On March 18, 2014 from 6–8 p.m., Seward Co-op convened a community meeting to discuss the new Friendship Store. The meeting, held at Sabathani Community Center, was designed and facilitated by Yvonne Cheek of Millennium Consulting Group. The community had the opportunity to submit questions to Seward Co-op covering a range of topics. Seward Co-op management and staff collected these questions. They have provided their answers below.

Q: In the Bryant-Central neighborhood and the broader Powderhorn community there is a growing awareness among young people regarding the importance of healthy eating. This awareness is supported by the proliferation of urban agriculture projects and community gardens that are led by youth groups across the community.

One of those groups is the WE WIN institute, our April 2014 SEED grant recipient. We are committed to work with groups like WE WIN in order to enhance access to healthful food and increase the presence of urban agriculture in the community.

Over the past three years, Seward Co-op has contributed to a number of youth-oriented agriculture and food education programs. Each of the recipients below received at least $1,000 from Seward Co-op:

• Midwest Food Connection
• Youth Farm and Market
• WE WIN Institute
• Seward Montessori School
• Trans Youth Support Network
• Seward Childcare Center
• AchieveMPLS
• YEA Corps
• Nawayee Center School
• Kaleidoscope Place

Additionally, we realize that parents and caregivers work hard to provide for their families. Our new Nourish initiative, which we will introduce this summer, will help shoppers identify products in the store that can be used in the creation of affordable meals.

Q: In what ways does an expanding co-op market share (both for Seward and metro-wide) help bring prices down?

In the short run, Seward Co-op’s expansion, along with the expansion projects by other Twin Cities co-ops, will not have a significant impact on our prices. In the long run, we hope our growth, and the growth of the cooperative economy, will encourage more affordability in the natural foods world.

Seward Co-op prices products in a manner that allows us to pay farmers and producers a fair price for their product, provide a fair wage and benefits to our employees, and bring value to our owners and shoppers. We work with over 300 vendors and farmers. The majority of these farmers and vendors are small, independent operators. As we continue to grow, our hope is that our farmer and vendor partners will grow with us. We have invested in several of our partners’ projects, which include the installation of solar panels, the construction of hoop houses, and pre-harvest financing for small farmer co-ops.

Seward’s largest supplier is United Natural Foods, Inc. (UNFI). UNFI supplies us with a significant portion of our overall grocery and wellness products. Our contract with UNFI is negotiated by National Cooperative Grocers’ Association, which brings together the purchasing power of more than 100 food co-ops from around the country. Seward Co-op is already one of the largest retail natural foods cooperatives in the United States, and currently pays the lowest cost on products from UNFI available through our contract. Unfortunately, a second location will not improve our pricing from UNFI.

Seward Co-op remains committed to working with small, local, and cooperative farmers and vendors. If you see the P6 logo next to a product on our shelves, you know it came from a farmer or vendor with two of those three characteristics. Our hope is that the Friendship store will provide more market opportunities for new farmers and for vendors in the area of the Friendship store. While an expanding co-op market share is not likely to lower prices, it will instead raise the individual — and commonwealth — of our farmers, vendors, employees and owners.

Q: How many new members do you project the new store will bring?

Since moving to our current location in January of 2009, we have grown from 4,500 to nearly 12,000 owners. This growth includes a surge in new ownerships in the months following our opening. Currently about 15% of our owners reside in the neighborhoods surrounding the Friendship store location. We anticipate many of those owners will shop at the Friendship location. However, it is difficult to accurately estimate how many new owners will join. We encourage everyone to become an owner of Seward Co-op. We offer three options of payment. More information can be found on the ownership page on our website or at the Franklin store Customer Service desk.

Q: Have you considered 10-20 cross-cultural staple items and really bringing those prices down?

We are developing a program called Nourish that will roll out this summer. As part of Nourish we will highlight around 50 of our most affordable staple items throughout the store with signage at the shelf. We will lower our price on many of these items.

Q: Could some features of the new store highlight the area’s rich history and people who contributed to it? – Former Mayor Sayles Belton, Playwright Kim Hines, mainstays of the NAACP would be some examples. So would the history of King Park, the 35W project, Central High School, and Bryant Jr. High.

