The Urban Omnivore

There are plenty of places to buy groceries in a city. In Boston, most of us know about Super Stop & Shop, Star Market, Shaw’s Supermarket, Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s, etc. With the exception of Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s, all of these places have huge selections of conventional foods and varying degrees of organic foods. Whole Foods is an exception because they sell all organic foods and Trader Joe’s has much less conventional foods. Recently we discovered another place to shop, The Harvest Co-op Markets, in Jamaica Plain and Cambridge.

The Harvest Co-op Markets are unique in that consumers can become owners of the store as well as patrons (a la “I’m not just the president. I’m also a client!” only not as hokie). Membership/ownership benefits include discounts on certain days, annual refunds (proportional to how much you spend), and participating in the management of the company (voting for board members, etc). Shopping at the Co-op means that you’re supporting a local business, helping stimulate the local economy, getting access to a wide variety of local and organic foods, and if you’re so inclined… making a political statement.

The Co-op in Jamaica Plain has basically what you’d expect out of any grocery including: a great produce section, a limited but satisfactory meats (beef, pork, fish, chicken) section, prepared foods, non-perishables, etc.

What I didn’t expect (but should have) was the extensive bulk section that included rices, pastas, beans, granola, nuts, and coffee. There was also a great selection cheeses and, most suprisingly, a selection of local and organic wines and beers.

The best part of the whole shopping experience at the Co-op for me was that I didn’t hate it. Over the years, I’ve grown to hate going to the supermarket, playing demolition derby with my shopping cart, battling hundreds of other shoppers jostling for a clear pass around slower movers, and annoying music piped over the loud speakers. Even on a nice Sunday afternoon, the Co-op wasn’t overly crowded even though there were plenty of people there. Actually, reflecting on that last statement, it was somewhat crowded… it just didn’t “feel” as crowded. Maybe it was the distinct lack of sensory overload that I typically associate with shopping for groceries.

In any case, we’ll certainly be frequenting the store in Jamaica Plain more often and hopefully transition to making most of purchases there. After some more evaluation when the “honeymoon” period is over, we might even become members/owners.

Maybe there is a co-op near you? Check out the Organic Consumers Association or Cooperative Grocer and find out. No co-ops? How about shopping at smaller, local groceries? And of course in the summer and fall, you can visit farmer’s markets and/or join a CSA (more on CSAs to follow).