The Portland food Co-op’s

equity Committee

December 30, 2020

Dear Member-Owners,

In November 2019 – while we were still meeting in-person at 409 Cumberland – Board members went around the room and shared their thoughts on what it meant to each of us personally to “serve all” in the Portland community. In that dialogue, Board members spoke about the need to recognize our own privilege in the very make-up of the Board, the price barriers for many to purchase from the Co-op, the fact that some in the community may not feel welcome at the Co-op, and the need for ongoing dialogue to address larger systemic issues and the Co-op’s interface with these issues, among other things.

That first dialogue led to the chartering of the Board’s Equity Committee. The COVID pandemic initially slowed our process of building the Equity Committee, but the growing and continuing momentum of the Black Lives Matter Movement, spurred by the murder of George Floyd this past May, further deepened our dialogue and commitment to the Co-op’s equity agenda. The Committee quickly grew from three to eight members total, including three of the Co-op’s staff.

Our first step? It was difficult to know where to start on such a seemingly impossible, systemic, and gargantuan task. We agreed to go back to the basics, to our Seven Cooperative Principles that guide how we and other co-ops put their values into practice. The Board and Equity Committee have been actively discussing these principles, one by one, centering racial and economic equity. That means we’ve been asking and answering questions like “How are we supporting emerging cooperatives who are working to strengthen communities and people of color?” and “How do we work in solidarity with groups that work for racial equity and justice?”

Our conversations have been open and honest, recognizing our limits, and using the discussion outcomes to begin to define what we as a co-op are already doing, and what we can do better. At the start of 2019, we began supporting Amjambo Africa!, Maine’s free newspaper for and about New Mainers from Africa, by taking out a monthly ad in their paper. In the fall of that year, we increased our level of financial support by becoming an official patron, and we are continuing our patronage for another full year. We also continued to provide space for Fresh Start Farms to host a twice-weekly farm stand, and for New Roots Cooperative as a pickup spot for their CSA program. When the growing season starts back up, we plan to welcome each of these farms back for another successful summer.

Some new initiatives we are putting into action include increasing in-store signage and website content to bring attention to the Co-op’s BIPOC producers (including several new suppliers, including Vibez Tea, The Butters Hygienics Co., Shea Radiance, Spice Tree Organics, and B Condoms to name a few), examining our purchasing policies and practices to lessen the barriers for BIPOC suppliers and producers, making in-store Co-op information available in multiple languages, and working to increase the accessibility of Co-op membership.

We are also seeking to create a member-ownership body and Board that better reflects the diversity of the communities we serve, and how the Co-op can engage in deep listening to support a more just local food economy. To that end, in 2021 the Co-op is commissioning a listening study to identify and describe the attitudes, perceptions, and food needs of Portland’s many communities and to provide recommendations for the Co-op to better meet those needs. Once completed, we will make the results publicly available.

We all have a part to play in creating a more racially and economically equitable co-op, and a more just food system at large. It is important to us that we create and maintain an ongoing and evolving dialogue as we work to achieve these goals. If you have any questions, concerns, or ideas to support our work, we invite you to reach out to us.

Please feel free to contact the Equity Committee Chair, Lien De Brouckere, or any Board member at board@portlandfood.coop to share your thoughts.