Yes. We have designed the exterior of the building to include two locations for large murals. We will conduct a community procedure around determining the process for what will be displayed at these locations. There may also be interior wall locations where the area’s history can be highlighted. Once the interior design is complete we will have a better understanding of the potential locations.

Q: Will the Friendship Store have as much bike parking as the Franklin Store?

Not right away. In its first year, we anticipate the number of shoppers at the Friendship store will be fewer than half that of the Franklin store. Over time, we have added a significant number of bike racks at the Franklin store as the number of shoppers has increased. There are currently 66 racks at the Franklin store. We plan to have 30 bike racks at the Friendship store on opening day.

Q: How could you encourage customers to use alternate forms of transportation?

In addition to a large number of bike racks (30 racks, which is 25 more than required by the city), we will also continue our employee and customer biking incentive program. The program reimburses staff who regularly ride to work for bike-related expenses. We will add showers to the employee areas of the store for staff who bike to work, and we will reach out to Nice Ride and Hour Car about offering their services at the Friendship store. The Friendship store will be on a number of existing bus lines. We will assist any effort to improve or add bus shelters along 38th Street.

Q: How often will Sean and other managers be at the Friendship Store?

The Friendship managers and staff will be trained and empowered to operate the Friendship store in line with Seward Co-op values, policies and guidelines. We anticipate that the administrative managers — such as Sean, the General Manager, or Nick, the co-op Operations Manager — will frequently attend meetings and offer significant support during the start-up phase.

Q: Is there any chance the name for the store could reflect the area – like the name “Southside Coop”?

Though Seward Co-op will have two stores when the Friendship store opens, we will remain one organization governed by one board of directors (any owner can run for the board). The look of the Friendship store will be distinct from the Franklin store, but it will carry forward some of the elements that people have come to associate with Seward Co-op, including the name of the organization. We will, however, call the new store the “Friendship” store in acknowledgement of the former church building’s history and our commitment to build strong relationships within the community.

Q: Do you advertise in local community media?

Yes. We run regular ads in the “Minnesota Spokesman Recorder” and we air spots on KMOJ from time to time. We also plan to work with Spanish language media in order to reach out to the Latino community. We will continue to look at advertising options in neighborhood media as we move towards completion of the store.

Q: How can you compete with Sam’s Club or Costco where many local people go to buy food in bulk at low cost?

We cannot compete with them on price. These stores are essentially wholesale warehouses moving huge volumes of product. Economies of scale, along with their business models, reduce their costs and allow them to set low prices. It’s difficult to compare Seward Co-op with these warehouses because we are so different.

At Seward Co-op you’ll find local and natural products at competitive prices (please see other responses in this series for more information about our pricing and affordability strategies). You will also find helpful and knowledgeable staff. Seward Co-op is owned by those who use the business — our shoppers. Profits stay in the community through support for small local vendors, living-wage jobs, and profit sharing. While we may not be able to compete with Sam’s Club or Costco on price, we believe that Seward Co-op provides a different kind of value which enhances the health and economic well-being of our community.

Q: Outreach to Latino community

We continue to work at reaching out to the Latino community. We have translated several of our brochures into Spanish. Spanish language interpreters have been present at all of our meetings.

As a part of our outreach efforts, we plan to partner with Latino media (radio and print) to help us get the word out about the store, our events and meetings. Additionally, we will host Spanish language classes and meetings designed to encourage more interactions with the Latino community. We also work with HIRED, an area provider of job-skills and employment training, in providing job opportunities for individuals in the Latino community.

Q: How do I, a local vendor, get my product on the shelves of the store?

At Seward Co-op we are always interested in products that meet our customers’ needs and align with our values as a trusted retailer of local, organic and natural products. We welcome the opportunity to meet with producers and vendors and discuss potential partnerships.

