Download - What are Co-operatives?
What are Co-operatives? A co-operative is a form of business
enterprise different from private & public enterprises
Co-operatives are a separate legal structure• Registry of Co-operatives (NSW)• Department of Fair Trading (NSW)• Federation of Co-operatives (Victoria)
What are Co-operatives?
Co-operatives are• owned & controlled by their member
different because they are democratic, participatory, open, voluntary & community based
• reflect and reinforce co-operative values & principles
Many different types of co-operatives exist
Types of Co-operatives Agricultural - fishing, forestry, producer, supply . &
marketing co-operatives Community service - aged care & child care .
co-operatives Consumer co-operatives – provide consumer goods .
for sale to members (& non-members) Credit - financial service co-operatives Education - school, student & supply
. co-operatives Housing - community settlement & housing
. co-operatives
Types of Co-operatives
Media - newspaper, radio station, telecommunications, television station, video production & publishing co-operatives
Recreational - game park & urban camp cooperatives
Store - bookshops, food, hardware, clothing & other merchandise co- operatives
Transport - bus, courier & taxi co-operatives Utility co-operatives - energy, telephone &
water service co-operatives
Definition
“A co-operative is an autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social & cultural needs & aspirations through a jointly-owned & democratically controlled enterprise”
(Victorian Federation of Co-operatives, 2006)
Definition
Characterised by participative ownership & control, democratic structure & use of capital for mutual benefit
Their unique structure is based on explicit values & principles in the International Co-operative Alliance's Statement.
Co-operatives Investor-owned companies
Purpose Service driven Capital driven
Ownership The member users Investor shareholders
Control Majority of members. Members elect board on basis of one vote per member
Majority of shares. Investor shareholders control the company based number of shares they own
Use Users of co-operatives are its members
Users are not usually the majority of shareholders
Shareholding
Shareholding & non-shareholding. Limited number & interest
Shareholding limited number and interest
Values
Based on values of self-help, self responsibility, democracy, equality, equity & solidarity
Co-operative members believe in the ethical values of honesty, openness, social responsibility & caring for others
Principles
The co-operative principles are guidelines by which cooperatives put their values into practice.
Seven principles defined in the International Co-operative Alliance's Statement on the Co-operative Identity (1995)
Seven Co-operative Principles
1) Voluntary & open membership 2) Democratic member control 3) Member economic participation 4) Autonomy & independence 5) Education, training & information 6) Cooperation among co-operatives 7) Concern for community
Co-operatives as a Means of Organising
A process not just an outcome Pooling energy & resources to effect change
for a common benefit Cooperation provides strength by bringing
people together mutual aims & interests Mutual collective not individualist benefit Co-ops as a political form of organising Decentralised, participatory democracy not
centralised hierarchy Autonomy, responsibility & freedom
Community, Social Capital & the Change Agent
A co-operative is about & is its members Formed for serving needs of members &
the community not just the investment of capital
Food co-operatives are not for profit Social capital, capacity building & the
third economy Bill Moyer & the four roles of activism
• Food co-ops & the role of the change agent
What are Food Co-ops?
Food co-ops consist of a group of people (members) cooperating to take back control of their food
Take into consideration how & where it is produced & under what conditions
Provide accessible, affordable environmentally, socially & ethically responsible food & household products
An alternative to stupormarkets
How do Food Co-ops work?
Food co-ops stock a range of products bought according to their buying principles & factors
Open to community, staff, students & members
Bulk, minimally packaged products Avoid, reduce, reuse, recycle BYO containers & DIY Engaging people with their food
How do Food Co-ops work?
Membership, shares & discounts
Mostly volunteer run, members who volunteer get greater discounts than non-working members
Coordinators, roles, Management Committee & decision making
Differences between campus based & community based food co-ops
Buying Principles & Factors Organic Biodynamic Chemical free GE free Irradiation free Fairtrade Vegan/vegetarian Cruelty free Wholefoods or
healthiness
Food miles / Localness Minimally packaged &
bulk Ethics Availability Price Social/community
component Supplier type Producer type
Juggling a Balancing Act
Buying principles & the problem of internal contradictions & tensions• It isn’t always possible to tick all the boxes• Which principles & factors are more
important & why?• How is the decision made?
Examples • Organic vs Food miles• Organic vs Insecticide free vs price
Australian Food Co-ops
Northern Territory• POD (Darwin)
Queensland• Griffith Uni Food Co-op (Brisbane)• Community Foods (Cairns)
South Australia• Flinders Uni Food Co-op (Adelaide)• Goodwood Goodfood Co-op (Adelaide)• Clarence Park Community Food Co-op
(Adelaide)
Australian Food Co-ops
Victoria• Wholefoods (Monash Uni Food Co-op,
Melbourne)• Melbourne Uni Food Co-op (Melbourne)• La Trobe Food Co-op (Melbourne)• RMIT Food Co-op (Melbourne)• Friends of the Earth Food Co-op (Melbourne)• St Kilda Organic Food Co-op (Phillip Bay)
Tasmania• Hobart Organic Food Co-op
NSW & ACT Food Co-ops University/Campus based
Community based
Broadway Food Co-op (UTS) Manly Food Co-op Sydney Uni Food Co-op Alfalfa House (Newtown) Thoughtful Foods (UNSW) Katoomba Food Co-op ANU Food Co-op* ANU Food Co-op* Sustenance (Newcastle Uni) Green Tucker Store
(Forestville) Happy Bellies (University of Wollongong)
Angophora Food Co-op (Blue Mountains)
Seasons Food Co-op (Uni of . Western Sydney Hawkesbury)
Beanstalk Organic Food Co-op . (Newcastle)
Armidale Food Co-op (University of New England )
Project Aims Construct a profile of NSW & ACT food co-
ops• What, where, how & why, structure &
decision making process, member involvement, SWOT analysis
• Register of existing co-ops & ordering people• Identify existing buying policies, principles &
factors Identify buying principles & factors
• Analyse values, reasoning, beliefs & politics on which they are based
Create a stock database with all variables
Project Aims Compare & contrast buying principles &
factors • Identify variations• Analyse how & why buying principals & factors
. & their relative importance varies
• Compare & contrast between food co-ops Develop a hierarchy of buying principles
• Compare & contrast within & between food . . co-ops
• Analyse the extent of variation - how & why . this exists
Project Aims
Identify internal tensions & contradictions Analyse how tensions are reconciled Develop a Decision Tree Analyse member knowledge, input into &
understanding of buying principles Incorporate findings into a decision
making tool? Report back on findings Action research approach
Research Outcomes
Profile of food co-ops in NSW & ACT
Buying principles & factors paper
Stock database
Hierarchy of buying principles for each food co-op & an overall hierarchy table
Decision Tree
Analysis of results
? Decision making tool