South Mpls. on Verge of Getting New Food Co-op and More Jobs

Updated: 07/09/2013 7:49 PM
Created: 07/09/2013 5:07 PM KSTP.com | Print?|? Email
By: Beth McDonough

Minnesotans like to support our own, by shopping local to help the community.

That includes food co-ops. Minnesota has more co-ops than any other state in the country. There are 21 in Minnesota with 11 in the metro. And now, another one is in the works.

It's a major project with a sizable impact on the community. It'll create more jobs and more access to fresh food to a number of areas in Minneapolis that haven't had a full-fledged grocery store in 40 years.

Catherine Preus says she goes to a co-op because her family lives in a so-called food desert, "There's little corner stores, but we don't have fresh stuff." Fresh groceries like produce from local farms.

Preus isn't alone. About 15 percent of the folks who shop the Seward Co-op on Franklin Avenue travel a decent distance to get there. Because of that and the explosion in business, it's more than doubled since 2009. The co-op is adding a second store, "we've become an anchor here, not just an economic anchor, but a social and community anchor as well," say Tom Vogel with the Seward Co-op.

The site is along East 38th and Clinton Avenue. It's right in the middle of four neighborhoods: Powderhorn Park, Central, Bryant and Bancroft.

Mike Stebnitz runs Carrot Initiative, a grassroots group that's been trying to attract a food store for years, "this is possibly going to bring 100 living wage jobs to this community."
The City of Minneapolis defines a living wage as $12.75 an hour. Unlike conventional grocery stores, co-ops are owned and managed by member shoppers. It's estimated for every $1 spent at the co-op, 38-cents is reinvested in the local economy.

At Seward Co-op they believe it's about paying it forward, "people like intimacy and shopping in a community cooperative where they see the same people and know the money stays here in the community," according to Vogel.

What does it take to join a food co-op? We asked and learned it varies from co-op to co-op.? At the Seward Co-op, it's a $75 buy-in.

That's a one-time fee and the membership lasts a lifetime. In addition to getting shopping discounts and rebates, member-owners also get a vote on the board of directors, meaning members get a say in how the co-op is managed.

Click here to find a co-op near you.

Source: http://kstp.com/news/stories/s3092924.shtml?cat=1

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