The Grocery and Produce departments prioritize local products and are usually open to solicitations. The Grocery department looks for unique products that fulfill customers’ needs. Before carrying a product, they review ingredients, costs, and ordering and delivery systems. Additional consideration is given to local providers if their products are familiar (through exposure at farmers markets, for instance) or if the product has been requested by our customers. They may also ask providers if they are available for in-store samplings, so as to give their product increased exposure.

The Produce department is especially concerned with season extension (produce that’s available near the beginning or the end of the typical growing season). Although Produce has contracts and agreements with close to 30 local growers, we are always open to hearing about new products and ways of producing organic and sustainably grown produce. Like Grocery, Produce also likes to work with vendors who are able to come into the store and promote their products. Every year we hold our Know Our Grower Program, wherein several area providers come into the store to offer samples of their products and talk about what they do.

Find more information about becoming a vendor.

Q: Some of us would like to know more about how having the store in this neighborhood could lead to gentrification.

The topic of gentrification is a complex issue. The question of what is appropriate development is certainly an important topic in our neighborhoods. We are not interested in creating a situation wherein property values and rents make the community unaffordable. This issue is bigger than the co-op deciding to build in the Bryant-Central neighborhood. At the root of this issue is the price of real estate and whether it goes up or down. Prices are driven more by interest rates and public policy. Basically, the problem is an economy built on greed. We only need to look at the foreclosure crisis we all recently lived through as an illustration of our individual and collective vulnerability to the economic system.

We believe that cooperatives are a solution, not a contributor, to this problem. Co-ops build community-owned wealth that remains in the community. We believe that more neighborhoods need cooperatives because community ownership assures local control of the business. The profits of the business stay in the community because co-ops pay living-wage jobs, buy products from small, local producers (which keeps the money in our community), and share the profits earned with the owners who shop in the store.

Our mission, or Ends, states that “Seward Co-op will sustain a healthy community that has equitable economic relationships; positive environmental impacts; and inclusive, socially responsible practices.” Our intentions are not gentrification, but rather the improvement of access to healthy foods for current co-op owners and the broader community residing in neighborhoods near the Friendship site. We intend to build a store that is warm and inviting to all. We do not intend to force out any existing businesses or residents. We welcome everyone and look forward to learning more about how we can better serve the community around the Friendship site.

Q: Tell us more about the construction phases and agreements with contractors. Will they be hiring women and people of color?

Yes. We will require the general contractor to follow the hiring strategy in our Construction Workforce Plan. It stipulates a minimum of 32% of workers be minority, and a minimum of 6% of workers be women.

Q: I’d like to have a community agreement plan that addresses jobs.

Seward Co-op’s Scorecard provides a variety of measures that demonstrate our commitment to our mission: “Seward Co-op will sustain a healthy community that has equitable economic relationships; positive environmental impacts; and inclusive, socially responsible practices.” We recently revised the Scorecard to incorporate elements from our Long-term Hiring Strategy that outlines the co-op’s plan to more closely align our staffing practices with our mission.

Q: Co-op grocery prices are not cheap. How will the Friendship Store adjust prices to make fresh good food affordable for this neighborhood?

We strive to offer local and natural products at competitive prices. Because our mission compels us to have equitable economic relationships, we price products in a manner that allows us to pay fair prices to producers, pay fair wages to our employees, and bring value to our shoppers. We price strategically and intentionally in order to ensure the sustainable operation of our co-op. We regularly visit local natural foods retailers and conventional stores to compare prices on hundreds of key items. Our total price for a “market basket” of about 150 staple items is lower than the same total at other stores we audit. This strategy, and similar pricing, will apply at both the Franklin and the Friendship stores.

This summer we will roll out our Nourish initiative, which we hope will help customers shop affordably at the co-op. Nourish will highlight some of our most affordable product options with signs at the shelf. The program will include recipes, sampling, and classes that will help shoppers plan budget-friendly meals and stretch their grocery dollars at the co-op.

Nourish will complement some of the other things we are already doing to help ensure that co-op products are accessible to shoppers of all income levels. Currently we offer co-op ownership purchase options and an everyday discount for shoppers who have financial need (visit our Customer Service desk for more information and applications). Owners receive a 10% discount on one entire shopping trip each quarter. We support WIC (Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children) and SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program). We offer promotional savings on many items throughout the store along with bimonthly coupon books, and we make it easy to comparison shop by posting the price per ounce for most products. We hope that these commitments and programs serve Seward Co-op shoppers well.

