Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
GRAND RE-OPENING: Rising Tide Food CO-OP
GRAND RE-OPENING: Rising Tide Food CO-OP
Today, the Rising Tide Community Market moved across the street from it's 30 year Damariscotta location into it's new home.
It was a $3,000,000 project in a community of $3,400 people. It truly shows the power and the promise of the co-op model!
Congratulations, Rising Tide!
Thursday, April 30, 2009
UMFK holds trade show to mark Earth Day
Bangor Daily NEWS
04/23/09
earth day
UMFK holds trade show to mark Earth Day
By Julia Bayly
Special to the NEWS
http://www.bangordailynews.com/detail/104397.html
[ PHOTO ] PHOTO SPECIAL TO THE BANGOR DAILY NEWS BY JULIA BAYLY
University of Maine at Fort Kent Ecology Committee President Heather Decotes shows off some environmentally friendly products and information during the campus’ Earth Day trade fair.
FORT KENT, Maine — When Heather Decotes graduates from the University of Maine at Fort Kent next fall, she wants to leave the campus a little better than she found it.
For the environmental studies major from Albany, N.Y., that has meant efforts to organize and mobilize fellow students into the UMFK Ecology Committee.
Decotes, fellow committee members, students, faculty and others participated in an environmental trade show as part of the campus’ Earth Day celebrations Wednesday.
“I’ve noticed in the past year an increasing trend of students being interested in the environment,” Decotes said. “Last year no one really noticed Earth Day. This year people seem genuinely concerned.”
Describing herself as “passionate” about helping the environment, Decotes said she began the campus ecology club earlier in her college career at UMFK and is working to ensure the group keeps going long after she has moved on.
At the group’s trade show table Decotes showed off a poster documenting four weeks worth of compost and waste from UMFK’s Nowland Dining Hall, in addition to a variety of earth-friendly products and a computer model which calculated an individual person’s carbon footprint.
One table down, environmental studies student Julie Trudel, coordinator of a food co-op in Fort Kent, was describing the benefits of buying local and organic products grown using sustainable practices.
“Our co-op buys a lot of products from smaller New England producers,” Trudel said. “People seem to be catching on to this.”
Purchasing through the co-op instead of “big-box” retail chains, Trudel said, promotes small farms that produce value-added foods.
Bringing it one step closer to home were members of UMFK’s curriculum and instruction arts lab who are developing a community flower garden on campus as part of an in-class small group project.
Seedlings will sprout in the campus greenhouse and in mid-May the students plan to transplant a variety of flowers and bulbs into planters outside Cyr Hall.
“This is our gift to the campus,” student Tiffany Curry said. “It’s good for the environment, creates oxygen and is pretty.”
Other exhibits included composting demonstrations, displays on alternative energy, recycling, safe food practices and animal welfare.
“This is one of the most successful Earth Days ever at UMFK,” Kim Borges, associate professor of environmental studies, said. “I like to think it’s because people are more aware of the issues.”
Elsewhere on campus the dining hall featured a special meal using locally grown and organic foods, environmentally oriented books were on display in Blake Library and environment-theme movies were shown with follow-up discussions.
“People really need to ask themselves what they can do to conserve as consumers,” Decotes said.
“Do you really need to buy something or can you re-use something instead because it all makes a difference.”
jbayly@bangordailynews.net
834-5272
04/23/09
earth day
UMFK holds trade show to mark Earth Day
By Julia Bayly
Special to the NEWS
http://www.bangordailynews.com/detail/104397.html
[ PHOTO ] PHOTO SPECIAL TO THE BANGOR DAILY NEWS BY JULIA BAYLY
University of Maine at Fort Kent Ecology Committee President Heather Decotes shows off some environmentally friendly products and information during the campus’ Earth Day trade fair.
FORT KENT, Maine — When Heather Decotes graduates from the University of Maine at Fort Kent next fall, she wants to leave the campus a little better than she found it.
For the environmental studies major from Albany, N.Y., that has meant efforts to organize and mobilize fellow students into the UMFK Ecology Committee.
Decotes, fellow committee members, students, faculty and others participated in an environmental trade show as part of the campus’ Earth Day celebrations Wednesday.
“I’ve noticed in the past year an increasing trend of students being interested in the environment,” Decotes said. “Last year no one really noticed Earth Day. This year people seem genuinely concerned.”
Describing herself as “passionate” about helping the environment, Decotes said she began the campus ecology club earlier in her college career at UMFK and is working to ensure the group keeps going long after she has moved on.
At the group’s trade show table Decotes showed off a poster documenting four weeks worth of compost and waste from UMFK’s Nowland Dining Hall, in addition to a variety of earth-friendly products and a computer model which calculated an individual person’s carbon footprint.
One table down, environmental studies student Julie Trudel, coordinator of a food co-op in Fort Kent, was describing the benefits of buying local and organic products grown using sustainable practices.
“Our co-op buys a lot of products from smaller New England producers,” Trudel said. “People seem to be catching on to this.”
Purchasing through the co-op instead of “big-box” retail chains, Trudel said, promotes small farms that produce value-added foods.
Bringing it one step closer to home were members of UMFK’s curriculum and instruction arts lab who are developing a community flower garden on campus as part of an in-class small group project.
Seedlings will sprout in the campus greenhouse and in mid-May the students plan to transplant a variety of flowers and bulbs into planters outside Cyr Hall.
“This is our gift to the campus,” student Tiffany Curry said. “It’s good for the environment, creates oxygen and is pretty.”
Other exhibits included composting demonstrations, displays on alternative energy, recycling, safe food practices and animal welfare.
“This is one of the most successful Earth Days ever at UMFK,” Kim Borges, associate professor of environmental studies, said. “I like to think it’s because people are more aware of the issues.”
Elsewhere on campus the dining hall featured a special meal using locally grown and organic foods, environmentally oriented books were on display in Blake Library and environment-theme movies were shown with follow-up discussions.
“People really need to ask themselves what they can do to conserve as consumers,” Decotes said.
“Do you really need to buy something or can you re-use something instead because it all makes a difference.”
jbayly@bangordailynews.net
834-5272
Ghost of Whole Grocer still haunts foodies hereabouts
Portland Daily Sun
03/25/09
Ghost of Whole Grocer still haunts foodies hereabouts
[ * INACCURATE TITLE & FRAME * ]
http://www.theportlanddailysun.com/cgi/story.pl?storyid=20090325012121000810
Among the members of the Portland Food Co-op, there is a deep pining for a fallen comrade, a beloved captain of their ranks, who met an untimely death due to the plans and ambitions of larger players. Like many fallen heroes, the legend has been polished to a high sheen.
Dependable and earthy, the Whole Grocer was a local, with the dirt of nearby farms under the nails of calloused fingers. The Grocer was redolent of spices and the fragrant herbs of foreign lands. Admirers came from all over...they walked, they pedaled, they drove ... seeking nourishment and sustenance.
The first blow to was when Wild Oats opened a store in 2003 that shared the same parking lot. Wild Oats insisted they meant the Whole Grocer no harm, that the rising tide of natural foods customers would lift Whole Grocer's boat too. The second blow was when Whole Foods announced their plans to open a store in 2007 less than a tenth of a mile away. The owner of the Whole Grocer didn't wait for a death knell, she sold to the Texas giant. Although many employees and customers have transitioned to Whole Foods, there are those for whom the void can not be filled by a store whose management is in a different area code.
Thus in late 2006 the Portland Food Co-op was born. A small group gathered to form a buying club to support local farmers while providing local families with healthy and affordable food. From their first order of a few hundred dollars, the buying club has grown in membership and in buying power. Last month's purchase from the Crown of Maine, the statewide distributor of organic Maine goods and products, exceeded the amount purchased by Whole Foods.
