In the United States, a national purchasing co-op that represents over 140 food co-ops has measured the impact of its members.
In 2012, the National Co-op Grocers discovered that for every dollar spent in store, $0.38 was reinvested in the local economy –compared to $0.24 at rival grocers. Part of this difference is through the increased spend on local produce, where co-ops spend on average 12% vs 4% from other grocers.
At the time, its Healthy Foods, Healthy Communities report discovered that 165 stores generated more than $1.4bn (£912m) in annual revenue and were owned by 1.3 million members.
Looking at the immediate impact of food co-ops, it discovered that the average food co-op created 9.3 jobs for every $1m in sales, whereas a conventional grocer only creates 5.8 jobs. The average wage is also 7% higher than other grocery stores.
The environmental impact of co-ops was also monitored within the report, which showed that while the recycling of cardboard was at a similar level to rivals (96% vs 91%), co-ops particularly excelled in other areas, such as plastics (81% vs 29%) and food waste (74% vs 36%).
Healthy eating and sustainable foods are a focus of food co-ops in the US too. Across the country, around 12% of fruit and vegetables sales are classed as organic, whereas in food co-ops this figure reaches 82%. With a focus on education, 83% of co-operatives offer classes on healthy eating, and 10% have an on-site nutritionist to provide specialist advice.
Read more … Concern for the community: find out how co-operatives perform in the Community Impact Index: www.thenews.coop/impact
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