Q: Will this building have a second story? If not, can you construct the building so that it will support an additional floor or two for expansion?

Yes. The Friendship store will have a second floor for staff offices, meetings, and breaks, just like our Franklin store.

Q: I would love to see a commercial kitchen where one could buy a large quantity of veggies to can in the late summer/fall so that we can enjoy the bounty over the winter and do it relatively inexpensively.

This is a great idea, and one that we have considered in the past. Unfortunately, a shared commercial kitchen is expensive to construct and maintain. It would require a consistent revenue stream in order to sustain it, which is something we cannot count on. The Friendship store also will have limited space for such a facility, as most of it will be occupied by sales and production spaces.

Q: Once I am educated on how to shop, I can save more.

Please join us for our “Shop the Co-op” class. This class is offered on a regular basis and includes a store tour and tips for shopping on a budget. We have also created the program Nourish that will roll out this summer. This initiative will include classes, product sampling, and recipes focused on affordable meal planning.

Just six weeks into our capital campaign, Seward Co-op owners have invested $788,500 — 31 percent of our $2.5 million goal. With roughly ten weeks left in the offering, we are well on our way to securing the investments needed to build the Friendship Store and renovate the Creamery. In addition to purchasing shares of Class C stock or making a loan to the co-op, Seward Co-op is offering another opportunity to contribute to the success of these projects. Beginning this week we will be selling a t-shirt designed by Minneapolis artist Tammy Ortegon and 100 percent of the proceeds will go towards our capital campaign.

The Friendship store is anticipated to open in the summer of 2015. Recently we closed on the six properties owned by private individuals and the Greater Friendship Missionary Baptist Church. The co-op now owns seven of the eight project properties, and we are in the process of purchasing the final property, which is owned by the city. We continue to work with the architects on design development and have scheduled a groundbreaking event this summer on July 12. This progress is exciting and each day makes the Friendship store more and more tangible.

The redesign and renovation of the Creamery Building is also underway. Currently, we are addressing the accessibility of the building through the design of a new entryway and elevator. We are also in the midst of a remodel of the second floor, which will offer much-needed office space. We are excited about the developing design and how our choices will positively impact the possibilities for the first floor where we plan to include food production facilities and a small café.

In the past five years, Seward Co-op’s ownership has nearly tripled, so it’s not surprising that owners have already invested $674,500 — 27% of our goal — in Seward’s Friendship Store & Franklin Creamery Projects.

But in case you didn’t know about Seward’s twin expansion projects or haven’t heard anything recently, here’s a brief recap/update:

1) The Friendship Store — Groundbreaking for the Friendship Store is slated for this July, and the store could open as early as summer 2015. It will be a full-service natural foods grocery on the corner of 38th St. and 3rd Avenue South. Sometime in July, we’ll have a big celebration for the groundbreaking. Stay tuned.

2) The Franklin Creamery on Franklin and 26th Avenues (pictured, from 1924) is being leased by Seward Co-op for badly needed office space (upstairs) and to expand our bakery, sausage and other meat production. The downstairs space may include a small retail café (so much depends on how much investment money we raise).

The Franklin Creamery was a dairy and milk delivery co-op back in the days when nearly all food was local — and a lot of it was cooperatively owned.

The initial campaign launch to ask Seward owners to invest began on March 11, with the co-op looking to raise at least $2.5 million by June 30, 2014. To do this, we’re offering an investment opportunity to owners; we aren’t asking for donations, these are stocks and loans with a rate of return.

In short, we’re offering Seward owners an opportunity to make money while in turn, empowering their cooperative to grow.

Our target return on investment for what we call “Class C Stock” is 4%, which many owners have reported is a better deal than their credit unions and banks have been offering. “Owner loans” are another option and interest rates for owner loans vary between 3.5–5.5%. More information is available in the offering summary, found in investment packets that you can pick up at the Customer Service Desk in the store. Or, call 612-314-2012 to speak with Jill Livingston, Seward Co-op’s Owner Capitalization Coordinator.

