Living for less in a high cost world - The Food Co-op.

Some version of food co-operatives have been put to good use for centuries. In this guide I will give you several suggestions for starting your own. Buying in bulk can be very beneficial. Schools, churches and clubs are good places to consider beginning a food co-op. But you can do it successfully within a single family, or between 2 or 3 friends. The idea is to buy, harvest or otherwise obtain a large quantity of one or more food item that can be divided and that stores well.

What will you need?
~A scale is useful. Or some sort of accurate measuring device that will yield exact amounts of whatever you are dividing like measuring cups. Scoops are not a good choice because they don't yield the same amount each time.
~A source or several sources for getting the staples, produce, eggs, fruit, or other items to divide
~Containers to store the items in. (Ziploc Bags, plastic containers, etc.) Reuseable containers are of course them most desirable whenever possible. Remember to factor in the cost of the containers.
~A place where the items can be properly divided. Depending on what you are dividing up, a home, or a local park may work out best.
~A schedule that works for everyone.
~An agreement of some sort as to how your co-op will work.
~A membership list and contact phone and email numbers for larger groups.

Some suggestions we came up with through trial and error covered things like what to do with the extras when we found a great deal on something that was too good to pass up, but more than any of us wanted as much of as we got (we donated the extras). Or if one member didn't show up to claim their share. We had 17 members so we agreed that there was a set time and place to meet to divide and collect the items. A call reminder call was made the day before (could also be an email). Each member was asked to agree to show up on schedule or make sure someone came in their place. We signed in so as each order was divided and claimed a signature was on file. In our case, we knew certain things would be available if we were interested so we provided a list of those choices and in our case we required that the payment was made in advance. But remember this was a large co-op with between 6 and 10 optional choices to selection one of more of. Some members choice one of each. Others only order something every 2 or 3 months. But part of the agreement was that if any order, they paid and what was not claimed we would donate it to the local food kitchen. The receipt given at the time of payment would serve as a Taxable Donation in such cases.

Smaller co-ops are easier to manage for beginning a group effort. Consider seasonal items available in your area. Or Big Box Warehouse Stores are perfect for some people. eBay always offers dozens of opportunities to buy bulk spices, herbs, and other bulk foods that would easily work into a co-op selection. Farmer's Markets are great places to visit in the summer. And sometimes at the end of the day, there will be wonderful bargains that will fit the bill.

So for an example of how a small co-op might work let's use rice as an example. Our example group will have 5 members. And we discover that the best buy for bulk rice is the 50 pound bag. So we simply divide the bag into 5 - 10 pound portions and seal the 10 pounds up in 4-one gallon zip bags holding 2.5 pounds of rice each. Several of our group will sell or give some of these bags to their own family members. Some rice lovers in the group will use all the rice up quickly and be ready for more the next time rice is on the list. So the same applies to nuts, chocolate chips, walnuts, cake flower or even a dozen cake mixes in a bundle. Some things are easiest divided and paid for by the unit. Since 12 boxes of cake mix can't be evenly divided between the 5 members. Each member buys 2 boxes and then anyone who can use the extra 2 boxes agrees to buy them. Or the cost of the 12 boxes is so reasonable that everyone is happy to just take 2 and donate the other 2 to the local food kitchen. There are many different ideas and ways to work out the details. My personal solution is to only buy what can be easily and safely divided into the right number of portions.

Seasonal specials are also often a great co-op idea. Things like 50 pounds of tomatoes that don't keep well yet at 50c per pound ($5 for 10 pounds) might be worth considering even if it would be necessary to cook most of them up for use as sauces.

Ideas like these work perfectly for some groups and are a horror for others. If you decide to give it a try, be flexible and start small. If it works out well and is managed right, it can save time and money for all concerned.

Happy Co-oping!

JJG