Steering committee member Emily Graham recently addressed a group of 85 co-op members and prospects at a meeting held in the Fellowship Hall of Immanuel Baptist Church. She reminisced about the Whole Grocer she remembered: with an expansive bulk foods section, the aromas of homemade soups that wafted through the store, the wide array of loose teas. "Our initial thought was to replace the Whole Grocer," she almost sighed. "But then we met other co-ops."
Seeking the input of the extended Portland food family, Graham and other members of the steering committee offered six co-op models for consideration as the next step in the group's evolution.
1. Rising Tide Co-op in Damariscotta, Maine. 30 years old. 1,800 members and members of the public shop at a new $2.9 million facility that generates $2.7 million in annual sales. The new facility was funded by loans from members and banks.
2. River Valley Market in Northampton, Mass. This 10-year old co-op functioned without a fixed site until this past April when the 3,345-member group opened a LEED certified store with $9 million in loans, including $1 million in member loans.
3. The Wedge in Minneapolis, Minn. This 35-year-old co-op now has 13,000 members and operates an 11,000 ft store that generates $20 million in annual sales. For years they operated primarily as a warehouse and distributor of dairy, soy and organic produce. Dry goods and non perishables were sold online.
4. Park Slope Food Coop in Brooklyn, N.Y. This 35-year-old co-op also has 13,000 members. Their 18,000 ft store generates $35.9 million in annual sales and is open only to co-op members, who do 75 percent of the work. Member are required to work three hours per month but pay 21 percent over wholesale, less than half the typical grocery store markup.
5. Missoula Community Co-op, Missoula, Mont. You must be a member to shop at this 2.5-year-old co-op's 1,000 ft store. The store generates $160,000 in annual sales, where the mark up is limited to 25 pecent.
6. The Oklahoma Food Co-op. Membership is limited to Oklahoma residents who purchase $60,000 per month of 100 percent Oklahoma produced goods. The co-op is essentially a distribution network of producers and farmer with 32 hubs throughout the state. The organization is all volunteer run and is financially self-sustaining with no debt.
The co-op was incorporated in 2008 and is close to completing the bylaws and official mission statement. There are 12 members on the steering committee and is seeking public comment on the six model co-ops as they move to more of a board structure in anticipation of the next growth phase. The primary areas they are seeking input are: membership requirements; the types of products available: only Maine, only organic or a diverse selection from national sources; what sort of store or warehouse to use and whether to own or rent; funding for the co-op; and who would staff the organization, paid staff or member volunteers.
To join the conversation go to [ www.portlandfoodcoop.org ]
03/25/09
Ghost of Whole Grocer still haunts foodies hereabouts
[ * INACCURATE TITLE & FRAME * ]
http://www.theportlanddailysun.com/cgi/story.pl?storyid=20090325012121000810
Among the members of the Portland Food Co-op, there is a deep pining for a fallen comrade, a beloved captain of their ranks, who met an untimely death due to the plans and ambitions of larger players. Like many fallen heroes, the legend has been polished to a high sheen.
Dependable and earthy, the Whole Grocer was a local, with the dirt of nearby farms under the nails of calloused fingers. The Grocer was redolent of spices and the fragrant herbs of foreign lands. Admirers came from all over...they walked, they pedaled, they drove ... seeking nourishment and sustenance.
The first blow to was when Wild Oats opened a store in 2003 that shared the same parking lot. Wild Oats insisted they meant the Whole Grocer no harm, that the rising tide of natural foods customers would lift Whole Grocer's boat too. The second blow was when Whole Foods announced their plans to open a store in 2007 less than a tenth of a mile away. The owner of the Whole Grocer didn't wait for a death knell, she sold to the Texas giant. Although many employees and customers have transitioned to Whole Foods, there are those for whom the void can not be filled by a store whose management is in a different area code.
Thus in late 2006 the Portland Food Co-op was born. A small group gathered to form a buying club to support local farmers while providing local families with healthy and affordable food. From their first order of a few hundred dollars, the buying club has grown in membership and in buying power. Last month's purchase from the Crown of Maine, the statewide distributor of organic Maine goods and products, exceeded the amount purchased by Whole Foods.
Steering committee member Emily Graham recently addressed a group of 85 co-op members and prospects at a meeting held in the Fellowship Hall of Immanuel Baptist Church. She reminisced about the Whole Grocer she remembered: with an expansive bulk foods section, the aromas of homemade soups that wafted through the store, the wide array of loose teas. "Our initial thought was to replace the Whole Grocer," she almost sighed. "But then we met other co-ops."
Seeking the input of the extended Portland food family, Graham and other members of the steering committee offered six co-op models for consideration as the next step in the group's evolution.
1. Rising Tide Co-op in Damariscotta, Maine. 30 years old. 1,800 members and members of the public shop at a new $2.9 million facility that generates $2.7 million in annual sales. The new facility was funded by loans from members and banks.
2. River Valley Market in Northampton, Mass. This 10-year old co-op functioned without a fixed site until this past April when the 3,345-member group opened a LEED certified store with $9 million in loans, including $1 million in member loans.
3. The Wedge in Minneapolis, Minn. This 35-year-old co-op now has 13,000 members and operates an 11,000 ft store that generates $20 million in annual sales. For years they operated primarily as a warehouse and distributor of dairy, soy and organic produce. Dry goods and non perishables were sold online.
4. Park Slope Food Coop in Brooklyn, N.Y. This 35-year-old co-op also has 13,000 members. Their 18,000 ft store generates $35.9 million in annual sales and is open only to co-op members, who do 75 percent of the work. Member are required to work three hours per month but pay 21 percent over wholesale, less than half the typical grocery store markup.
5. Missoula Community Co-op, Missoula, Mont. You must be a member to shop at this 2.5-year-old co-op's 1,000 ft store. The store generates $160,000 in annual sales, where the mark up is limited to 25 pecent.
6. The Oklahoma Food Co-op. Membership is limited to Oklahoma residents who purchase $60,000 per month of 100 percent Oklahoma produced goods. The co-op is essentially a distribution network of producers and farmer with 32 hubs throughout the state. The organization is all volunteer run and is financially self-sustaining with no debt.
The co-op was incorporated in 2008 and is close to completing the bylaws and official mission statement. There are 12 members on the steering committee and is seeking public comment on the six model co-ops as they move to more of a board structure in anticipation of the next growth phase. The primary areas they are seeking input are: membership requirements; the types of products available: only Maine, only organic or a diverse selection from national sources; what sort of store or warehouse to use and whether to own or rent; funding for the co-op; and who would staff the organization, paid staff or member volunteers.
To join the conversation go to [ www.portlandfoodcoop.org ]
Portland Food Co-op seeks input
Portland Press Herald
03/04/09
COLUMN
Portland Food Co-op seeks input
By MEREDITH GOAD
http://pressherald.mainetoday.com/story_pf.php?id=242850&ac=
Back in December, I told you about a group of Portland residents who are working to create a new Portland Food Co-op where shoppers can buy organic, locally grown foods at lower prices.
The group, the Food Now Buying Club, has been purchasing local eggs, apple cider, yogurt, squash, cabbage, potatoes, carrots and other produce in bulk from two Maine distributors, Crown of Maine and United Natural Foods, for more than a year now.
For the price of a $15 membership, people who join the buying club can order anything they want at a modest 10 percent mark-up. Orders are picked up at the Meg Perry Center on Congress Street.
