“We started off with the idea of starting a grocery store, and that’s still of course our main raison d’être, but we’re really kind of a tent around local food, and food issues and healthy eating,” said John Richmond, director of WEFC. Mr. Richmond has been working in the co-op industry for nearly 20 years, beginning with food co-operatives in British Columbia.
The kitchen is a component of the business and will also provide employment for low-income community members. The kitchen will be used to cook complete meals sold for between $3 and $4. Members can get canning lessons there, like the one being delivered by Mr. Partanen, and generate income for the co-op by canning fruit. By partnering with community organizations like PARC, the co-op will be able to offer training and positions to marginalized populations.
Lauren Baker, co-ordinator of the Toronto Food Policy Council, says that while Parkdale is not a food desert – an area where there is nowhere to buy fresh healthy food – it faces “unique inner-city challenges.”
“Rents are increasing, pushing out smaller grocers, and we’re seeing kind of a shrinking of food options across the neighbourhood. Of course, that’s compounded by issues of poverty and hunger,” said Ms. Baker.
That farmers are members of the co-op, she said, can help bridge the divide between urban and rural, making farmers feel closer to the marketplace. She highlighted the role the co-operative provides in giving people a closer personal connection with their food, providing a space to shop local, learn about food and cook.
“It’s been called the ‘intimate commodity’… so the agency is really important,” she said.
WHAT IS A CO-OP?
A co-operative is a business owned by its users. The majority of co-operatives in Ontario are housing co-ops, where the tenants pay a co-op fee and serve on various boards responsible for activities from landscaping to web design.
Co-operatives all feature a one-member, one-vote system. Day-to-day operations are often handled by an elected executive.
One of the most visible retail co-ops in Canada is Mountain Equipment Co-op (MEC), an outdoors supply shop. Members pay a $5 fee and receive a lifetime membership allowing them to shop in the store and participate in operational decisions, including elections to the board of directors.
The Exhibition Place wind turbine is another example of the co-operative system. Built by the WindShare co-operative, the $1.8-million community-owned turbine has been supplying 1,800 megawatts of electricity a year since its construction in 2002.
