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