Macomb Food Initiatives Group » Food Coop

Earth Summit at WIU

Dan Barclay — Sat, 10 Apr 2010 15:33:08 +0000

FIG was well-represented at WIU’s Earth Summit on Wednesday, April 7th. Treasurer Jamie Lane and Chair Dan Barclay staffed an information table. Several people indicated interest in FIG and were enthusiastic about FIG’s mission. The Macomb Food Co-op Steering Committee had a table right next to FIG’s and it was exciting to see all of the interest that people have in establishing a local food store in our area.

Macomb Food Co-op Meeting

Dan Barclay — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 16:59:58 +0000

UPDATE: The community information meeting about a local foods co-op in Macomb has been postponed.

This meeting was originally scheduled for 7 pm Wednesday, January 27rd, in the 1st floor Community Room of Macomb’s City Hall to inform the public about initial planning efforts to open a natural food store featuring locally grown and raised food. The co-op steering committee will reschedule this meeting for a later date.

Food Co-op Field Trip

Dan Barclay — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 22:47:48 +0000

Four members of the Local Foods Co-op steering committee from Macomb made a field trip to St. Louis on Friday, Decemeber 11, to gather information about running a small natural foods grocery and learn about the local food scene in St. Louis. Clare Kernek, Jamie Lane, John Curtis, and Dan Barclay made stops at Soulard Farmer’s Market, Local Harvest Grocery, and Local Harvest Cafe and Catering.

Local Harvest Grocery in St. Louis.

The trip to St. Louis was very informative and talking to the management of Local Harvest Grocery gave the steering committee a lot to think about and provided good ideas to share at a community meeting being planned for late January. More photos are included in the rest of this post…After getting an early start from Macomb at 6:30, the first stop in St. Louis was the historic Soulard Farmer’s Market that was established in 1797.

Soulard Farmer's Market in Winter

The steering committee members met with one of the co-owners of Local Harvest Grocery to learn about starting up a small grocery business that sells food that is produced locally.

Getting the low-down on the local foods grocery business

Local Harvest Grocery has won several St. Louis awards in its brief two-and-a-half year existence including Best Grocery Store and Best Gourmet Grocery Store.

A neighborhood grocery with a big selection.

Local Harvest Cafe and Catering won Best New Restaurant for 2009. The restaurant uses excess produce from Local Harvest Grocery as a source for some of its menu items. The steering committee all enjoyed their food as well as the welcome they received during their visit.

The daily menu board and pastry selection at Local Harvest Cafe.

A Food Coop for Macomb

Dan Barclay — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 21:07:02 +0000

A number of people in McDonough County have begun planning a food coop for Macomb. The current initiative was hatched by Clare Kernek and a 4-person steering committee has now been formed. A community survey will be distributed beginning in early December to gauge interest and support for the new cooperative business. An open community meeting is tentatively scheduled for mid-December. The FIG Board is very supportive of this effort and will discuss the food co-op in detail at the November 30 Board meeting.