How to Start a Food Cooperative: A Simplified Guide

Image: New Orleans Food Cooperative

A grocery or food cooperative, or co-op, is an independently run grocery store. It is owned by community members who buy a share in the store. Think owning shares of a company listed on the stock market, except the focus for the cooperatives is truly the shareholders from the community! 

There are many benefits of creating and joining a food co-op: 

• Food Cooperatives allow autonomy over foods to stock on the shelves
  • Cooperatives are focused on fulfilling members’ desires for brands and foods.
• Provide discounts and some co-ops even provide dividends
  • Cooperatives reinvest surplus profit into the business, the community, or back to member owners as dividends! This is dependent on the cooperative structure and goals.
• Support local farmers and the economy
  • Cooperatives prioritize working with local farms and sourcing locally whenever possible.
• Lower environmental impact
  • Local sourcing decreases emissions from importing goods. They also support seasonal produce and small farmers. Moreover, co-ops often order in bulk and have plastic-free packaging sections for these goods. 

1. Assess the needs of your community. 

Create a survey and post to your local community page. 

• Is there interest in setting up a food cooperative? 
• Is there community member interest in forming a core group? 
• Does anyone have expertise i.e. legal, distribution, sourcing?
• What products would people want? 
• Are there any farmers or local business owners who would be interested in selling through the cooperative? 

2. Form a core group. 

Determine if there are community members willing to form a core group.

3. Create a business plan. 

Draft a business plan for how you intend to receive funding or donations for the initial purchase of a storefront, your distributors, employees, and general expected costs. 

4. Address any legal and structural setup. 

Learn about insurance needed for a cooperative or any licenses needed to sell certain products. Additionally, create a set of cooperative principles and guidelines for membership. Moreover, you may need to speak with your local council or government.

5. Build inventory. 

Once you’ve registered the cooperative and secured the storefront, start to build inventory.

If you have a food cooperative near you, becoming a member can change your life.  

While starting a food cooperative may seem daunting, but remember that the purpose of a cooperative is to involve community members. The rewards of joining a food cooperative are immense and can have such a strong impact from the planet, your health, and for your community! 

Blue Mountain Foods Co-operative has created a more extensive guide to creating a food cooperative. Check it out!