Thursday, January 5, 2012 at 12:25PM Mid-Atlantic Conference for Start-up Food Co-ops
Board members Dan Reynolds and Lindsey Rosenberg attended this conference, which was held on April 16 at the Lutheran Theological Seminary on Germantown Avenue here in Philadelphia. Representatives of more than 30 start-up co-ops and food buying clubs attended this first-time event and it turned out to be an amazing day of discovery and camaraderie.
Conference attendees found out that what's happening with our effort here in Elkins Park is being echoed across the country. There are plenty of reasons that one could point to, but the facts are that co-ops are being formed nationally at a rate not seen since the 1970's. In the Philadelphia area alone, co-ops have formed or are springing up in Chester, Kensington, Elkins Park, Doylestown, South Philadelphia and on South 61st Street in Philadelphia. But there were also attendees from upstate New York, New Jersey, Central Pennsylvania, Brooklyn and Queens, just to name a few more locations.
What we've been able to accomplish here with CreekSide raised more than a few eyebrows. It can take 5 to 7 years to start a co-op and the fact that we have enlisted as many members as we have in such a short time really impressed a lot of people.
The sense of shared values at this event was inspiring to those of us who are spending as much time as we are getting this co-op off the ground. And it also served as a reminder of how much spirit there is in this community that is backing our efforts.
A special thanks to our friends and compatriots at Weavers Way here in Philadelphia who put a lot of time and effort into making the start-up conference a tremendous success.
Successful USDA Appeal
We found out on March 15, 2011 that we were successful in our USDA appeal! Please see the news section of the website to get more detail on the implications.