It’s easy to take grocery shopping for granted. Walk in the store and find the exact fruits, veggies, and pantry goods on the list, pay for it all, and trundle home to stock up the kitchen once more. But in today’s grocery landscape, where cost savings is king, it can be tempting to overlook the impact that every dollar spent can have on food workers and the environment. For anyone who wants to create meaningful change in their grocery store habits, it’s time to consider a cooperative like the Berkshire Food Co-op in Great Barrington, which has been bringing affordable groceries and real food to the Berkshires since 1981.
What Is a Cooperative Grocery Store?
What’s different about a cooperative versus a regular grocery store? All cooperatives operate under the same seven guiding values, which include democratic member control, concern for the community, and cooperation among cooperatives.
At the Berkshire Food Co-op, the shoppers are the store owners. Each owner has an equal share in ownership, and an equal say in how things are run. “The overarching benefit of belonging to a co-op is democratic control,” says Devorah Sawyer, the Co-op’s marketing manager. “Owners vote for their board of directors, and it’s ‘one member, one vote.’” Once a year, the co-op holds an annual owners meeting that offers an opportunity to talk to the Co-op board and department managers, something a regular grocery store doesn’t offer, Sawyer says.
Cooperatives Supporting Cooperatives
It’s not just the Co-op’s community of member-owners and staff that are supported through its cooperative structure. In addition to its emphasis on sourcing from local growers and makers, the Co-op places a high priority on carrying products produced by other cooperatives.
For instance, in choosing to source from Equal Exchange—a worker-owned cooperative that distributes organic, gourmet coffee, tea, sugar, bananas, avocados, cocoa, and chocolate—the Co-op is supporting Fair Trade standards through every item it purchases. Through its commitment to Fair Trade, Equal Exchange is able to pay its small-scale growers fairly, promote labor rights, and provide training in environmentally friendly farming practices.
Other products from cooperative brands that shoppers can find at the Co-op include dairy from Tillamook, almonds from Blue Diamond, grains from Bob’s Red Mill, flours from King Arthur Flour, and wines from LaRiojana, a producer exclusively offered at co-ops that follows Fair Trade standards. Also found on the shelves are brands that source from Fair Trade suppliers, including Hu Chocolate and Once Again Nut Butters.
The Co-op’s 42-year legacy testifies that its shoppers and owners overwhelmingly support its principles. “Currently, we have 5,500 owners,” Sawyer says, “All of them are community members who believe in our mission and want to keep dollars circulating locally.”
