A Tale of Two Co-ops in Two Cities

Conceived in support of the Louisville Association of Cooperative Economics (LACE), this paper pre­sents case studies of two different food coopera­tives serving communities of color. After establish­ing a brief history of food cooperatives, we explore the expansion efforts of Seward Community Co-op, a long-standing and well-established coopera­tive in a predominantly White area of Minneapolis, Minnesota, into a more diverse area of the city. Next, we explore the Mandela Grocery Co-op in Oakland, California, a relatively new, worker-owned cooperative. We then discuss several points to consider in the development of new co-ops that emerge from these cases. See the press release for this article.