News and Features
Do you shop at the Co-Op?
Until recently most people asked "Do you shop at the Co-op" would presume the question referred to their local branch of the Co-op, the group that this Summer announced that it’s £1.6 billion bid for Somerfield had been accepted, taking it’s store numbers to over 3000, and it’s market share to 8% of the UK grocery total. This now massive group (the UK’s no 5 behind Tesco, Sainsburys, Asda and Morrisons) was founded on sound principals – group buying power and ethical trading, and continues to champion these causes today. It does very well on the ethical front and after ‘convenience’ many shoppers state ‘ethics’ as a reason for shopping at Co-op. However the group buying power that grows with the size of the group may be the very thing that encourages some shoppers to look elsewhere. National and regional planagrams in the Co-op and the other major multiples can prevent individual shopkeepers from stocking locally sourced products and make it difficult for them to adapt their ranges to suit their individual customers. Ironically this has created a market for a whole new generation of food co-ops. “People want to buy fresh, local food,” says Caroline Lewis from Somerset Community Food, an organisation that supports a network of community food projects in Somerset. “Individuals get involved for a variety of reasons, from wanting to reduce food miles, wanting to know where their food comes from and increasingly frequently to reduce food costs. Each Co-op is different, sometimes there’s a demand for organic produce, but elsewhere freshness and cost may be more important”. So what exactly is a local food co-op? Caroline explains “Somerset is a hotspot for food co-ops, I am currently working with 18 across the county, each operates slightly differently but they are all community based and run by volunteers on a not-for-profit basis. The produce is usually bought directly from one or more local farmers or wholesalers and sorted ready for collection by the volunteers.” The Somerset Community Food website lists all the co-ops and their collection times. Several are based at children’s centres, who are thinking laterally about healthy food projects and where parents can conveniently collect at times when they would be there anyway. Others open in the evenings to accommodate those who work during the day. I spoke to Marina Bell who runs the Wellington Community Co-op at Wellington Children’s centre. “We have been going a year now and just started an evening co-op at the Youth Centre too” she says, “people join as a member and are given a card. They order and pay for what they want to collect the following week. We offer 3 sizes of veg packs each week, small and large meat packs once a month as well as free range eggs and local apple juice. We’re looking into the possibility of adding a fish box too.” “The veg comes from Hill Farrance Farm, and we list what is likely to be available and give individuals the option to say ‘no thank you’ to up to 3 of the products, which the farmer then swaps for something else. He delivers it ready sorted in buckets and people then pack it into their own bags. We can give put recipe sheets if someone’s not sure how to cook something or hasn’t tried it before.” “The meat all comes from one farm in Blackdown and the pack will typically contain a large chicken, lab, pork for stir-frying, mince, bacon, sausages and steak. It’s all home reared except the beef.” When I suggest that it must be a lot of work Marina says it’s worth it to see people eating healthy local food, especially at the moment when they are often struggling to make needs meet. “We have a very mixed group of members, including older people, single parents and large families. We try to help those on a tight budget by offering weekly payment arrangements for the meat and we take healthy start vouchers.” Lesley Pollard who has just started a new food co-op at The Hollies Children’s Centre in Taunton shares Marina’s motivation “we are keen to promote an awareness of healthy eating, and the cost of it. Things have gone remarkably smoothly so far, we’ve had the odd problem with someone not being able to make the pick-up time, or a mother forgetting to pay, but nothing that can’t be sorted out. For the first two weeks we targeted users of the centre, but now we’ve also done a local leaflet drop and that brought in some more people. One vegetarian couple were really enthusiastic and said it’s just what they’ve been looking for and were so pleased it’s on their doorstep. The farmer is very pleased with the take up so far too.” If you could be interested in setting up a food co-op Caroline and her colleague, Linda Hull, can help you. They have can give advice on everything from how to source suppliers, to finding the right venue, recruiting volunteers, marketing the project and handling the money. Caroline, who trained as an Occupational Therapist and has always had a passion for gardening and food, has run the Windmill Hill Organic Project in Glastonbury as a volunteer for almost 2 years now, so can offer first hand experience. “We get ready-packed Somerset Organic Link fruit and vegetable bags; it’s been interesting to visit other food co-ops in Somerset to find out what produce they offer and how they run. I am looking forward to working with other people passionate about healthy local food. “
Links and contacts Click on 'Sharing and buying food' for a list of community food co-ops in Somerset Caroline Lewis email caroline.lewis@communityfood.plus.com Wellington Community Co-ops Angharad 01823 660 161 / Marina 01823 661 482 Hollies Children's Centre Community Food Co-op Lesley Pollard 01823 333076 |
