Food Co-op Update

By Dan Nygard
Contributing Writer to High Plains Reader

“At each stage of the game there’s so much to be done that it doesn’t feel far away. It’s getting closer and closer.” –Leah Wright

It’s easy to get caught up in the blizzard of holiday activities, racing from one event to the next so quickly that you forget to slow down and reflect on what has been accomplished in the previous year. However, I recently had a chance to sit down with volunteers Reba Mathern-Jacobson, Leah Wright and Stephanie Christeson to discuss the past year in the life of the Cass Clay Wholesome Food Co-op. In observing the co-op’s journey from idea to reality, how appropriate it is that accomplishing its initial goals have lead the group into 2011. 

To begin, the co-op has accomplished one of its chief goals: it is currently working with CDS Consulting Co-op to conduct a feasibility study to assess potential sales, find a suitable storefront location and estimate a 10-year operating budget. This is the next step in accomplishing the co-op’s stated mission of “connecting consumers and producers in a nourishing, responsible and community-minded market.”


“[CDS is] the premiere people that deal with food co-ops across the country,” said Mathern-Jacobsen, who heads the finance committee.

This study will enable the co-op to honestly assess the business climate in the area and to make sound decisions while minimizing risk.

“This is a community project and we want to move forward in a way in which people can feel confident,” said Christeson, who chairs the membership committee.

The results of the feasibility study were made available in January. Accomplishing this goal leads to the next: incorporation as a legal entity (which is planned for this February) and the beginning of a membership drive. A food co-operative is driven by the concept of member-ownership.

“Every member has equal standing,” said Wright, who heads the communication committee. “You invest the same amount of money, and you have one vote in what happens within the co-op. It’s an egalitarian system.”

The co-op adheres to the International Co-operative Alliance Principles, which provide a foundation for an open, democratic organization that treats individuals and the entire community with respect.

At this time last year, the first co-op meeting had not been held. Now on the verge of a new phase of the overall mission, there is a real sense of accomplishment.

“Our timeline is based in reality, but it is ambitious,” Christeson said. “There are co-ops that have worked for eight years to open, and we’re on a three-year schedule, which we know is possible based on the research we have done.”

Despite the speed at which the process is moving, there is a strong sense of deliberation at each step of the process.

“We’re doing it thoughtfully, carefully,” Wright said, noting, “it takes a lot of hours to do something like this.”

Despite the hard work involved, the group is focused, well organized and driven.

“This will be a convenient place to shop,” Mathern-Jacobsen said, “where people will feel good about buying food they know is healthy for themselves, for the people that grew it, and for the land that it came from.”

There is more to the co-op than the storefront, Wright said.

“A major piece of a co-op is education, helping people learn things they wouldn’t have necessarily thought about before,” she said.

As they go through the new year, especially once they are incorporated and seeking members, the Cass Clay Wholesome Food Co-op will also be seeking volunteers. And as this project continues to progress from idea to reality, now is the time to get on board. Ultimately, as Christeson explains, the co-op is “a group of people working together, pooling resources, learning from each other and having fun.”