SALT LAKE CITY — The Wasatch Food Co-op will be opening its doors later this year, and it will be the first food co-op store in northern Utah.
FOX 13 met up with board members of the co-op to discuss what they're hoping to accomplish in the valley.
"Local, local, local," said board member Evan Sugden.
Sugden is a Salt Lake native, an environmentalist, and has been passionate about the co-op since the beginning. Salt Lake City's small group formed back in 2009.
"It’s a member-owned, community-focused enterprise. We are big on local — it’s probably the most wanted feature of the store we hear from members," said Sugden.
A food co-op is a grocery store owned and democratically run by members of the community.
"Unlike your typical chain grocery stores, our profits go back into our community or into dividends that we get back to our members, and they’re not siphoned off to, you know, shareholders that are going to be elsewhere in the world," said board member Mikre-Ab Abera.
They're aiming to open their doors in the 9th & 9th neighborhood by the fall of this year.
"It is a grocery store, but soon you will realize the whole vibe is different in that store" said Sugden.
So what's the difference from shopping at a co-op than your regular grocer?
"Food co-ops do a really good job of recycling money back into the local economy. And so you’re going be able to support local jobs and also most importantly your farmers as well," said Abera.
They shared, once it's finished it will look and feel like a normal market, but they're hoping to foster neighborhood connections and resilience. "And you’re strengthening the food system, you’re also diminishing the impact that we all have on the environment because a lot of our goods are going to be sourced locally,” said Abera.
They explained how it's a cooperative, full-scale market, but unlike other places it's locally and community based.
"People, planet, profit; community is connections," said Sugden.
Aiming to provide affordable, local, foods to Utahns. "Our values are aligned toward providing Salt Lake City and it's residents with good, nutritious food," said Abera.
They're working to build economic resilience, reduce food insecurity, and promote neighborhood-driven growth.
"This co-op isn’t just for the you know the city of Salt Lake, but the producers and growers of our community as well," said Abera.
To learn more about Wasatch Food CO-OP they have the following events planned:
- Guided Tour: July 17th, 4:00 PM – 5:00 PM Wasatch Food Co-op Building, 416 E 900 S, Salt Lake City, UT 84111
- Pioneer Park Famer's Market: Aug. 2nd, Sept. 6th, and Oct. 4th
"Co-ops are very different, they're real people places," said Sugden.