The buying club has grown so fast – there are now 75 members – that orders have shot up from $650 a month to $7,700 a month. The group has reached the stage in its development that it needs to answer the question "What's next?"
The group wants the community's input: Do want a full-fledged market where you can buy food any time and open the process up to more people? Would you rather see the buying club take flight? Or do you prefer something in between that combines ordering and food pick-up with shopping opportunities?
Let the organizers know what you want at a community forum at 7 p.m. Thursday at Immanuel Baptist Church, 156 High St., Portland. For more information, visit www.portlandfoodcoop.org.
FREE PRODUCE FOR SENIORS
If you have an elderly friend or relative who is having a tough time making ends meet in this economy, introduce them to the Maine Senior FarmShare program, which provides $50 worth of free, Maine-grown fruits and vegetables from 140 local farms to seniors who meet the income requirements.
It's based on the community-supported agriculture model that has become so popular in recent years. Shares are distributed on a first-come, first-served basis, and those who participate must agree to use their shares regularly throughout the season so there's no balance left at the end of the growing season.
(In other words, no saving your shares to use on apples or winter squash while you take a pass on the broccoli and field greens.)
To take advantage of the program, people must be age 60 or older and have incomes below $20,036 for individuals or $26,995 for couples. The Maine Department of Agriculture – Food and Rural Resources estimates that more than 17,000 seniors will participate this year.
To see if there's a farm near you, call (877) 353-3771 or go to www.getrealmaine.com/connect/farmshare/senior.html.
SPRING SHARE AVAILABLE
If you missed the community-supported agriculture fair in Portland, or if the farm you were considering is sold out of summer shares, check out the spring shares that are being offered by Wolf Pine Farm, an organic vegetable farm in Alfred.
The farm has been offering summer vegetable shares since 2002. This year, Wolf Pine is partnering with other local and regional farms to offer five distributions of local, organic food every other Friday from March 6 to May 1.
Among the offerings are root vegetables, greenhouse greens, dry goods (beans and grains), herbs, eggs and fruits including apples and cranberries. The cost is $200, due in full by April 1 unless you make other arrangements with the farm.
There won't be a Portland delivery option – pickup is in Alfred only – but the farm will help connect customers with other shareholders who live in their area so they can take turns picking up their food.
For more information, call 324-2357 or find the application online at www.wolfpinefarm.com.
SHAKE THOSE BLAHS
If you didn't get your fill of eating out during Restaurant Week, there are a couple of special
events coming up that may be of interest to folks looking to shake off those "I just can't take it anymore" winter blues.
• Eat out without feeling guilty about it on Sunday at the Second Annual Eco Appetito at Cinque Terre, 36 Wharf St., Portland.
It's for a good cause: All proceeds from the event, which costs $35 and runs 1 to 4 p.m., benefit the Ferry Beach Ecology School's Food for Thought program.
Chef Lee Skawinski will work his magic on local meats and seafood. Artisanal cheeses, fresh pasta, hand-crafted beers and local wines will also be served. There will be a silent auction, door prizes and a humorous presentation by the ecology school staff.
• And here's a really hot ticket: At 6 p.m. March 20, catch the ferry over to Peaks Island and learn to tango. (Now that will put the spring back in your step!)
Tango instructor Ricky Hines will be at the Inn on Peaks Island to teach you the "dance of love," while executive chef Christian Gordon (recently named the 2009 Chef of the Year by the Maine Restaurant Association) whips up some tapas to help keep the fire in your furnace.
For tickets, which cost $45 per person, call 523-5111.
Staff Writer Meredith Goad can be
03/04/09
COLUMN
Portland Food Co-op seeks input
By MEREDITH GOAD
http://pressherald.mainetoday.com/story_pf.php?id=242850&ac=
Back in December, I told you about a group of Portland residents who are working to create a new Portland Food Co-op where shoppers can buy organic, locally grown foods at lower prices.
The group, the Food Now Buying Club, has been purchasing local eggs, apple cider, yogurt, squash, cabbage, potatoes, carrots and other produce in bulk from two Maine distributors, Crown of Maine and United Natural Foods, for more than a year now.
For the price of a $15 membership, people who join the buying club can order anything they want at a modest 10 percent mark-up. Orders are picked up at the Meg Perry Center on Congress Street.
The buying club has grown so fast – there are now 75 members – that orders have shot up from $650 a month to $7,700 a month. The group has reached the stage in its development that it needs to answer the question "What's next?"
The group wants the community's input: Do want a full-fledged market where you can buy food any time and open the process up to more people? Would you rather see the buying club take flight? Or do you prefer something in between that combines ordering and food pick-up with shopping opportunities?
Let the organizers know what you want at a community forum at 7 p.m. Thursday at Immanuel Baptist Church, 156 High St., Portland. For more information, visit www.portlandfoodcoop.org.
FREE PRODUCE FOR SENIORS
If you have an elderly friend or relative who is having a tough time making ends meet in this economy, introduce them to the Maine Senior FarmShare program, which provides $50 worth of free, Maine-grown fruits and vegetables from 140 local farms to seniors who meet the income requirements.
It's based on the community-supported agriculture model that has become so popular in recent years. Shares are distributed on a first-come, first-served basis, and those who participate must agree to use their shares regularly throughout the season so there's no balance left at the end of the growing season.
(In other words, no saving your shares to use on apples or winter squash while you take a pass on the broccoli and field greens.)
To take advantage of the program, people must be age 60 or older and have incomes below $20,036 for individuals or $26,995 for couples. The Maine Department of Agriculture – Food and Rural Resources estimates that more than 17,000 seniors will participate this year.
To see if there's a farm near you, call (877) 353-3771 or go to www.getrealmaine.com/connect/farmshare/senior.html.
SPRING SHARE AVAILABLE
If you missed the community-supported agriculture fair in Portland, or if the farm you were considering is sold out of summer shares, check out the spring shares that are being offered by Wolf Pine Farm, an organic vegetable farm in Alfred.
The farm has been offering summer vegetable shares since 2002. This year, Wolf Pine is partnering with other local and regional farms to offer five distributions of local, organic food every other Friday from March 6 to May 1.
Among the offerings are root vegetables, greenhouse greens, dry goods (beans and grains), herbs, eggs and fruits including apples and cranberries. The cost is $200, due in full by April 1 unless you make other arrangements with the farm.
There won't be a Portland delivery option – pickup is in Alfred only – but the farm will help connect customers with other shareholders who live in their area so they can take turns picking up their food.
For more information, call 324-2357 or find the application online at www.wolfpinefarm.com.
SHAKE THOSE BLAHS
If you didn't get your fill of eating out during Restaurant Week, there are a couple of special
events coming up that may be of interest to folks looking to shake off those "I just can't take it anymore" winter blues.
• Eat out without feeling guilty about it on Sunday at the Second Annual Eco Appetito at Cinque Terre, 36 Wharf St., Portland.
It's for a good cause: All proceeds from the event, which costs $35 and runs 1 to 4 p.m., benefit the Ferry Beach Ecology School's Food for Thought program.
Chef Lee Skawinski will work his magic on local meats and seafood. Artisanal cheeses, fresh pasta, hand-crafted beers and local wines will also be served. There will be a silent auction, door prizes and a humorous presentation by the ecology school staff.
• And here's a really hot ticket: At 6 p.m. March 20, catch the ferry over to Peaks Island and learn to tango. (Now that will put the spring back in your step!)
Tango instructor Ricky Hines will be at the Inn on Peaks Island to teach you the "dance of love," while executive chef Christian Gordon (recently named the 2009 Chef of the Year by the Maine Restaurant Association) whips up some tapas to help keep the fire in your furnace.
