

Rochdale & The Early Co-operative Movement Follow-up Questions

Rochdale & The Early Co-operative Movement Follow-up Questions

Name
Name
First
Last

 

CEW Series: Growing Co-operative Enterprise

 

Growing Co-operative Enterprise Follow-up Questions
Name
Name
First
Last

CEW Series: Introduction to the Co-operative Movement

Introduction to the Co-operative Movement Follow-up Questions

Introduction to the Co-operative Movement Follow-up Questions

Name
Name
First
Last
1st question
1st question
1st question
1st question
1st question
1st question

Co-operative Education Webinar Series

The Co-operative Education Webinar Series was a collaboration between NFCA and the National Farmers Union to help explain some of the major facets of the Co-operative World. Thanks to the Cooperative Development Foundation (CDF) and the National Farmers Union for supporting this educational project.

This video series was developed to help co-operatives engage their members, employees, board of directors, and community members in the co-operative difference.

At the end of each video is a few thought provoking questions. Click the images below to watch each of the Webinars!

CEW Series: Introduction to the Co-operative Movement
CEW Series: Growing Co-operative Enterprise
CEW Series: Rochdale & The Early Co-operative Movement
CEW Series: The Evolution of Co-operative Identity
CEW Series: Credit Unions are Co-ops, Too!