If you’d like to stay current on Seward’s investment progress, there’s a tracker on the left hand side of this page, and Jill is posting weekly updates on the “Invest in the Co-op” page as well.

We have 75 days to gather $2 million.

How can you help?

1) Become an owner. You can’t invest if you aren’t an owner (that’s the law).

2) Invest. Call Jill and decide what kind of investment is best for you.

3) Spread. The. Word. Do you know other Seward owners? Start talking, sharing links to articles like this one, and encourage them to invest and spread the word, too. Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, email, dinner parties. We all have to start talking about how much we can make the Friendship Store and Creamery project a reality.

Because this is how co-ops grow — you, me, and our neighbors lifting this project up on shoulders. There is no national management or corporate CEO that will swoop in and grow the co-op for us. If Seward is going to grow, we have do it ourselves– stock by stock, and loan by loan — old school, just like Franklin Creamery Co-op did it way back in the day.

What do you say? Ready to roll up your sleeves and lend a hand growing a co-op?

A committed ownership is at the core of Seward Co-op’s success. In the past five years our ownership has nearly tripled. This growth is directly linked to our financial achievements, as well as our role as a positive contributor to our community and the environment. As we prepare for the upcoming expansions, owner support through co-op patronage, the purchase of Class C stock, and owner loans will enable the co-op to serve even more of our community and allow us to continue to thrive.

The Friendship store is anticipated to open in the summer of 2015. Recently we closed on the six properties owned by private individuals and the Greater Friendship Missionary Baptist Church. The co-op now owns seven of the eight project properties, and we are in the process of purchasing the final property, which is owned by the city. We continue to work with the architects on design development and have scheduled a groundbreaking event this summer on July 12. This progress is exciting and each day makes the Friendship store more and more tangible.

Once open, the Friendship store will offer the Bryant-Central neighborhoods more fresh, healthful, sustainable food options. It will provide a communal space for gathering and education. The Friendship store will be a part of the community, respond to its needs, and give back through the SEED program and other efforts. We anticipate this second store will create 80–100 new living-wages jobs with benefits. We hope many of our new employees will reside in Bryant-Central neighborhoods. Furthermore, with 15 percent of our owners currently residing near the Friendship store, its presence will likely ease the congestion at the Franklin store resulting in a more pleasant shopping experience at both locations.

A month into our capital campaign, we have experienced great enthusiasm and generous support from our owners. This past week we surpassed half a million dollars in investments with $674,500 raised —27 percent of our goal. Thus far, investments have ranged from single shares of Class C stock at $500 to loans over $100,000. This speaks to the diversity of our ownership. With appealing investment opportunities and compelling projects, we are confident that in the next few months we will receive the support from our owners needed to make our expansions a reality.

Note: Sale prices on the items mentioned in this article ended Tuesday, April 15.

You know “shave and hair cut two bits,” right?

When you’re at the co-op today, hum the words Sale and a Coupon: No Way! to that tune and it’ll help you remember to save a boatload of money. It’s a little trick I taught myself as a dad who loves to shop at Seward.

How does sale-and-a-coupon save me money?

When Seward has Co+op Deals, we also have manufacturers coupons for the same products sometimes. When that happens, both the sale and the coupon apply to your purchase. Like this:

When some products are on special through the Co+op Deals program, manufacturers’ coupons for the same items are often available. When that happens, both the sale and the coupon can apply to a purchase. Like this: On Co+op Deals, Westbrae organic black beans are $1 off per 25 oz. can (reg. $3.19). Use the coupon from Westbrae, placed right on the shelf for you, and receive another $1 off for two cans.

Pretty sure you can do the math, but I always have to spell it out for myself to be sure. Without these two deals, I’d spend $6.38 for two cans, but:

$1 off per can + $1 off per two cans = $3.38 for two (about 1/2 price) or $3 off for every two I buy, and I buy a lot of black beans since my son declared himself a vegetarian. Deals like this made me start humming:

Sale and a coupon? No way!

