The Friendly City Food Co-op opened in 2010 after four years of conceptualization and has been incredibly successful as a hub for sustainability and community development since. It’s literally built on a foundation of community investment, being owned and democratically controlled by a large group of local owners and consumers. Noel Levan– a Board of Directors member for the Co-op– said that, “over 2,500 residents of Virginia each own equitable shares in our business, and share in our profits, as well as benefiting from our existence as a source for local, organic, and environmentally friendly products.” He also added that the Co-op provides “support for the local economy– by buying most of our goods from local farmers and artisanal producers, we keep a larger percentage of dollars re-circulating within our area, than a big box store which tends to siphon money out to corporations far away.” Additionally, the Co-op employs 42 residents of the area, all of whom receive livable wages and are qualified for health care with full-time status.
The Friendly City Food Co-op also acts as a community steward. It promotes, distributes to, partners with, and cultivates items from over 125 Virginia-based, organic, and ecologically conservative brands and vendors, as well as eight farmers markets– including Bowl of Good (Harrisonburg), Merge Coffee Company (Harrisonburg), Bold Rock Hard Cider (Nellysford), Turkey Knob Growers (Timberville), and the Harrisonburg, Waynesboro, and Staunton Augusta Farmers Markets– to provide a large stock of produce, baked goods, meats, spices, and a variety of specialty goods like cosmetics, hygiene products, alcohol, and snacks.
Per Levan, “Most food co-ops, ours included, function with a triple bottom line (financial, social and environmental.) Our financial success and sustainability allow us to do more good in our communities and world.” He added that the Co-op purchases “ at least 30% of our products from local sources, within the Commonwealth of Virginia, which reduces the carbon footprint and miles traveled for those items.” The Co-op also regularly works to build relationships within the community by sponsoring local events, contributing funds and goods to charitable organizations in the area, and running a quarterly “Round Up” donation campaign in which customers can round up their purchases, the extra money of which is later donated to local organizations like Our Community Place, Northeast Neighborhood Association, Shenandoah Valley Black Heritage Project, and New Bridges Immigrant Resource Center.
Outside of the Co-op, Levan detailed some of the other community practices that can help advance social, financial, and environmental sustainability, including city infrastructure that supports bike paths, residential curbside compost pickups (which Harrisonburg itself does not provide but that local services like Black Bear Composting help to provide for those interested), and creating positions for Urban Agriculture development, which could make way for projects like edible landscaping. The benefits of these projects can be seen at local colleges like EMU, which engages in all of the above.
With ever-looming environmental challenges and the need for community development, outreach, and togetherness more pertinent than ever, the Friendly City Food Co-op looks to continue being a leader in the charge for a more sustainable, equitable, and socially and environmentally conscious and connected Harrisonburg. Its success is evident, and the Co-op only looks to grow even more, having completed a nine-month, 2000 square feet expansion in March of 2021– fittingly near its 10 year anniversary– that saw an exterior renovation, a relocation of the produce department, a new cafe area, an expanded deli and bakery with hot bar and salad serving stations, new store hardware, and overall updates to store functionality, including aisle reconfigurations.
You can find more details about the Friendly City Food Co-op’s founding principles, operation and mission by visiting the website, friendlycity.coop, or the store, located on 150 E. Wolfe Street in downtown Harrisonburg.
