If there's anything better than helping your community, it's helping the community and saving on groceries, too.
Just ask the 11,000 members of the Community Food Co-op of Utah, who have found that by ordering food together, they support local vendors and reduce the cost of their food.
"We use collective purchasing to get the best deals and we don't mark the food up much. We use as many local vendors as possible," said Bill Germundson, assistant director of the co-op.
"It's great savings on healthy food. We've grown really fast. The economy has played a part in it. People are looking for extra savings. We get a lot of letters from people telling about how it's really helped them stretch their budget."
Crossroads Urban Centers, a Utah-based nonprofit trying to alleviate poverty, started the co-op four years ago to address food insecurity. "If you eat, you qualify," they say -- because having more members means more savings through collective purchasing.
Members order food at the beginning of the month and pick up their orders on a set date a few weeks later.
A standard share is $23 and includes about 5 pounds of various meats, several varieties of fruits and vegetables, a loaf of wheat bread and a shelf-stable item like beans or rice. The co-op estimates the retail value of a standard share to be $35 to $46 and say members are saving 30 percent to 50 percent.
Members can also order a half-share, more than one share, a share that is produce only or add-ons like granola, nuts and honey.
Germundson said share prices include two hours of volunteer service each month -- either with the co-op or in the community. The volunteer service can be anything done for anyone else without getting paid -- even time spent taking care of family. The co-op encourages members to volunteer with the co-op at least once a year.
"It's the honor system," Germundson said. "You get community, building with people from diverse backgrounds, working together."
Area sites
Local volunteers get the food to each of the area sites after it is brought from Salt Lake City to the Ogden drop-off site at Catholic Community Services.
Kelly Farley, co-op team leader at Catholic Community Services, said she started the site there because she had been participating and wanted to bring the program to Ogden.
"I saw the benefit I had in savings, and because I work with low-income, I thought we should have a site here in Ogden. It started out slow. At first, it was me and two co-workers, and now we're up to 10 to 12. I can see it growing. It is such good quality at such a good price," Farley said.
Other Top of Utah sites include Ogden's Youth Impact, the Centerville Episcopal Church, Clearfield Youth Center, Ogden First United Methodist Church and Crossroads Christian Fellowship in Uintah.
Stretching budgets
Chris Hamm, site coordinator for the co-op at Youth Impact in Ogden, said he's shaved $50 to $100 off his family's grocery bill each month since joining. Marty Smith, site coordinator at First United Methodist Church, said she saves at least 40 percent.
Taren Nielsen, a young wife and college student from Salt Lake City who helps distribute at Catholic Community Services, said she would spend much more at the grocery store.
"It's good for college students and poor people like us," she said.
Hamm said the program benefits the elderly and disabled as well, because site coordinators deliver to those who are homebound.
"I have a 96-year-old uncle that doesn't drive and they deliver so it really helps him out," said Margaret Morgan of Roy.
Smith has seen the program help younger families who don't normally eat whole grains or produce.
"They don't have much vegetables and fruits in their diet. They learn to eat that kind of stuff. They don't get it that often," she said.
Members say the food is top-quality. The produce is often organic -- and some say fresher than what they get at the grocery store.
"The food is top-rate," Smith agrees, "I've never had anything bad. The food is just great. It's Utah-based stuff and the fruits and vegetables are really fresh and good. We get artisan wheat bread and occasionally specialty breads."
Cat Palmer of Washington Terrace said she is picky about the type of food she'll buy, so she checked out her sister's share before she ordered.
"I'm weird about quality. I like the quality of this food and how cheap it is. There's organic stuff and high-quality stuff. I'm a stay-at-home mom so we're on a budget. It's worth it for the meat alone, but we also get vegetables, fruits and grains. It's lots of food for what you're paying. Sometimes it's too much and I have to give it away," she said.
Jessica Mayne of North Salt Lake said the only complaint she has is that she doesn't always like what's offered.
"You don't get to know the fruits and vegetables in advance, and the first month, I didn't like everything, but the second month I did. You can't pick and choose, but it gets me to try making new things that I normally wouldn't try. They give us a newspaper with recipes and ideas on how to use it," she said.
For information about joining the co-op, visit www.foodco-op.net or call (866) 959-2667.
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