HIGH PLAINS FOOD COOPERATIVE: A HEALTHY ALTERNATIVE TO MASS MARKET GROCERY STORES

People are realizing the benefit of eating more natural foods. They want fruits and vegetables which are grown in a sustainable manner and meat which has been raised humanely. They would prefer food grown within a reasonable distance of where they live and would like to feel as if they know the farmer who produced it.

Farmers who grow their gardens and orchards sustainably and ranchers who raise their meat humanely have products to sell but no way to easily market their products at a price which reflects the cost of production or the high quality of their goods.

There is a solution to this dilemma. HIGH PLAINS FOOD COOPERATIVE

High Plains Food was started by a group of people from Kansas, Nebraska and Colorado looking for the answer to getting consumers along the Front Range and producers of the High Plains area together. Still in the formative stages, it is based on a very successful model: Oklahoma Food Coop. (see www.oklahomafood.coop)

Cooperatives are businesses that exist in order to serve both the needs of producers and consumers. They are financed, owned, controlled and managed by the members who use the services. High Plains Food Cooperative will provide a direct link between producers and consumers via a web based ordering process. Consumers will be able to order directly from the producer for delivery to a main distribution site in a centralized area where products will be picked up on specific dates. Every producer will have a web page which tells the manner in which the items available for sale have been produced. If you have questions about a specific product, you will be able to contact that producer directly-something you would have no way of doing with food purchased at a standard grocery store.

Any farmer, rancher or niche market entrepreneurs, and consumers may join the cooperative and be buyers, sellers or both. We will be offering a wide variety of food and niche non-food items through the cooperative. The food will be high in quality, freshly and minimally processed, free of growth hormones, antibiotics, genetically modified organisms, herbicides and pesticides unless specifically indicated to the contrary. While many products will be offered regularly, others may be offered by availability and seasonality.

The cooperative will primarily use a web-based ordering system and deliver food using various shipping methods. Delivery to your home can be arranged with individual dedicated delivery vehicles for an additional fee.

Since we are still in the formative stages, specific fees have not yet been determined. A one-time membership fee will be required. An additional small percentage fee will be added to all orders to cover operating costs, shipping and handling charges for each order. The goal of the cooperative is to provide a sustainable food marketing and distribution service for consumers and producers; thus it strives to break even on its operating costs.

We are currently looking for additional qualified producers. Sign up for consumers is scheduled for early spring of 2008.

Please visit our website: www.highplainsfood.org and fill out our survey. We will then add you to our mailing list and keep you informed about the grand opening date.