For tickets, which cost $45 per person, call 523-5111.
Staff Writer Meredith Goad can be
Making sense of co-ops
KENNEBEC JOURNAL Morning Sentinel
03/01/2009
Making sense of co-ops
BY KEITH EDWARDS
Staff Writer
http://kennebecjournal.mainetoday.com/news/local/6006711.html
AUGUSTA -- Co-op proponents ranging from fishermen to financiers gathered Saturday to share tips on how to get together, to get ahead.
Or, in today's economy, at least get by.
By joining together with other like-minded people in a co-op, speakers at the 15th annual Changing Maine conference said, you can get things done an individual could never do.
And accomplish those things in a way you believe in, even though doing so may not be the cheapest, easiest route. Such as, in the case of the fisherman, making more of an effort to conserve the resource than fisheries regulations require. Or, for the financier, providing low-interest mortgages to members of Maine's Indian tribes who couldn't get such loans otherwise.
Or buying and even preparing organically-grown food.
Co-ops are generally owned by their members, who share the responsibilities and rewards of group ownership.
"It's such a different experience than going to the grocery store, people actually talk to each other," Alison LePage said of getting food through Food Now, the growing Portland Food Co-op's food buying club. "It's a great model and enables people to access the food they want to access. When you get a group of people together with a common goal, it's amazing what you can do."
The food-buying group, which buys only from natural food-suppliers, started in 2006. It's first order, LePage said, was just over $600. The last order of the group with about 75 active members was about $8,000.
About 80 people gathered at the Pine Tree State Arboretum for the annual conference, which, this year, had a theme of "The Co-op Model: Transition to a Democratic Economy,"
Glenn Libby, representing a fishermen's co-op based in Port Clyde, said the group of about a dozen fishermen has begun community-supported fishing, similar to community-supported farms, in which consumers buy shares of, in the case of the fishermen, their catch.
Libby said it's a conservation-minded group, and members must use special gear, beyond that required by state and federal fisheries regulations, to try to reduce by-catch (catching fish they didn't intend to catch).
Last summer the fishermen's co-op had 200 shareholders who bought fish through the program.
Libby said the fishermen get a better price for their catch than they generally would selling to a fish processing company.
But co-ops are not without challenges.
"It has been an incredible amount of work," Libby said. "It's hard to keep the fishermen onboard. You've got to show them results. They've got families to feed, bills to pay."
Susan Hammond, of Four Directions Development Corporation, a tribal program making housing and business loans to Native Americans, said the organization fills a gap created because regular banks are hesitant to make home loans to tribal members because the tribal land is owned by the tribe, so it can't provide collateral.
In contrast to the trend of skyrocketing home foreclosure rates, Hammond said the organization has put about $4 million to work helping tribe members purchase homes and, "We've had no loan losses, no foreclosures. If you provide affordable financing for people, they're going to pay it back."
Organizers of co-ops for housing and employee-owned businesses also shared their experiences with others looking to learn how to form and run co-ops.
Keith Edwards -- 621-5647
kedwards@centralmaine.com
03/01/2009
Making sense of co-ops
BY KEITH EDWARDS
Staff Writer
http://kennebecjournal.mainetoday.com/news/local/6006711.html
AUGUSTA -- Co-op proponents ranging from fishermen to financiers gathered Saturday to share tips on how to get together, to get ahead.
Or, in today's economy, at least get by.
By joining together with other like-minded people in a co-op, speakers at the 15th annual Changing Maine conference said, you can get things done an individual could never do.
And accomplish those things in a way you believe in, even though doing so may not be the cheapest, easiest route. Such as, in the case of the fisherman, making more of an effort to conserve the resource than fisheries regulations require. Or, for the financier, providing low-interest mortgages to members of Maine's Indian tribes who couldn't get such loans otherwise.
Or buying and even preparing organically-grown food.
Co-ops are generally owned by their members, who share the responsibilities and rewards of group ownership.
"It's such a different experience than going to the grocery store, people actually talk to each other," Alison LePage said of getting food through Food Now, the growing Portland Food Co-op's food buying club. "It's a great model and enables people to access the food they want to access. When you get a group of people together with a common goal, it's amazing what you can do."
The food-buying group, which buys only from natural food-suppliers, started in 2006. It's first order, LePage said, was just over $600. The last order of the group with about 75 active members was about $8,000.
About 80 people gathered at the Pine Tree State Arboretum for the annual conference, which, this year, had a theme of "The Co-op Model: Transition to a Democratic Economy,"
Glenn Libby, representing a fishermen's co-op based in Port Clyde, said the group of about a dozen fishermen has begun community-supported fishing, similar to community-supported farms, in which consumers buy shares of, in the case of the fishermen, their catch.
Libby said it's a conservation-minded group, and members must use special gear, beyond that required by state and federal fisheries regulations, to try to reduce by-catch (catching fish they didn't intend to catch).
Last summer the fishermen's co-op had 200 shareholders who bought fish through the program.
Libby said the fishermen get a better price for their catch than they generally would selling to a fish processing company.
But co-ops are not without challenges.
"It has been an incredible amount of work," Libby said. "It's hard to keep the fishermen onboard. You've got to show them results. They've got families to feed, bills to pay."
Susan Hammond, of Four Directions Development Corporation, a tribal program making housing and business loans to Native Americans, said the organization fills a gap created because regular banks are hesitant to make home loans to tribal members because the tribal land is owned by the tribe, so it can't provide collateral.
In contrast to the trend of skyrocketing home foreclosure rates, Hammond said the organization has put about $4 million to work helping tribe members purchase homes and, "We've had no loan losses, no foreclosures. If you provide affordable financing for people, they're going to pay it back."
Organizers of co-ops for housing and employee-owned businesses also shared their experiences with others looking to learn how to form and run co-ops.
Keith Edwards -- 621-5647
kedwards@centralmaine.com
Maine co-ops fill need financially and socially
Portland Press Herald
02/22/09
Maine co-ops fill need financially and socially
The democratic ethos and mission, as well as enhanced buying power, draw members.
By ANN S. KIM
Staff Writer
http://pressherald.mainetoday.com/story_pf.php?id=240599&ac=
These days, Local Sprouts – a fledgling Portland-based cooperative – is cooking up a regular stream of meals for its members and providing catering services for nonprofit organizations and others holding events.
The people behind the cooperative envision a time when it will provide locally produced foods to more people, operate a community-supported cafe and provide a greater source of income to its worker-owners.
"It's sustaining itself," said Hanifa Washington, one of the four worker-owners. "We definitely want more."
The hope is to eventually support six worker-owners, teach culinary skills through the planned cafe and expand its community-supported kitchen, which allows members to order meals prepared by the cooperative each week. The endeavor began about a year and a half ago and was incorporated in July.
Local Sprouts is just one type of cooperative found in Maine. Other member-owned entities include food-buying clubs, credit unions and cooperatives formed for housing, to provide electricity or to sell the wares of artisans, farmers and fishermen.
Interest in cooperatives tends to increase in difficult economic times, according to those who provide financing and technical assistance to such endeavors.
"My sense of human nature is in times of need, people are more willing to work together than in times of bounty," said Rebecca Dunn, executive director of the Cooperative Fund of New England, a Massachusetts-based community-development loan fund that has been busier since the fall.
Interest in the Portland Food Cooperative and the associated food-buying club, Food Now, has been up since the fall, said Ed Democracy, the co-op's vice president. He sees the economy as one factor, based on the larger number of inquiries about food stamps. The buying club, an intermediate step before the co-op establishes a storefront, started accepting them recently.
