by David Toler
Grocery prices have risen dramatically over the last five years. Federal cuts to SNAP and other welfare services have pushed increasingly expensive groceries out of reach for many. Food insecurity is a harsh reality for nearly 1 in 5 children in Thurston County and as a result, The Thurston County Food Bank is now serving more households than ever before.
While food insecurity is a serious problem, food justice indicates something beyond people simply having their dietary needs met. The movement for food justice is about fundamentally transforming the political economy of food. Food justice seeks to create a planet where the distance between farmers and community is closer and less mediated by corporate entities. The Olympia Food Co-op is making steps and developing a model for a worker and member-owned grocery store as part of a larger food justice movement.
According to the U.S. Bureau of labor statistics, the “average price for food purchased for home use rose 33% from 2019 through June [of] 2026.“ Such an increase in prices indicates that food inflation is impacting far more than just the lowest income households. Millions of Americans are being forced to change their consumption habits. Highly processed foods are the only affordable option for many families. Meanwhile, Robert F. Kennedy JR. has tried to make those very foods ineligible for food stamps. For some of the poorest families, the solution to rising food prices offered by the Trump administration is to simply not eat.
Furthermore, our food system is now dominated by large mega-corporations. Ten corporations control a majority of all the food products we eat. Only four corporations now control over 80% of beef and over 70% of total pork production. Some of the negative impacts of food system monopolization are higher prices, fewer choices, and environmental devastation. Another consequence includes oppressive labor exploitation. Unfortunately, the food system operates to exploit the very people that rely on it — whether farmworkers making below minimum wage or households trying to put dinner on the table every night.
In response to the ever-growing corporate control of our food system, a food justice movement across the world is sprouting. The food justice movement is a grouping of organizations, thinkers, and activists striving to create a food system where everyone has access to environmentally sustainable, safe, healthy, and culturally-appropriate foods. Additionally, the movement pushes for fair wages and safe working conditions for everyone working within the system, from grocery store workers to farm workers.
Earlier this year, the Olympia City Council unanimously approved a referral directing city staff to develop a local food system plan that would address the current food system, one that is inaccessible for far too many households. Council Member Dani Madrone introduced the referral noting that the city had not made much progress on this issue even though many elements of developing a food system with a food justice framework are in the city’s comprehensive plan. Madrone stated that the plan needs to “identify gaps…and support existing initiatives.”
The South Sound might have a good foundation for a more just food system in the Olympia Food Co-op (OFC). According to OFC Board member Andie Geron, “The Co-op has been delivering food justice for nearly 50 years.” Although the Olympia Food Co-op “has approximately 20,000 members today,” she hopes, “we can continue to grow awareness that the Olympia Food Co-op is far more than a grocery store.”
The unique thing about OFC is that, unlike corporate grocery stores, it is owned by its members. Its democratic structure means that it is more beholden to the community than your average grocer. While some of its prices are higher, you are not just paying for higher quality food; you are also paying for a more democratic food system. There are several ways that OFC is making itself more accessible to the community.
OFC recently launched a food justice campaign to address some of the most critical food related issues in the community. It recognizes five principles of food justice as particularly important:
Creating a food system in which everyone has access to nutritious food, regardless of income, background, or where they live
Achieve Economic, Environmental and Social Justice by cutting out harmful corporate food producers and distributors.
Supporting Local Small Organic Farms and Food Producers
Economic Fairness Means No Outrageous CEO Salaries and Billionaire Stockholders.
Advocating for Social Justice in our community
When we shop at Big Box grocers, the food that they sell is often from large corporate agricultural producers or international sources where environmental and labor rights are severely lacking. “The Co-op is the only grocery store in Thurston County that regularly researches and vets the food producers before we buy from them to avoid bad actors, assuring our community that the products on our shelves reflect the values ... our community expects,” adds Geron.
The Co-op has far more local, organic produce than any other grocer in Thurston County. Each winter, co-op staff members actually meet with local organic farms of the region to help coordinate crop selection and assure price stability. Unlike other grocery stores in Thurston County, the Co-op provides a 10% discount to low income households on every item. The Co-op is also the only grocery store that has a “Pay-it-Forward” program that feeds homeless people everyday.
Even more importantly, the Co-op actually implements a lower price mark for local produce and local food products to help our local organic farms and food manufacturers compete with Mega-Corporate brands offered by the Big Box grocers. Unlike other grocery stores in Thurston County, the Olympia Food Co-op provides financial incentives for people to buy local products.
Big Box grocers like Costco and Fred Meyer do not provide such incentives. The CEOs of those companies are incentivized by their own paychecks and compensation packages which range from $12-17 Million/year. The hard-earned paychecks of community members should not go towards something as meaningless as an executive’s ability to accumulate yachts and vacation homes.
The Olympia Food Co-op is the only grocer in Thurston County that practices social responsibility by speaking up and supporting social justice movements. Geron believes it’s important to recognize that, “over the last several years, the Co-op has publicly affirmed our support [for] Boycott Divest and Sanction (BDS), supported the Olympia for All tenants’ rights campaign, and was the only mid-sized organization to endorse the Workers’ Bill of Rights campaign.”
Partnerships Can Build More Food Justice
Providing access to healthy food is only the beginning of a long march towards a completely reimagined food system. Food insecurity is a multifaceted problem. Confronting it will require long-term collaboration between different community members and organizations. Co-operative storefronts, local farms, and mutual aid networks on the street all have a role to play in prefiguring a democratically controlled food system that builds food justice in the present and future. Our food should be controlled by the people that interact with it, not grocery store owners and investors.
Dave Toler is a board member on the Olympia Food Co-op. He can be reached at tolerd@gmail.com