Working Together to Nourish our Community

by Kenna S. Eaton

Each month, I report to the board on how we are progressing on our long-term goals, which we call our Ends. These Ends reflect our aspirations—what we want to accomplish—and they are what makes us different from a regular grocery store. We publish these reports as a blog to keep our member-owners up to date on what we are doing.

The reports are organized by our five Ends, although not all are discussed in every report. Our Ends say that, as a result of all we do—

-    Our community is well-served by a strong cooperative grocery store, integral to the lives of our customers, our farmers, and our producers.

-    Our community has a resilient local and regional food economy, supported by our Co-op and our community partners.

-    Our staff and board have the knowledge, skills, and passion to make our cooperative thrive.

-    Our members and customers are proud to shop at a local cooperative grocery that is working to reduce its impact on the environment.

-    Our community is informed, engaged, and empowered to join us in making a difference.

Market Relevance

The giant pumpkin made its return in October! This year it came from Mustard Seed Farm in St. Paul, Oregon. We gave away a $100 gift certificate to the person who made the closest guess, a tradition all members enjoy. Staff got an opportunity to guess the weight as well, with a different prize package. After the end of its time at the store, we donated the pumpkin to Sunfield Waldorf School for their annual light festival.

 The price of food is top of everyone’s mind these days, so to help ease that problem, we recommend checking out Co+op Basics in the store. Our Co+op Basics program offers high-quality products at great prices, so look for the purple shelf signs all over the store. In October, we featured Co-op Basics items in the lobby along the map wall. This month we brought in nine new Co+op Basics items, including several sweeteners and baking items just in time for the holiday baking season. Baking soda and baking powder have not yet shipped but will be coming soon. We also currently have two seasonal stuffing mixes as well as organic 2 lb. blueberries as Co+op Basics. 

October was Co-op Month!

Throughout the store, we featured many of our favorite products made by co-ops:  Alaffia, Alter Eco, Equal Exchange, Organic India, La Riojana, Moncaro, Maple Valley. We also continued to celebrate our 50th anniversary with our Co-op merchandise such as tee shirts and mugs as well as our 50th collaboration products on sale. 

Food System Development

Silva Family Farm fresh blueberries are still coming in! The 2021 season ran from July 28 to October 26, but the 2022 season began a month late due to the weather. Sales of blueberry pints are down by 50% due to the shortened season, but they are still tasty and worth checking out.

We have a few new local seasonal sweet treats:  Two Crows horchata cookies, Chuckanut pumpkin cheesecake & peppermint cheesecake bites. Plus, we added a new lavender detox bar soap from The Fay Farm. 

Thriving Workplace

We had more COVID protocol changes in late October with the end of Washington’s “State of Emergency” orders related to the pandemic. We removed the hanging curtains at the registers and cut back on disinfecting shopping carts and baskets, which has been a nightly, but time-consuming, ritual for the past two years. Our HR team moved back to the Clay Street administration building in mid-October after we completed the post-flood work. New carpets were installed in the small and large HR offices as well as in the meeting room and hallway, and new furniture for the small and large HR office rooms were brought in to freshen up the workspaces.  

Environment

The story of the Kawamoto Farm, located in Quilcene, is an exciting local success in saving farmland. The long-term owners were looking to sell the farm, but they also wanted to preserve the farm’s legacy and protect the land to benefit future generations. Dozens of people and organizations submitted proposals for the farm’s future. The Jefferson LandWorks Collaborative (we are a member) formed a selection committee, including community members from diverse racial and economic backgrounds with expertise in farming and local food systems, to choose between the many proposals. The collective selected has plans to bring the farm back into production as an “organic, sustainable environment where food and people can grow.” In August the farm was officially renamed as the Kawamoto-Wipala Farm.

Outreach

We are working with the Port Townsend High School as a mentor for their Food Innovation Club, where students are challenged to bring a value-added product to market, sourced from at least one item grown or produced in Jefferson County. Currently, the students are in the brainstorming stage, but by May, they will have local products to sell at their Market Day that have been researched, tested, prototyped, and packaged for sale. Staff are super excited to help guide these young entrepreneurs in bringing these new “Local 5” products to market!