Food co-op publications
We have produced publications to help food co-ops to start up.
To find out more click on the links below:
- Our main and most popular publication is the Food Co-ops Toolkit
- The online and navigable version of the Food Co-ops Toolkit is at: www.sustainweb.org/foodcoopstoolkit
Click on the publications listed below to find out more information and download your copy.
You may also be interested in the following
A Healthy Profit - a simple guide to pricing the food you make or grow
07/06/2012
This report aims to help community food organisations price their produce, to cover their costs and make enough healthy profit to fund other social and environmental activities. It explains why this is important both for them individually and for the alternative food system as a whole.
Growing Communities: manual of monitoring and evaluation
22/05/2012
This report details the way in which the pioneering social enterprise, Growing Communities, monitors and evaluates its work. As well as explaining the criteria they use, it also explores why they think this is an important way of helping the community food sector improve their enterprises, whilst also providing evidence of their social and environmental benefits.
The story of Moss Brook Growers - how to set up a horticultural enterprise from scratch
15/05/2012
This manual gives a step by step guide to how Moss Brook Growers set up a mixed horticultural social enterprise from scratch. It will be invaluable reading to any group or individual looking to grow and sell fruit and vegetables.
Growing Manchester(s) Veg People - a guide to setting up a growers' and buyers' co-operative
15/05/2012
This practical guide details the creation and development of an innovative growers' and buyers' co-operative aiming to increase the availability of organic, low-carbon food for Manchester, provided in a way that is fair for growers and buyers. It includes template documents to enable others to replicate the co-operative for themselves.
Food Supply and Distribution - evaluation of this strand of the Making Local Food Work programme
27/03/2012
Independent evaluation of the Food Supply and Distribution strand of the Making Local Food Work programme, conducted by Dr Stuart Jones of the Programme for Community Regeneration at the University of Glamorgan
Information Technology and small-scale food organisations: Is IT a nightmare?
08/03/2012
This paper aims to share the experience that Sustain has had in working with community-run enterprises that trade in local and sustainable food, to develop Information Technology (IT) systems to support their work.
Local Food Links: The first 10 years
15/06/2011
A review of the development of Local Food Links by Tim Crabtree, its former director and one of the founders of the Bridport Centre for Local Food. The report charts the development of a social enterprise from the trading arm of a charity to an independent organisation focused on providing nutritious school meals made with local food.
How to set up a food co-op or buying group in a school
01/01/2011
This simple "how to" factsheet advises schools on how to make fresh, local, ethically produced food more accessible to the local community, whilst supporting local farmers by providing them with a local, regular and reliable outlet. A school food co-op can also support other programmes such as Healthy Schools, Eco Schools and Food For Life.
How to set up a food co-op or buying group in a university or college
01/01/2011
This simple "how to" factsheet advises universities, colleges and student groups on how to make fresh, local, ethically produced food more accessible to the local community, whilst supporting local farmers by providing them with a local, regular and reliable outlet.
How to set up a food co-op or buying group at work
01/01/2011
This simple "how to" factsheet advises people in workplaces on how to make fresh, local, ethically produced food more accessible to themselves and their colleagues, whilst supporting local farmers by providing them with a local, regular and reliable outlet.
Grow a Grocery: A guide to starting and growing a wholefood co-operative
08/08/2010
This guide is designed to help bring more wholefood co-operatives into the world by spreading the business model tried and tested by Unicorn Grocery Worker Co-operative in Manchester since 1996. Unicorn Grocery was established to provide an alternative to the supermarket norm. They have achieved this goal on their own premises, but say they have not fulfilled their purpose until people stop driving across the country to shop with them. The business model is just one of many alternatives, but they would love to see more places like Unicorn in a better food system.
Building a Sustainable Food Hub - three reports on research into community food enterprises
01/11/2009
These three combined reports share the learning from pioneering projects taking part in the Food Supply and Distribution strand of the Making Local Food Work programme. It explores different elements that can form part of buidling a sustainable food hub and looks at some of the challenges and issues that they face. In particular, it looks at issues around supplying food access projects, distributing surplus from allotments; and adding value through catering services.
An investigation into the workings of small-scale food hubs
01/11/2009
One of the key challenges facing local food is the issue of economically viable and sustainable distribution. This report analyses 11 small-scale community-run food hubs, examining what they share in common, how they differ, and how the organisers have sought to overcome the challenges they face
