The Positive Impact of Grocery Store Cooperatives in Chicago's African American & Latin/x Communities

Abstract

Food deserts are highly influenced by two major factors: location and income. Due to these factors, Chicago’s most predominant food deserts lie in the South-Side and West-Side neighborhoods, where over 400 thousand African American and Latin/x low income families are affected. My research aims to analyze how grocery store cooperatives can elevate the low health and struggling economic predicaments impacting Chicago’s most disadvantaged areas families. Through performing a literature review, I plan to demonstrate how the collective purchasing power of a community could create a powerful form of passive income for low-income families who simply do not have enough money on their own to build individual sources of financial capital. Moreover, grocery store cooperatives have historically sold healthier/organic foods and vegetables and have enabled local entrepreneurs to sell their goods at the cooperative. The grocery store cooperative not only can benefit those investing in the cooperative, but also businesses around their impacted community. Furthermore, a case study of the Mandela Foods grocery store cooperative located in Oakland, California shows the successful benefits that a grocery cooperative could bring to the community. The Mandela Foods Cooperative has adapted to the community and has helped many events such as healthy cooking classes and nutrition education. Also, they are open 7 days a week for 7 to 13 hours and cater to the 25 percent of the population that benefits from SNAP. In the City of Chicago, where there are no grocery store cooperatives on the West and South Sides, it is important to expand these resources. Cooperatives are not a one dimensional resource, but could become a building block for elevating the basic needs of low-income families.