Here’s another example:

Sale-and-a-coupon on Stonyfield organic 6 oz. yogurts. These are great for kids’ lunches so I buy them by the armful. On sale for $.79 (reg. $1.19), I’m already saving $.30 each. Plus the Stonyfield coupon, bless them, these yogurts are $1 off for three. Let’s double that for a week’s worth at six because that’s how I have to buy them for my daughter who loves Stonyfield:

($.30 off + $1 off per three) x 2 = $.55 per container.

If you’re a dad who likes to buy organic for his kids, prices like these at a store where I prefer to shop (call me the “Co-op Pop”) straighten my posture and make my eyes bug out.

One last example of sale-and-a-coupon-no-way:

I’m not wild about breakfast cereal for my kids, but I’m a smart dad who chooses his battles carefully. If it’s on sale, I can think Snackanimals as a treat, especially if I need them to clean their rooms later in the day.

Barbara’s Snackanimals normally go for $5.39 each, but with Co+op Deals they’re $2 off, and with the coupon from Barbara’s, they’re another $1 off for two boxe. That means, Smart Dad saves four bucks. Sale and a coupon? Kids get allowance this week!

There aren’t necessarily a lot of these sale-and-a-coupon-no-way combo deals, but when Seward has them, I’ll often save a ton on staple items or foods that will go fast in my household (one last equation: two voracious kids > six yogurts + two black beans + two boxes cereal boxes).

Just remember “sale-and-a-coupon,” and you’ll save money. Besides, as a guy I happen to know that no dad can resist that old tune…

* @NprMichael on Twitter read this post and adds, “my favorite is sale + coupon + quarterly member discount. I call it the co-op trifecta!”

On March 18, 2014 from 6–8 p.m., the Seward Co-op convened a community meeting to discuss the new Friendship Store. The meeting, held at Sabathani Community Center, was designed and facilitated by Yvonne Cheek of Millennium Consulting Group. The agenda for the meeting was shaped by interviews with community residents and by a planning committee of the Seward Co-op. Approximately 100 people attended the meeting.

This report includes information generated at the community meeting by the attendees.

Meeting Purpose:

Engage neighborhood residents in a discussion about the Friendship Store.

Meeting Goals:

• Share updates on the Friendship Store.
• Provide information about co-ops and ownership in the co-op.
• Discuss ideas for Friendship Store products and services.

Agenda Items for the Community Meeting included “Welcome & Meeting Purpose” by LaDonna Redmond, Education & Outreach Coordinator Seward Co-op; Role of Facilitator & Opening Question; “What Is a Co-op? How Does It Work?” by Sean Doyle, General Manager, Seward Co-op; “Friendship Project Progress, Store Design, Capitalization & Hiring” by Erik Hatting, Initiatives Manager, Seward Co-op and Barb Doyle, HIRED; “Questions and Answers; Anchor Questions for Discussion; Acknowledgement of Seward Co-op Managers” by LaDonna Redmond; “Store Tours / Running for the Board / Ownership in the Co-op / Participating in Future Community Events and Milestones” by Tom Vogel, Marketing Manager, Seward Co-op; “Next Steps and Closing Remarks” by LaDonna Redmond.

Questions to the community:

Question #1:

Where do you shop for groceries now, and what are your thoughts about that store?

Comments from some participants about what matters:

• cost
• proximity to my home
• organic items
• location
• fast check out
• easy to walk to
• quality of produce
• easy access

Question #2:

What types of products serve your family’s needs?

Question #3:

What deli foods would you like to see at the new store? Would you (often or sometimes) use the deli for your lunch or dinner needs?

Deli Use

Question #4:

What topics would you like to know more about? What classes would you like to take at the Friendship Store?