While the possibility of increased buying power is one motivation, members are often attracted to the democratic ethos and mission of co-ops.
That was certainly the case for Washington and Jonah Fertig, another Local Sprouts founder. Both want to support local food producers, make those products more accessible and share their skills.
"Co-ops start, generally, because there's a need that hasn't been met," said Washington, who also works as a musician and in a culinary arts program for individuals with intellectual disabilities.
Big questions about local control, community and the nature of work are what motivated Fertig.
"As a worker, as a cook, how can we cook in ways we feel empowered and cook in ways that support our community in the process?" asked Fertig, who also works in a restaurant and as a community organizer.
A group called Cooperative Maine is organizing a conference about co-ops next weekend in Augusta. Larry Dansinger, one of the organizers, hopes it will help lead to a blossoming of co-ops in Maine.
"Our goal is that it will be a renaissance and not just a temporary thing," said Dansinger, a community organizer from Monroe. "Cooperatives offer not just economic benefits, but also social benefits ... rewarding experiences."
Fertig also is contemplating starting another cooperative to create affordable housing and conserve environmental resources.
Some of the inspiration comes from other housing cooperatives, including Faire Bande Part Housing Cooperative in Lewiston.
While plans for that cooperative began before the recession, the current condition of the economy could make cooperative housing more appealing, said Ari Rosenberg, a founder and member.
Her co-op was structured so that none of the six members went into debt to buy the downtown building. Should she leave the co-op, Rosenberg would get the money she paid for her share of the corporation plus interest, the amount of rent paid that went to the mortgage's principal and the cost of improvements approved by members.
"Our rent is less than it was when we were renting, and we're saving money because we're going to get it back when we leave," she said.
The co-op is set up so that if it dissolves, any money left over after paying the shareholders will be donated to a co-op or nonprofit organization in Lewiston or Auburn.
The proceeds of a new weatherization cooperative will support its worker-owners and benefit Hour Exchange Portland, an organization in which members earn and spend "time dollars" by providing services to each other.
A structure that gives each person a say in the business is a big reason that Kennedy Barteaux is excited about the venture.
"It's the openness of it, the democratic way things are decided that's really appealing. I wouldn't want to be in a traditional business setting," said Barteaux, who is one of the two worker-owners.
The Cooperative Development Institute, based in Massachusetts, has seen an increase in the number of efforts seeking technical assistance through its rural cooperative development program. The past fiscal year had about 65 intakes, compared to the more typical 30 to 35 in previous years, according to Jen Gutshall, a cooperative development specialist.
The organization has no funding for urban cooperatives, but has fielded inquiries, with the most concentrated interest in worker co-ops, which Gutshall believes is related to the insecurity of the job market.
Consumers look for security and the ability to pool resources for a service, whether financial or otherwise, in difficult economic times, said John Murphy, president of the Maine Credit Union League. He said similar patterns have been in play in other economic downturns.
"Back through the late '80s, early '90s, consumers looked to credit unions for the safety, the security, the local ownership and control – all things that give people a level of comfort," he said.
Credit unions in the state saw assets grow 7.7 percent last year, compared to 6 percent the year before. Loans increased 5.1 percent, up from 4 percent the year before. Savings grew 6 percent, down from 6.5 percent. Murphy considered the 2008 growth very good, given the economic downturn.
Staff Writer Ann S. Kim can be contacted at 791-6383 or at:
akim@pressherald.com
Copyright © 2009 Blethen Maine Newspapers
02/22/09
Maine co-ops fill need financially and socially
The democratic ethos and mission, as well as enhanced buying power, draw members.
By ANN S. KIM
Staff Writer
http://pressherald.mainetoday.com/story_pf.php?id=240599&ac=
These days, Local Sprouts – a fledgling Portland-based cooperative – is cooking up a regular stream of meals for its members and providing catering services for nonprofit organizations and others holding events.
The people behind the cooperative envision a time when it will provide locally produced foods to more people, operate a community-supported cafe and provide a greater source of income to its worker-owners.
"It's sustaining itself," said Hanifa Washington, one of the four worker-owners. "We definitely want more."
The hope is to eventually support six worker-owners, teach culinary skills through the planned cafe and expand its community-supported kitchen, which allows members to order meals prepared by the cooperative each week. The endeavor began about a year and a half ago and was incorporated in July.
Local Sprouts is just one type of cooperative found in Maine. Other member-owned entities include food-buying clubs, credit unions and cooperatives formed for housing, to provide electricity or to sell the wares of artisans, farmers and fishermen.
Interest in cooperatives tends to increase in difficult economic times, according to those who provide financing and technical assistance to such endeavors.
"My sense of human nature is in times of need, people are more willing to work together than in times of bounty," said Rebecca Dunn, executive director of the Cooperative Fund of New England, a Massachusetts-based community-development loan fund that has been busier since the fall.
Interest in the Portland Food Cooperative and the associated food-buying club, Food Now, has been up since the fall, said Ed Democracy, the co-op's vice president. He sees the economy as one factor, based on the larger number of inquiries about food stamps. The buying club, an intermediate step before the co-op establishes a storefront, started accepting them recently.
While the possibility of increased buying power is one motivation, members are often attracted to the democratic ethos and mission of co-ops.
That was certainly the case for Washington and Jonah Fertig, another Local Sprouts founder. Both want to support local food producers, make those products more accessible and share their skills.
"Co-ops start, generally, because there's a need that hasn't been met," said Washington, who also works as a musician and in a culinary arts program for individuals with intellectual disabilities.
Big questions about local control, community and the nature of work are what motivated Fertig.
"As a worker, as a cook, how can we cook in ways we feel empowered and cook in ways that support our community in the process?" asked Fertig, who also works in a restaurant and as a community organizer.
A group called Cooperative Maine is organizing a conference about co-ops next weekend in Augusta. Larry Dansinger, one of the organizers, hopes it will help lead to a blossoming of co-ops in Maine.
"Our goal is that it will be a renaissance and not just a temporary thing," said Dansinger, a community organizer from Monroe. "Cooperatives offer not just economic benefits, but also social benefits ... rewarding experiences."
Fertig also is contemplating starting another cooperative to create affordable housing and conserve environmental resources.
Some of the inspiration comes from other housing cooperatives, including Faire Bande Part Housing Cooperative in Lewiston.
While plans for that cooperative began before the recession, the current condition of the economy could make cooperative housing more appealing, said Ari Rosenberg, a founder and member.
Her co-op was structured so that none of the six members went into debt to buy the downtown building. Should she leave the co-op, Rosenberg would get the money she paid for her share of the corporation plus interest, the amount of rent paid that went to the mortgage's principal and the cost of improvements approved by members.
"Our rent is less than it was when we were renting, and we're saving money because we're going to get it back when we leave," she said.
The co-op is set up so that if it dissolves, any money left over after paying the shareholders will be donated to a co-op or nonprofit organization in Lewiston or Auburn.
The proceeds of a new weatherization cooperative will support its worker-owners and benefit Hour Exchange Portland, an organization in which members earn and spend "time dollars" by providing services to each other.
A structure that gives each person a say in the business is a big reason that Kennedy Barteaux is excited about the venture.
"It's the openness of it, the democratic way things are decided that's really appealing. I wouldn't want to be in a traditional business setting," said Barteaux, who is one of the two worker-owners.
The Cooperative Development Institute, based in Massachusetts, has seen an increase in the number of efforts seeking technical assistance through its rural cooperative development program. The past fiscal year had about 65 intakes, compared to the more typical 30 to 35 in previous years, according to Jen Gutshall, a cooperative development specialist.
