In 1884, 28 people pooled their resources to rent a warehouse and stock it with butter, sugar, oatmeal, flour and tallow candles. Today, cooperatives, which are non-profit, member-owned organizations, deal in more than kitchen staples. Soo Coop Credit Union, Soo Coop Great Lakes Foods, Beautiful Leaf Food Cooperative, Cloverland Electric Cooperative, Big North Farmer's Cooperative, and Native Wild Seed and Plant Cooperative are among the many local coops in use today.
The Rochdale Pioneers founded the movement in 1844 to provide fair trading services. Cooperatives are still based on the six basic principles established by the Pioneers: open membership; one member, one vote; limited return on investment; education component; cooperation among cooperatives; and patronage rebates.
About 33 years ago, the Soo's Beautiful Leaf Food Coop started with one person. Founder Phil Belfy, deciding to become a vegetarian, needed to find a source of varied whole foods for his new diet. He ordered from the People's Warehouse in Ann Arbor and picked up his food up in Petoskey.
Word got around, and soon the Beautiful Leaf Food Coop had organized into a food buying club. Members ordered in bulk — imagine divvying up 35-pound buckets of peanut butter, 25-pound wheels of cheese and 50-pound bags of rice! Today, members can order in greater variety and smaller quantities, and can even get organic meats and produce, or pet supplies, at wholesale prices.
Jim Lucas, who heads up the local MSU extension office, is a longstanding member of the local food coop. He and his partner Charla Gordon have been members for 12 years.
“We joined because we did not have a local source of whole foods such as cheese, tofu, juices, grains and snack foods,” Lucas said. “Also, 12 years ago, there was no local source of organic products. The Beautiful Leaf Food Coop offered all this and other natural products for house cleaning, bathings, laundry and even pet care.”
Lucas said he is also able to obtain herbs, spices, and homeopathic remedies through Beautiful Leaf's assocation with Frontier Herb, a coop established in 1976. “They are known for their excellence in standardization and quality and at much reduced prices from local outlets,” he said.
Since food coops had become intertwined with the organic movement, they flourished among a small population of consumers interested in less chemicals and packaging. In the last decade, interest in organics has grown, so large food retailers have become interested in them, too. Although this a good thing, it is unfortunate that food coops are slowly selling out to food retailers. Many more organic and health products are available in the grocery store — but the price is usually higher than a food coop or buying club, and with less variety.
Lucas and Gordon have stuck with Beautiful Leaf throughout the years for a number of reasons. “First off, it is a great group of people you get to visit with once a month,” he said. “Second, it is the only place where we can still get certain products that we like to buy. Third, the price we pay for the organic and whole foods is much cheaper than what you would spend at our local supermarkets.”
Besides those who want more organic and vegetarian selection, Lucas recommends the food coop for joining for food allergies, availability of vegetarian nutrition and access to special foods like Asian spices.
Since he and Gordon support “buying local farmers, gatherers, and fishers first before even ordering from the Food Coop,” it's okay that organic produce from the coop is limited, and he said, it comes in handy during the winter. “We own a very large freezer where we store everything from nuts to wild blueberries,” he added.
Everyone who belongs to BLFC joins in to help do the work at coop pickups. Members meet at Northern Transitions every four weeks, after work at 5:30, to unload the warehouse truck, organize the orders, pay and clean up.
Anyone who is interested in learning more about the local food coop can contact Deb Kobes, 906-635-1886, Susan James, 906-635-1647, in the U.S., or Tim Lyham, 705-949-3862, in Ontario. Interested people are welcome to check out upcoming pickups at Northern transitions in the Soo — the next two are Nov. 3 and Dec. 1.
Beautiful Leaf is looking for new members. The joining fee is $10 and members pay $10 per year to help out with expenses. If anyone is looking for a source of organic and regular food at wholesale prices then come to check out BLFC.