CLASSES

• Cultural/ethnic cooking
• Different cultural traditions
• Cooking healthy meals
• Healthy ingredient substitution
• Vegetarian cooking
• From garden to stove
• Diabetic cooking
• Soul food cooking
• Chemistry of cooking
• Shopping at the co-op on a budget
• Meal planning
• Healthy eating
• Food preservation
• Cooking dry goods
• Authentic Latino cooking
• Cooking gluten free
• Cooking from scratch
• Canning
• How to use different products to save money
• How to make vegetables taste better
• How to use spices
• Too busy to take classes, but love that they are available

WOULD LIKE TO KNOW MORE ABOUT

• How to eliminate meet from my diet and eat healthy
• Information on products in front of me. Educate staff on how to educate me.
• Information on product origin
• Small, local companies
• Recipes
• Commercial kitchen
• Partnering with local organizations
• Partnering with Senior Center at Sabathani
• Partnering with high schools

Wednesday, April 9, 2014 –Today, it is 70 degrees outside and sunny, and there is no snow in the ten-day forecast.

Surely, that means that it really is early Spring, which is one of the most challenging and interesting times of the year to work in a produce department like Seward’s. Transition and gap are key words. We’re transitioning from one growing region to another, which can mean gaps in availability.

For instance, the Braeburn apples from Washington that had been in storage since their harvest in the fall have run out, and we won’t have them in again until the South American harvests start to be shipped north, probably mid to late April. If you count back six months from April, you come to October, which is just about when the fresh crop of WA Braeburns was newly available. Makes sense-Chile and Argentina’s seasons are opposite of ours. So, if you’re a die hard Braeburn fan, you’ll be able to get them soon, and in the meantime, there are still lots of other apples available from Washington. Lady Alice has been particularly well loved by the produce stockers this year.

Pear season has been over in the northern hemisphere for six months or so, which means we’ve got the South American crop coming in now. The red Bartletts seem especially soft and luscious at the moment. They are mild, to be sure, but they go well with cheese or walnuts, and are sure to please little children.

Transition and gap isn’t just for fruit-if you’ve been in recently looking for red onions, you’ve likely been disappointed. The storage onion supply from the west coast is clearly dwindling, and they just don’t have enough reds to ship. Local red onions are long gone. But take heart-in the wet rack (top picture, above), you will often find red spring onions. Not to be confused with scallions or green onions, these are simply young, green harvested red onions. If they’d been left in the field they would eventually become the storage onions that you usually see in the root rack. I take the presence of such onions to mean that the onion fields of the west coast are yielding, and we’ll get some in due time. It’s likely that the first shipment of storage reds will come from Mexico, where it is already summer.

There was hardly a gap at all this year between the Wisconsin Growers parsnips that were harvested and stored in the fall and the overwintered ones from the same farms. Parsnips have the lovely quality of being unharmed, and in fact improved, by remaining unharvested in the ground for the winter. The cold makes them sweeter. They have been cleaned thoroughly by the growers, and are creamy white. In my opinion, they are best roasted, but they can also be shredded in potato pancakes or hashbrowns for an interesting variation.

There is a triad of items that will always mean Spring: Living waters English cucumbers, CA fava beans and really tasty berries. We’ve had Living Waters tomatoes for a while now, but the cucumbers come a little later. They are tender and sweet and need no peeling. In fact, to peel an English cucumber is to miss out on a part of the enjoyment of them.

Fava Beans are an unusual bean. Most beans like warm soils, but favas thrive in cool conditions, which is what brings them to market so soon in the year. To eat them, first remove the beans from the large, leathery pod, and then steam them for a few minutes. Heap them in a bowl and eat them with a pecorino or queso fresco, as a snack. The skin of the bean is usually best removed, making them a good finger food to leisurely enjoy with a friend on the picnic table. A glass of white wine would not be a bad idea either.

Berries start to come into season at this time of year, and while Strawberries are a steady occupant of the produce shelves, if you happen to be here on a day when Blackberries are in, you should treat yourself. They should be large and shiny and look as if they are about to burst that dark juice all over the package. If you manage not to eat them all out of hand, throw them in muffins or pancakes, or delicately add them to a fruit salad at the last minute.

Citrus is still good, although it will be transitioning out of season in the next couple of months. The Temple oranges are amazing-they remind me of orange popsicles in the best possible way. They have lots and lots of seeds, which can be a drawback, but they are good candidates for juicing, eliminating that nuisance.