The organization has no funding for urban cooperatives, but has fielded inquiries, with the most concentrated interest in worker co-ops, which Gutshall believes is related to the insecurity of the job market.
Consumers look for security and the ability to pool resources for a service, whether financial or otherwise, in difficult economic times, said John Murphy, president of the Maine Credit Union League. He said similar patterns have been in play in other economic downturns.
"Back through the late '80s, early '90s, consumers looked to credit unions for the safety, the security, the local ownership and control – all things that give people a level of comfort," he said.
Credit unions in the state saw assets grow 7.7 percent last year, compared to 6 percent the year before. Loans increased 5.1 percent, up from 4 percent the year before. Savings grew 6 percent, down from 6.5 percent. Murphy considered the 2008 growth very good, given the economic downturn.
Staff Writer Ann S. Kim can be contacted at 791-6383 or at:
akim@pressherald.com
Copyright © 2009 Blethen Maine Newspapers
Buying clubs ‘win-win’for farmers, consumers
Bangor Daily NEWS
09/02/08
Buying clubs ‘win-win’for farmers, consumers
By Sharon Kiley Mack
BDN Staff
http://www.bangordailynews.com/detail/50039.html
[ PHOTOS ] BANGOR DAILY NEWS PHOTO BY SHARON KILEY MACKSarah Gabrielson of Machias, holding her infant Ezra, unpacks her order from Tide Mill Farms of Edmunds. Gabrielson is the coordinator of one of three buying clubs in Machias, a system that provides fresh from the farm produce, dairy and meat products. Buying clubs are particularly popular in rural areas where there are great distances between farms or a farmers' market is lacking. They are providing consistent income for farmers and consumers are setting them up from Portland to Machias.
MACHIAS, Maine — Sarah Gabrielson unpacks the brown paper bag and the “oohs” and “aahs” begin.
“Look at the color on those eggplants,” she says, grabbing for a fresh bean and eating it raw. The bag is full: yellow beans, tomatoes, Swiss chard, kale, potatoes, blueberries, yellow and green squash. She already has put the gallons of fresh milk and some artisan goat cheese in her refrigerator.
Every Thursday bags full of fresh food are delivered right to her kitchen door by the farmer who grows it because she belongs to one of several area buying clubs.
Similar clubs of people banding together and purchasing from local farmers are springing up all over the state, from Portland to island communities off Mount Desert Island to Calais on the Canadian border. They are thriving in Bath, Augusta, Auburn and Brooksville. Machias alone has three vital, growing buying clubs — two that buy directly from Maine farmers.
“This is down-to-earth marketing, directly between farmers and new consumers,” John Harker of the Maine Department of Agriculture said Monday. Harker recently obtained a $55,000 federal grant to support developing buying clubs in Maine. “Buying clubs are a great way to get quality food at a reasonable price, usually less than the grocery store or farmers market, and in a convenient fashion.”
Rather than sit back and wait for the farmers — who are so busy growing and producing they often don’t have the time for marketing — to come to them, club members bring their orders directly to the farms. The idea is similar to the cooperatives that sprang up in the 1970s, but technology has made it even easier.
Gabrielson runs one club with 40 people on its e-mail list. “Each week about 15 people participate,” she said. “We began this last summer when several of us discovered we were driving out, separately, to Tide Mill Farm in Edmunds. ‘Why are we all doing this?’ we thought.”
Gabrielson volunteered to be the coordinator and each week she e-mails a list of available items — fresh organic produce, milk, cheese, meat and herbs — to each member. But because this is rural Washington County, some members don’t have a telephone — much less Internet service. Those members come to Gabrielson’s home and place their orders.
Gabrielson passes the orders on to Carly del Signore at Tide Mill Farm, whose farm holds a farmers market, sells to co-ops and natural food stores, and supplies four Down East buying clubs.
Kim Roos and her husband, Don, recently began supplying one of the Machias clubs with goat cheese and soap from their 16-goat dairy in Jonesboro.
“I think the clubs are a very good marketing tool,” Roos said. “The farmers markets all end in October and basically dry up when the tourists leave. We are hoping the club members will help carry us through the winter.”
Gabrielson said the prices are not wholesale. “There is not enough volume for the farmers,” she said. But the gas and time savings of not having to travel are significant. Each Thursday de Signore delivers the fresh goods to Gabrielson’s home for members to pick up, each paying a $1 drop-off fee. In exchange for coordinating the club, Gabrielson is paid in fresh food.
“I love supporting Carly and her farm. The food is wonderful,” Gabrielson said. “I also get food credit and am able to provide my family with good, local food.” An at-home mom of two young children, Gabrielson treasures the relationships that have grown from the club. “One woman lives in the senior citizen living complex and walks here every Thursday,” she said. “These kind[s] of connections are invaluable.”
Inez Lombardo lives a short walk from Gabrielson. “I love getting my veggies from Tide Mill. Since I don’t have a car, I really appreciate that Carly brings freshly picked produce or meats and milk into town. Buying clubs are a more efficient way to distribute what is grown or produced locally. Buying locally strengthens our local economy and I like that my dollars are supporting local farmers.”
A buying club can be as simple or as comprehensive as the members want to make it, Jim Cook of Crown O’Maine Organic Cooperative said. Cook serves a number of clubs from Aroostook County to Portland.
Usually a few friends, neighbors, co-workers or school-mates get together to buy and split up a few cases of food in a member’s kitchen or garage, he said.
Harker said the cooperatives of the 1970s disappeared because everyone shared in the administration, and when the co-ops grew quickly and expanded into cooperative stores, people often balked at the extra work. Buying clubs cut down on administrative duties and usually have just one or two organizers, making them much more manageable, he said.
“With the grant we just received, we have three goals,” Harker said, “to build farmer awareness, start new clubs through education, and increase online ordering systems.”
Elizabeth Sprague, small-business coordinator for Washington County’s Down East Business Alliance, said that from an economic point of view “buying clubs work really well for producers, stabilizing their markets somewhat. Clubs are a win-win for both consumers and farmers.”
John Harker will hold a workshop on buying clubs at the January 2009 Maine Agricultural Trades Show, and there will be a regional meeting in November in Fairfield, with the Western Mountains Alliance as host. For more information contact Tanya Swain at 778-3885.
09/02/08
Buying clubs ‘win-win’for farmers, consumers
By Sharon Kiley Mack
BDN Staff
http://www.bangordailynews.com/detail/50039.html
[ PHOTOS ] BANGOR DAILY NEWS PHOTO BY SHARON KILEY MACKSarah Gabrielson of Machias, holding her infant Ezra, unpacks her order from Tide Mill Farms of Edmunds. Gabrielson is the coordinator of one of three buying clubs in Machias, a system that provides fresh from the farm produce, dairy and meat products. Buying clubs are particularly popular in rural areas where there are great distances between farms or a farmers' market is lacking. They are providing consistent income for farmers and consumers are setting them up from Portland to Machias.
MACHIAS, Maine — Sarah Gabrielson unpacks the brown paper bag and the “oohs” and “aahs” begin.
“Look at the color on those eggplants,” she says, grabbing for a fresh bean and eating it raw. The bag is full: yellow beans, tomatoes, Swiss chard, kale, potatoes, blueberries, yellow and green squash. She already has put the gallons of fresh milk and some artisan goat cheese in her refrigerator.
Every Thursday bags full of fresh food are delivered right to her kitchen door by the farmer who grows it because she belongs to one of several area buying clubs.
