Photos by MAALIS

Join the Co-op’s Board of Directors and Management Team for a facilitated workshop to kick off our vision process! Creating a shared vision gives the Co-op a strong foundation to build on and lays the groundwork for strategic planning. Vision work involves permission to dream big. It is a place imagining what’s possible for our store without limitations. 

Come offer your ideas and collaborate with your fellow Co-op owners!

February 24th, 4-7pm

1078 Gallery (820 Broadway)

The Co-op Kitchen will provide a meze table featuring fresh, local vegetables with Point Reyes Bleu Cheese Dip and Spinach Cilantro Hummus, specialty cheeses from Rumiano and Sierra Nevada Cheese Company, olives, vegan and smoked turkey wraps, dolmas,…Read More

Nutritional yeast is great, isn’t it? I know I love to dump it on my popping-corn, buttered toast, and anything else that could use a savory kick.  Until a co-worker raised the issue, though, I’d never even thought about why the yeast is described as “nutritional”.  Turns out, that tasty topping is actually jam-packed with good stuff! Let’s take a look:
 
Nutritional yeast is a strain of the fungus Saccharomyces cerevisiae [“sugar mold”].  The yeast is grown on particularly sugary plants: The Lewis Labs brand carried in our Wellness department is grown on Eastern European sugar beets; the Red Star brand carried in Bulk is grown on a mixture of sugar-cane and beet molasses. The fungus is allowed to ferment in the sugar-filled drums…Read More

Through a game of Telephone (from a customer to a cashier to me) came the shocking news that the reverse osmosis (RO) filtering used by our bulk water dispenser sends more water down the drain than it dispenses.  I had always considered the store’s bulk water the most environmentally friendly H2O option for our customers who choose to purchase water, so I set out on a hunt for information.  Which, when it comes to sustainability, never ends with the clear answers I’m hoping for…

To start, there are different water efficacies for RO filters.  A common range is between 4 and 20 gallons of “backwash” per gallon of filtered water!  The good news is the co-op’s filter doesn’t use 4 gallons per gallon.  The not-so-good news is that,…Read More

Photos by MAALIS

    As we all likely know by now, Prop 37, despite huge statewide and national support and the passionate and heroic efforts of many people, was, disappointingly, defeated at the ballot box this past November. We here at Chico Natural Foods Co-op have been public supporters of Prop 37, and in addition to front-of-store signage showing that support, hosted tables and education events to help get the word out.  
    That being said, one of the dilemmas we faced throughout the campaign, and continue to face moving forward is the status of many of the organic brands owned by larger parent corporations that donated money to the defeat of Prop 37, since we currently carry a number of items, from a handful of brands, which fit that…Read More

Photos by MAALIS

Photos by MAALIS

Photos by MAALIS

After much anticipation, our reusable bags came to life last week.  Roplast welcomed us to their facility to see the bags take shape.

Roplast produces a range of bags for businesses nationwide.  We’re lucky that they’re just down the street in Oroville because they’re good neighbors.  Roplast’s mission is “to provide high quality film and bags that fulfill the packaging needs of our many customers in an environmentally responsible manner.”  In the plastic business, being environmentally responsible makes economic sense.  Plastic costs about 40¢ per pound; a figure that adds up when you’re looking at plastic in quantities like this:

As our tour guide, Camille, put it: “It’s too valuable to throw away!” 

Roplast’s commitment…Read More

Photos by MAALIS

Photos by MAALIS

No expo would be complete without a requisite gigantic pumpkin.  The 2012 National Heirloom Expo in Santa Rosa delivered with a blue-ribbon pumpkin weighing in at 1386 pounds!  But this expo had more to offer, lots more.

I couldn’t help but turn the day into an heirloom field-trip and make a stop at the Seed Bank in Petaluma on the way.  It was my designated meet-up location with Christine, a friend from Santa Cruz, who has vegetable enthusiasm to match my own.  The suitably named Seed Bank inhabits an old bank building that now brims with colorful shelves of rare seeds and it had been high on our list of places to visit for some time.  The knowledge that the Heirloom Expo promised more seed stimulation was the only thing that…Read More

Last year CNFC signed up with the Sustainable Food Trade Association and committed to actively working towards a better food system.  This month our Sustainability Coordinator, Lauren Kennedy, finished our first annual report.  This document covers where we stand currently within the goals set for us.

We are so excited to be building this platform for the future growth and stregthening of our store.  A huge thanks to our staff, owners, and customers who have supported and encouraged our pursuit of sustainability!

