Organic Valley - Dairy Farmer Cooperative
Double
J Jerseys Dairy Farm - Monmouth, Ore
If you buy
Organic Valley milk, rest assured that you are getting local, organic
milk. Even thought the Organic Valley cooperative is headquartered in Wisconsin, its owner-members are more than 1,300 family farms located throughout the country. The co-op handles all the marketing, distribution, product development, and sales on behalf of its members, allowing them to concentrate on what they do best, farming.
Double
J Jerseys, based in Monmouth, Oregon, is part of the Organic
Valley Family of Farms.
Jon
and Juli Bansen are the owners and say
that being part of the co-op has released them from the
cut-throat factory farming business and allowed them to
focus on their organic and sustainable dairy craft.
Organic Valley members and executives determine the price
of their milk independent from the larger dairy industry
market, allowing the Bansens and all the other dairy farmers
in the co-op to enjoy a more predictable income.
Being free from the uncertainty of market fluctuations
means that small-scale farmers can earn a livable wage,
sustaining their lives, as well as the environment!
Here
is a gallery
of images
with lots of happy cows I met while visiting the farm
in April.
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People's Food Co-op
Portland, Ore
Whenever people pool their money together to buy a good or service, that's a co-op in its simplest form. Cooperatives have been around at least a few hundred years and were popular in the US before the 1940's. Consumer-owned cooperatives are owned and democratically controlled by the people who use their services; they exist solely to serve their members.
Food cooperatives are a good example of consumer-owned co-ops. They are usually formed to help members save money and/or have more control over their food. Unlike a supermarket, a food co-op is not motivated by profit, so its board of directors may concentrate on providing for its members higher quality and/or organic foods at still reasonable prices for its members. But don't worry, you don't usually have to be a member to shop at food co-ops. This means you can reap the benefits of lower prices and having someone else read the labels for you and!
People's Food Co-op in Portland, Oregon is a consumer-owned cooperative that has served its members for over 37 years. It's the center of a vibrant and passionate community of people who care about sustainability. Check out this gallery of images I took during a recent visit. While there, I enjoyed a lecture by Andrew McLeod on how to start your own co-op. My blog provides links to more information on co-ops including a link to Andrew McLeod.
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Citybikes Worker-Owned Cooperative
Portland, Ore
Citybikes in Portland, Oregon is a worker-owned cooperative that has been in business for over 20 years. Worker-owned cooperatives, as the name suggests, are owned by the people who work at the business. They typically have a non-hierarchical personnel structure, with each worker having an equal vote in all business decisions.
At Citybikes there is a
cap on the workers' salaries and all the profits are reinvested into the business (bike repair, sales of refurbished bikes, and new and used bike parts). So, like the food cooperatives,
the emphasis is on service rather than profits. You won't find any pushy sales people trying to sell you the latest bike model or expensive gadget. In fact, they pride themselves on helping you - even teaching you - to fix your existing bike. Repairing and reusing workable products makes good economic sense for the consumer, reduces waste in the landfills, and saves energy and resources.
My Citybikes gallery includes before and after photographs of a recent remodeling of the main store. The black and white photographs are before remodeling, while the color ones show the newly remodeled store as well as its Annex. Now let's go for a ride!
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Jon Bansen, third generation dairy farmer
The Bansens have 400 acres of pastures for their cows
Udderly fantastic!
People's Food Co-op
Jars of herbs and spices at People's
The beautiful produce at People's
Buggy tunes a bike
 Citybikes is worker owned
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