Similar clubs of people banding together and purchasing from local farmers are springing up all over the state, from Portland to island communities off Mount Desert Island to Calais on the Canadian border. They are thriving in Bath, Augusta, Auburn and Brooksville. Machias alone has three vital, growing buying clubs — two that buy directly from Maine farmers.
“This is down-to-earth marketing, directly between farmers and new consumers,” John Harker of the Maine Department of Agriculture said Monday. Harker recently obtained a $55,000 federal grant to support developing buying clubs in Maine. “Buying clubs are a great way to get quality food at a reasonable price, usually less than the grocery store or farmers market, and in a convenient fashion.”
Rather than sit back and wait for the farmers — who are so busy growing and producing they often don’t have the time for marketing — to come to them, club members bring their orders directly to the farms. The idea is similar to the cooperatives that sprang up in the 1970s, but technology has made it even easier.
Gabrielson runs one club with 40 people on its e-mail list. “Each week about 15 people participate,” she said. “We began this last summer when several of us discovered we were driving out, separately, to Tide Mill Farm in Edmunds. ‘Why are we all doing this?’ we thought.”
Gabrielson volunteered to be the coordinator and each week she e-mails a list of available items — fresh organic produce, milk, cheese, meat and herbs — to each member. But because this is rural Washington County, some members don’t have a telephone — much less Internet service. Those members come to Gabrielson’s home and place their orders.
Gabrielson passes the orders on to Carly del Signore at Tide Mill Farm, whose farm holds a farmers market, sells to co-ops and natural food stores, and supplies four Down East buying clubs.
Kim Roos and her husband, Don, recently began supplying one of the Machias clubs with goat cheese and soap from their 16-goat dairy in Jonesboro.
“I think the clubs are a very good marketing tool,” Roos said. “The farmers markets all end in October and basically dry up when the tourists leave. We are hoping the club members will help carry us through the winter.”
Gabrielson said the prices are not wholesale. “There is not enough volume for the farmers,” she said. But the gas and time savings of not having to travel are significant. Each Thursday de Signore delivers the fresh goods to Gabrielson’s home for members to pick up, each paying a $1 drop-off fee. In exchange for coordinating the club, Gabrielson is paid in fresh food.
“I love supporting Carly and her farm. The food is wonderful,” Gabrielson said. “I also get food credit and am able to provide my family with good, local food.” An at-home mom of two young children, Gabrielson treasures the relationships that have grown from the club. “One woman lives in the senior citizen living complex and walks here every Thursday,” she said. “These kind[s] of connections are invaluable.”
Inez Lombardo lives a short walk from Gabrielson. “I love getting my veggies from Tide Mill. Since I don’t have a car, I really appreciate that Carly brings freshly picked produce or meats and milk into town. Buying clubs are a more efficient way to distribute what is grown or produced locally. Buying locally strengthens our local economy and I like that my dollars are supporting local farmers.”
A buying club can be as simple or as comprehensive as the members want to make it, Jim Cook of Crown O’Maine Organic Cooperative said. Cook serves a number of clubs from Aroostook County to Portland.
Usually a few friends, neighbors, co-workers or school-mates get together to buy and split up a few cases of food in a member’s kitchen or garage, he said.
Harker said the cooperatives of the 1970s disappeared because everyone shared in the administration, and when the co-ops grew quickly and expanded into cooperative stores, people often balked at the extra work. Buying clubs cut down on administrative duties and usually have just one or two organizers, making them much more manageable, he said.
“With the grant we just received, we have three goals,” Harker said, “to build farmer awareness, start new clubs through education, and increase online ordering systems.”
Elizabeth Sprague, small-business coordinator for Washington County’s Down East Business Alliance, said that from an economic point of view “buying clubs work really well for producers, stabilizing their markets somewhat. Clubs are a win-win for both consumers and farmers.”
John Harker will hold a workshop on buying clubs at the January 2009 Maine Agricultural Trades Show, and there will be a regional meeting in November in Fairfield, with the Western Mountains Alliance as host. For more information contact Tanya Swain at 778-3885.
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Put brains and skills to work to solve real problems
Bangor Daily NEWS
11/24/08
Guest Column
Put brains and skills to work to solve real problems
By Jane Livingston
http://www.bangornews.com/detail/93866.html
Special to the NEWS
On the radio recently I heard an economist refer to Sept. 23 as the day speculative investment capitalism died.
Hooray!
Of course, I'm not really happy. How can I be when this (inevitable, according to Karl Marx 150 years ago) surrealistic tragicomedy is causing so much suffering, often among people who did nothing to deserve it?
But now, with survival less an abstract concept than it used to be, maybe we can start asking questions that matter such as “Why aren't we taking better care of our youngest and oldest loved ones?” Or, “Why do the twin killers of obesity and hunger co-exist in a globalized economy?” Or, “Why do corporations get to decide who has access to our globally shared water cycle, our airwaves, fossil fuel reserves, and atmosphere?” Or even “Why can't we support our family farms better?”
Maybe now we can apply our brains and skills to find solutions to the real problems in our world. Clue: lack of credit for speculative investment that exploits workers and natural resources around the world is not one of them.
In the future, let's hope good economic indicators include rising wages and honest-to-goodness benefits for folks who get up every day and go to work so their families can be safe and well.
And let's hope that these jobs are richly rewarding in more than money, because where and how you spend most of your waking hours should feed, not bleed your spirit and energy. The surest way to create such workplaces is to have the workers own them.
Worker cooperatives have much better statistics when it comes to things like longtime employment (cutting training costs), loyalty to the company (they own it!), and fewer sick days. Co-ops crank out more self-starters and more creative problem-solvers, who share a commitment to cooperative values such as fairness, honesty, self-education and social responsibility.
A new, informal group has formed, called Cooperative Maine. A statewide membership holds monthly conference calls, maintains a Web site (http://www.cooperativemaine.org/), and seeks to support and expand the state's cooperative economy: its worker-, consumer-, producer- and other group-owned businesses.
In its first year, Co-op ME met with the state housing authority, published a directory of co-ops in Maine, and staffed exhibit booths at the Agricultural Trades Show in Augusta, the HOPE Festival in Orono, and Common Ground Fair in Unity.
Early in 2009, the group will co-host the [15th] annual Changing Maine conference for current and prospective organizers. The focus of the conference will be on what co-ops are and their advantages and challenges, as well as nuts and bolts information on how to start, expand, diversify, convert, relocate or otherwise develop a cooperative.
Whether it's a housing co-op, a neighborhood buying club for food or building materials, a community-owned department store, an artists' gallery, a group of weavers, or farmers, or fisherfolk, a worker-owned auto repair shop or restaurant, the cooperative business model has wide application in Maine as the economic picture shifts.
The brilliant economist and futurist Hazel Henderson used to remind her listeners that there's more than one way to look at an aging concrete sidewalk breaking up. One person says, “Oh, no!
The sidewalk is disintegrating!” Another says, “Look! See those new green blades of grass growing up through the cracks? That's new life emerging.”
Here's to new life taking root — cooperatively and courageously — as the old, unsustainable way crumbles.
Jane Livingston of Veazie has been active in the cooperative development community for 14 years, creating and editing several newsletters for Northeast regional, national and international co-op organizations. She has served on the board of trustees of the Cooperative Fund of New England and was one of the original conveners of Cooperative Maine.
11/24/08
Guest Column
Put brains and skills to work to solve real problems
By Jane Livingston
http://www.bangornews.com/detail/93866.html
Special to the NEWS
On the radio recently I heard an economist refer to Sept. 23 as the day speculative investment capitalism died.
Hooray!