On Friday we had another WONDERFUL owner appreciation day!  A huge thank you to all our farmers and producers who came to meet customers and share their products at the store.  Here are some photos from the day:

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Morse Farms Mandarin 

Organic Valley Farms - a farmer-owned cooperative!

Sherri from GRUB with her plant starts and Lauren, CNFC's Sustainability Coordinator, work the kids' seed planting corner!

Toni from Turri Farms with his food truck: Billy's Local Real Food

Ron and Uriel!

CNFC's Board of Directors' President, Stephanie.

100% recycled, 100% recyclable bags made in Oroville!

Leonardo's Spanish Cuisine

Brandy from Bayliss Lavendar Ranch

Jonathan and…Read More

                To get some perspective on current water affairs in California, I got in touch with Bryce Lundberg, V.P. of Agriculture at Lundberg Family Farms.  He’s a 3rd generation organic farmer, sits on the board of the Western Canal Water District (co-founded by his uncle Homer Lundberg), holds passionate personal views about water use and our local ecology.  He has a broad experience the political, financial and social issues that keep water from being a simple matter.   

                No matter where you stand on the issues, I’d like to encourage everyone to get educated and get involved in the future of this precious resource (I’ve included some links at the end that have been helpful to me to start learning about this…Read More

Greetings fellow Co-op members-

I'm happy to announce that the California Right To Know Genetically Engineered Food Act was submitted to the Attorney General on November 9.  

We are now gearing up to gather the 850,000 signatures we will need to get to ensure we qualify for the ballot.  We start January 4 and go until April 15 (which is the last date the state will guarantee it makes it on the Nov. 12 ballot).  We need all hands on deck for this!   Every volunteer signature gathered keeps money in our budget for the media campaign we will need next year to counter the estimated $60M we think the opposition will spend.

Please JOIN US and help get this historic initiative on the ballot.  Our first, one hour meeting for the Chico…Read More

Peter Ratner Occupation: Self-employed   Candidate’s Statement of Interest: I have been a member of CNF Co-op almost since the beginning, and have been involved in Co-ops almost all of my adult life. I believe that cooperative food stores are one of the best ways to contribute to the building of a healthy local economy, as they provide a place for consumers and producers to interact in a way that provides each with what they need; the consumer gets fresh local food, and the producers get a fair price and the satisfaction of selling to their neighbors. I would like to continue on the Board and think that we should reach out more to the CSU community.   Experience, volunteer and paid, relevant to BOD job description: I previously served…Read More

Olivia Peters-Lazaro

Occupation: Owner and acupuncturist at Chico Community Acupuncture

Candidate’s Statement of Interest:

I am excited and honored to be considered for the BOD.  I have been shopping at the Co-op since before I was born: my mom was an active member during the Co-op’s infancy, and I have been shopping here since.  I grew up on my family’s walnut orchard in Chico.  As an undergraduate at UCLA I earned a BA in geography and dance: studying indigenous agriculture, urban food systems, and dance.  When I got done at UCLA I attended Five Branches University in Santa Cruz and received a Masters in Traditional Chinese Medicine, which qualified me to become a licensed acupuncturist in California and nationally.  For me, the…Read More

Kevin Shea Occupation: Dad   Candidate’s Statement of Interest: My name is Kevin Shea and I have resided in Chico for nearly 20 years. I am an active 38 year old father of two that is here to enjoy the recreational opportunities, extensive agriculture and community focus this area has to offer. My family and I truly value a diet consisting of healthy food that comes from local and/or “goodness focused” producers and manufacturers. We strive to support a good and fair food system whenever possible. As an avid gardener and cook, much of my day is focused on food, therefore my voting dollars are focused in the same manner. My purchases are based more on consciousness than affordability, because in the end, we can’t really afford food…Read More

Julia Murphy Occupation: Education & Outreach Assistant- Butte Environment Council   Candidate’s Statement of Interest: Chico has a long agricultural history. In contrast to many places, Chico could literally supply all of its food needs with locally-produced food. The co-op is a leader in conscious food purchasing practices; its influence in the community is strong, and getting stronger as more people make better-informed choices about food. Two years ago when I ran for the board, the Saturday Farmers’ Market didn’t accept EBT for its purchases. Now it does; which illustrates that people are coming to understand the concept of food justice—nutritious safe food available to all. I learned so much from my board mentors in those two…Read More