New Melle Food Co-op
Fresh food grown nearby. Dollars that stay local. A place where families and farmers meet face to face. The New Melle Food Co-op is more than a store — it’s the backbone of a stronger, more connected community.
What is a Food Co-op?
What is a food co-op, why it matters today, and what's next for the Co-op in New Melle
1700+ People who care about the food they feed their family
The heart of our co-op has always been pure food—food that nourishes, connects, and sustains. From the early days of stocking local produce to our vision of a thriving community food hub, every step has been rooted in the land and family.
- Fresh, local, organic food
- Farm-to-table grocery store
- Seasonal produce and local goods
- Local farmer and artisan network
- Community events and workshops
- Future full-service restaurant
- Member-driven food co-op
- Supporting regional food systems
What's Next
In a survey with 150+ submissions in less than 2 days, over 90% of the responses all said the same thing..." We want prepared food."
Healthy Homestyle Dishes
Good food should be affordable, familiar, and taste as advertised. Nothing fancy, and for every member of the family.
All Age Hangout Spot
100+ Indoor and Outdoor seating for family dinner, friends, business meetings, and solo work sesssions. Find a corner, and make it yours.
Farm to Table Ingredients
Fresh whole food ingredients from 50+ local farms, zero fillers, and can be pronounced + read in one sentence.
Our Food Comes From Our Farm Network
We Work With Local Family's, Not Freight Liners
Fresh Produce
Seasonal, chemical-free vegetables and fruits, grown locally for peak flavor, nutrition, and freshness. Straight from nearby farms to your table.
Meat
Locally raised, responsibly sourced beef, chicken, pork, and lamb + more. Fresh cuts and specialty items with transparency in practices and humane care.
Dairy
Farm-fresh milk, cream, butter, cheese, and other products. From local creameries you can trust for purity, quality, and unbeatable taste.
Grocery
Everyday pantry staples including fresh bread, honey, and more essentials—sourced locally when possible, always aligned with our values.
Bulk Items
Affordable organic grains, beans, flour, oats, spices, and oils. Buy only what you need, cut packaging waste, and save money.
Home & Personal Care
Non-toxic cleaning supplies, soaps, and personal care. Gentle on the earth, safe for families, sourced from trusted ethical producers.
5 Years of Planning (and counting) For This
Years of work, research, late nights, and community input are behind what you see today. For us, transparency is important every step of the way. We’ve shared everything regarding who we are, what we’ve done, and what we plan to do. Explore our data room where you will find the plans, the proof, and the next steps forward
- Master Planning Document
- Pitch Deck
- Board Member Profiles
- Financial Plans
- Photo Gallery By Initiatives
- Our Guiding Values
Help it A Grow
Make a Zero Risk Pledge Today
Campaign For Continued Success
Unlike other donation models, our campaign is using a conditional pledge program. This means you make a pledge today, no money exchanged, and only if we reach our goal, will we reach out to collect your pledge.
Everything Counts
Great place awesome fresh locally grown organic food. I’m proud to say we are local farms that provide to the co-op and shop there too. It’s a great place for the community to come together and eat healthy.
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What was our Co-op Like Before We Closed?
50+ Producers
From pasture-raised meats to fresh baked bread, the Co-op brought together over fifty local farmers and makers. Every purchase meant supporting neighbors and keeping small farms strong.
Core Grocery Staples
Families counted on us for the basics — milk, eggs, bread, and produce — stocked consistently and priced fairly. It was the weekly stop you could trust for everyday essentials.
Transparent Sourcing Always
Nothing hidden, nothing vague. Every item came with a story — who grew it, where it came from, and how it was made. Transparency built trust, and trust built community.
The Values Behind the Co-op
Purity: An object is pure when its qualities do not counteract its purpose
The mark of stewardship is an outcome that is pure. To be a steward, means to understand the purpose, history, relevance, and all other dependancies of an object- and this understanding comes from observation first, and then collaboration.
Transparency: The continuous practice of encouraging involvement and education of a process.
Every operation who values transparency knows that information is meaningless without relevance. When details about a process are provided, they must be accompanied by a purpose and relationship to the larger goal. In this way, everyone not only knows the information, but where to look for it, and why it’s important.
Community: A group of interdependent people who’ve come together by a common vision.
Together we amplify each other, in our strengths and in any weakness. Communities are built upon trust; a trust in others, that radiates from trust and reliance in our self. The community becomes more than the sum of its members, when each member becomes more the sum of their own wants.
Regenerative: Any action is regenerative when the resources it returns are greater than the resources it consumes.
Only Man made systems are capable of consuming more than they return. When we realize the interdependence each piece of life has to one another, we uncover an opportunity to take actions without additional effort that exponentially effect far more than our action alone.
Sustainability:The practice of efficiently using of the least amount of resources.
Improvement is not always when a result becomes greater than the last, it can also be when a result takes less effort to reach. When just the right amount of effort is used, we save resources, achieve the result, and gain an opportunity to reflect and refine.