Food cooperative | co-op supermarket
Afoodcooperativeorfoodco-opisafooddistributionoutletorganizedasacooperative,ratherthanaprivateorpubliccompany.Foodcooperativesareusuallyconsumercooperatives,wherethedecisionsregardingtheproductionanddistributionofitsfoodarechosenbyitsmembers.Likeallcooperatives,foodcooperativesareoftenbasedonthe7RochdalePrinciples,andtheytypicallyoffernaturalfoods.Sincedecisionsabouthowtorunacooperativearenotmadebyoutsideshareholders,cooperativesoftenexhibitahigherdegreeofsocialresponsibilitythantheircorpora...
A food cooperative or food co-op is a food distribution outlet organized as a cooperative, rather than a private or public company. Food cooperatives are usually consumer cooperatives, where the decisions regarding the production and distribution of its food are chosen by its members. Like all cooperatives, food cooperatives are often based on the 7 Rochdale Principles, and they typically offer natural foods. Since decisions about how to run a cooperative are not made by outside shareholders, cooperatives often exhibit a higher degree of social responsibility than their corporate analogues.[1]
In the United States, the National Cooperative Grocers (NCG) is a cooperative federation that is composed of 146 food cooperatives.
History[edit]The cooperative movement started in the 19th century and the first notable food cooperative was started in Rochdale, England by industrial weavers known as the Rochdale Pioneers. The origination of the modern cooperative movement beg...