We have had a promising start to the campaign. At the end of February Seward Co-op was awarded a New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) allocation of $8 million by the Midwest Minnesota Capital Development Corporation. The NMTC will result in substantial debt forgiveness and along with owner capital makes this project more attractive for bank financing.

We have also begun to receive owner investments. Since March 30 Seward Co-op owners have invested $283,500 in a mix of owner loans and Class C stock. Class C stock can be purchased at customer service or by contacting me at 612-314-2012. You can also contact me to schedule an owner loan closing appointment.

We endeavor to reach our goal by the end of our fiscal year on June 30th in order to maintain the proposed construction schedule. Updates on our progress toward our goal will be available here and at the co-op.

Thank you to those who have invested and to all of our owners for your continued support of Seward Co-op.

Jill Livingston,
Owner Capitalization Coordinator

Every week, there’s another news story about why honeybees are in danger and how to prevent their losses from happening.

“Healthy Bees, Healthy Lives” is the name of a campaign created by The Beez Kneez (we sell their fine honey at Seward Co-op) to protect pollinators from harmful pesticides and other chemicals. From The Beez Knees website:

In September of 2013, The Beez Kneez, LLC lost our Blake School [urban] hive in Minneapolis to a legal pesticide application. Our hive and the hives of two hobby beekeepers within a 1/4 mile of each other lost thousands of bees in a 24-hour period.

We underwent an investigation with the MN Department of Agriculture and the University of MN Bee Lab, and we able to determine that our hives were killed by a commonly used pesticide, sprayed on the foundations of buildings to kill unwanted insects.

As a result they started Healthy Bees, Healthy Lives to promote awareness about pesticide-use and how vulnerable it makes pollinators in our modern, chem-heavy world. For example, sign the pledge at the above link “to maintain a chemical free green space,” pay a minimum of $10, and you’ll receive your choice of very cool yard sign designs.

And Seward Co-op is joining the Healthy Bees, Healthy Lives campaign, too. All through April we’ll have store-specials, fun events, and we’ll be highlight special honey-based treats, too.

April 2-April 15: Beez Kneez Honey will be on special, and so will Honey Beez Cream Puffs from the Seward Co-op Bakery.

Thursday, April 3: What’s Going on with the Bees? Class at Seward Co-op from 6–8 p.m. Sign up at Customer Service.

Saturday, April 5: Healthy Bees, Healthy Lives Demo Event: Taste Beez Kneez Honey and Seward Co-op Honey Beez Cream Puffs. 3-6 p.m.

Thursday, April 10: Dandelion-Honey Pastry Chef Challenge at the Nicollet Island Pavilion, where local pastry chefs will compete against one another, building pastries that contain the key ingredient: dandelion honey. Our own pastry wizards Mary, Ann, and Amanda from the Seward Co-op Bakery will be entering the chef challenge with the Seward Bakery’s Honey Beez Cream Puffs.

More info below:

Your favorite probiotic drink is on tap at Seward, and we’re so excited to report that we’re the only grocery in town who offers it.

Verdant Tea’s tangy and refreshing kombucha tea is now available from the tapped kegs in Aisle Two. Bring your own bottle or buy one of ours, but go ahead and pour as much as you like.

Currently, we have two taps and two flavors: Pink Robot (guava) and Ginger Vesper (ginger, edelflower, and pepper), both made with Verdant Tea’s fermented oolong tea. (Kombucha is not made from mushrooms, but a pancake-like colony of yeasts and bacteria.)

Kombucha tea originated in Asia and came to Germany at the turn of the 19th Century. Since the then, kombucha has been promoted as an immunity-boosting tea that can strengthen the body against many ailments.

It became widely used in the U.S. partly because it can be made at home. It is especially popular among people with HIV and the elderly (according to the American Cancer Society website) because of claims it can boost immunity and slow aging. There are no available human test studies on the health benefits of kombucha, however.

We drink kombucha for refreshment since the boost of B vitamins, probiotics from fermentation, and a little caffeine from oolong tea is plenty enough reason to enjoy this drink.