Grass Valley, CA– October is National Co-op Month and Fair Trade Month and BriarPatch Food Co-op is celebrating by collaborating with co-ops locally and across the nation.
Last week, BriarPatch teamed up with Davis Food Co-op to volunteer at Yolo Food Bank in Woodland. Yolo County is the most impoverished county in California. Each month, Yolo Food Bank delivers food to 8,700 households throughout Davis, Winters and West Sacramento.
Employees from the two food cooperatives packed 126 bags of shelf staple food for the Eat Well Yolo program. Eat Well Yolo provides weekly supplemental groceries of fresh produce, dairy, meat and non-perishable goods.
“All cooperatives operate under the Seven Cooperative Principles. Principle Seven is Concern for Community. By serving our communities through action, we hope to inspire others to do the same,” said Rebecca Torpie, BriarPatch Director of Marketing.
Later this month, BriarPatch and friends will help clean up portions of South Yuba River State Park at Bridgeport in support of South Yuba River Citizen League’s annual River Cleanup.
For the second year, BriarPatch has published another Co-op Recipe Guide featuring recipes from 13 Co-ops in different regions across the nation.
Celebrated by cooperatives nationwide during the month of October, National Co-op Month was designated to raise awareness of the cooperative model – a trusted, proven way to do business and build resilient, inclusive communities.
Fair Trade Month raises awareness about the importance of the fair trade movement to the global economy and promotes buying from businesses that are committed to fair trade for the health of people and the planet. BriarPatch carries a number of Fair Trade brands including Equal Exchange.
This month, Equal Exchange will donate 50 cents for every chocolate bar and hot cocoa mix sold to Bright Futures for Youth and BriarPatch will match the donation. Bright Futures for Youth is a nonprofit that provides numerous services to help meet the needs of children, teens and young adults in Nevada County. Later this month, representatives from Equal Exchange will visit Bright Futures for Youth and provide a lesson on Fair Trade for high school students.
Since 1976, BriarPatch has promoted a sustainable local economy by supporting farmers, businesses and organizations that are committed to a healthy, equitable world. BriarPatch has plans to open a second store in Auburn in the old Kmart building on Bell Road, during the winter of 2023.
Find the Co-op Recipe Guide, here: https://briarpatch.coop/co-op-recipes/
Learn more about BriarPatch Food Co-op, here: https://briarpatch.coop/
Get updates about the second store coming to Auburn at: https://briarpatch.coop/about-us/growing-to-auburn/