Of course, I'm not really happy. How can I be when this (inevitable, according to Karl Marx 150 years ago) surrealistic tragicomedy is causing so much suffering, often among people who did nothing to deserve it?
But now, with survival less an abstract concept than it used to be, maybe we can start asking questions that matter such as “Why aren't we taking better care of our youngest and oldest loved ones?” Or, “Why do the twin killers of obesity and hunger co-exist in a globalized economy?” Or, “Why do corporations get to decide who has access to our globally shared water cycle, our airwaves, fossil fuel reserves, and atmosphere?” Or even “Why can't we support our family farms better?”
Maybe now we can apply our brains and skills to find solutions to the real problems in our world. Clue: lack of credit for speculative investment that exploits workers and natural resources around the world is not one of them.
In the future, let's hope good economic indicators include rising wages and honest-to-goodness benefits for folks who get up every day and go to work so their families can be safe and well.
And let's hope that these jobs are richly rewarding in more than money, because where and how you spend most of your waking hours should feed, not bleed your spirit and energy. The surest way to create such workplaces is to have the workers own them.
Worker cooperatives have much better statistics when it comes to things like longtime employment (cutting training costs), loyalty to the company (they own it!), and fewer sick days. Co-ops crank out more self-starters and more creative problem-solvers, who share a commitment to cooperative values such as fairness, honesty, self-education and social responsibility.
A new, informal group has formed, called Cooperative Maine. A statewide membership holds monthly conference calls, maintains a Web site (http://www.cooperativemaine.org/), and seeks to support and expand the state's cooperative economy: its worker-, consumer-, producer- and other group-owned businesses.
In its first year, Co-op ME met with the state housing authority, published a directory of co-ops in Maine, and staffed exhibit booths at the Agricultural Trades Show in Augusta, the HOPE Festival in Orono, and Common Ground Fair in Unity.
Early in 2009, the group will co-host the [15th] annual Changing Maine conference for current and prospective organizers. The focus of the conference will be on what co-ops are and their advantages and challenges, as well as nuts and bolts information on how to start, expand, diversify, convert, relocate or otherwise develop a cooperative.
Whether it's a housing co-op, a neighborhood buying club for food or building materials, a community-owned department store, an artists' gallery, a group of weavers, or farmers, or fisherfolk, a worker-owned auto repair shop or restaurant, the cooperative business model has wide application in Maine as the economic picture shifts.
The brilliant economist and futurist Hazel Henderson used to remind her listeners that there's more than one way to look at an aging concrete sidewalk breaking up. One person says, “Oh, no!
The sidewalk is disintegrating!” Another says, “Look! See those new green blades of grass growing up through the cracks? That's new life emerging.”
Here's to new life taking root — cooperatively and courageously — as the old, unsustainable way crumbles.
Jane Livingston of Veazie has been active in the cooperative development community for 14 years, creating and editing several newsletters for Northeast regional, national and international co-op organizations. She has served on the board of trustees of the Cooperative Fund of New England and was one of the original conveners of Cooperative Maine.
Thursday, April 10, 2008
NEXT MEETING: Cooperative Maine
Next Meeting
June 19 @ 9am (just 1 hour)
via conference call
(contact us for call-in number & PIN)
Some agenda items for that meeting include:
Future goals and budget to support them
Common Ground Fair
Brochure for Cooperative Maine
Maine State Housing followup
Directory followup
Report on public events re: cooperatives in several locations
JOIN US!
Monday, June 25, 2007
Seasonal Supper benefit for Portland Food Co-op
If you are going to be near Portland, July 8, then come join us for our 2nd Seasonal Supper to benefit the Portland Food Co-op.
Williston West Church, 32 Thomas Street, Portland (West End near Western Promenade)
5:30-9:००प्म्
silent auction * kid's activities * door prizes
suggested donation $8
www.myspace.com/portlandfoodcoop
FLYER [PDF]: www.can-so.org/foodcoop/seasonalsupper
Sunday, May 6, 2007
May 11 in Belfast: Sharon Earhart, co-founder of The Merc
Friday, May 11 at 5:00
Hutchinson Center Auditorium in Belfast
Come and meet Sharon Earhart, Director of the Powell Valley Chamber of Commerce and co-founder of the Powell Mercantile ("The Merc") in Powell, Wyoming. This community-owned department store has been running successfully for over 5 years and served as a model for several other communities in the West. Now, the idea of community-owned stores is catching on in the Northeast in the communities of Saranac, NY and Greenfield, MA. And a town near you?
Light snacks will be served directly following in the Atrium.
Sponsored by CORR : Citizens Organizing for Responsible Retail, a coalition promoting solutions for community-centered economic development.
For more information email threedogssmile@gmail.com or call Lynn Doubleday @ 338-4792
-------------------
CBS News story about The Merc at: http://linkfrog.net/themerc
Hutchinson Center Auditorium in Belfast
Come and meet Sharon Earhart, Director of the Powell Valley Chamber of Commerce and co-founder of the Powell Mercantile ("The Merc") in Powell, Wyoming. This community-owned department store has been running successfully for over 5 years and served as a model for several other communities in the West. Now, the idea of community-owned stores is catching on in the Northeast in the communities of Saranac, NY and Greenfield, MA. And a town near you?
Light snacks will be served directly following in the Atrium.
Sponsored by CORR : Citizens Organizing for Responsible Retail, a coalition promoting solutions for community-centered economic development.
For more information email threedogssmile@gmail.com or call Lynn Doubleday @ 338-4792
-------------------
CBS News story about The Merc at: http://linkfrog.net/themerc
Using Plant Closing Laws to start Community-Run Businesses
In a recent article in the Alliance for Democracy newsletter, Elizabeth Sholes suggests that if a town has the will to do so, plant closing laws can actually be used to benefit the community. (Any examples?)
Is there a suitable situation in Maine? How would you find out about plant closings, other than searching the newspapers?
The full article is at:
http://www.thealliancefordemocracy.org/pdf/AfDJR2402.pdf
Is there a suitable situation in Maine? How would you find out about plant closings, other than searching the newspapers?
Plant closing laws can help institute local control. Created to offset forced closings of liquor producers during Prohibition, federal tax laws permit accelerated depreciation of closed businesses to give the parent company huge sums back from past taxes. Declaring their abandoned business virtually worthless, companies get millions in cash from the government. That windfall has been the ‘cash cow’ of corporate business since the shutdown of Youngstown Sheet & Tube in Ohio in the 1970s. Bethlehem Steel was handed nearly $1 billion from the government when they closed their Lackawanna, NY plant in 1983.
Many shut-down businesses abandon workers and communities without fulfilling existing obligations they assumed when accepting state and local tax breaks and incentives. In lieu of repayment, state and local governments could acquire the business–but at this vastly depreciated price set by the corporation. Faith and community organizations could then work with state and local governments to re-sell these businesses at low prices to the abandoned employees or the community, which can operate the business once again.
The full article is at:
http://www.thealliancefordemocracy.org/pdf/AfDJR2402.pdf
Monday, April 2, 2007
Welcome to the BLOG of Cooperative Maine! The way life should be!
Welcome to the BLOG of Cooperative Maine!
The way life should be!
Cooperative Maine is working to promote cooperative development throughout the state of Maine. Please visit our website which will serve as a virtual office & resource center for the development of cooperatives in Maine. Thank you!
Cooperative Maine
http://www.cooperativemaine.org
The way life should be!
Cooperative Maine is working to promote cooperative development throughout the state of Maine. Please visit our website which will serve as a virtual office & resource center for the development of cooperatives in Maine. Thank you!
Cooperative Maine
http://www.cooperativemaine.org
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