Surveys 2016 February F Food Co-op Interest Survey

Food Co-op Interest Survey Food Co-op Interest Survey A Collaborative Effort by Ecossentials Local Market, Skookum Food Provisioners Co-op, & Other Such Folk

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Exit Survey

What if you could put your grocery dollars toward a local, member-owned food co-op? Building on Powell River’s strong community spirit, some core elements of a solid foundation for a successful and sustainable co-op are already in place. A food co-op in Powell River could benefit our community by: ▪ Putting our ethical, ecological & economic fairness values first - with fair prices, living wages, and environmental sustainability at its core ▪ Bringing motivated local people & small independent enterprises together - especially farmers and other food entrepreneurs - to use our resources more effectively ▪ Focusing on building relationships and developing smart solutions to benefit & serve our entire region ▪ Being a vibrant - even joyous - place to shop & work By transforming Ecossentials into a food co-op, the Ecossentials team, Skookum Food Provisioners' Cooperative Board, and other community members are working to make shopping for the essentials in all of our lives an act that seamlessly brings our practical needs together with our deeply held values. We hope you'll help us on this journey by filling out this survey. Those who are members of the Ecossentials team or the Skookum Provisioners Co-op or the Farmers Institute - you will find the survey in your email. The survey is also being distributed via Facebook. And you can pick up a hard copy at Ecossentials, the Winter Farmers Market and around town at other venues. To learn more and get a sense of our vision please take a look at this video from The Food Co-op Initiative: A Food Co-op in Your Community For more information about food co-ops - including some whose approach we are hoping to emulate- please click on the links below: The Kootenay Co-op based in Nelson, BC. The Community Food Co-op based in Bellingham, WA. The survey will be open until March 7, 2016 and should take only 10-15 minutes. We’re excited about the possibility of making a food co-op happen in our community. And we can only make it happen as a community. By filling out the survey you will provide us with invaluable information as we take our next steps on this path. A sincere thank you from all of us.   SHOPPING PATTERNS 1. How much does your household spend in an average week on groceries? -- Select --Under $100$100 - $150$151 - $200$201 - $250More than $250Don't Know       2. Where (your primary store) do you spend most of your grocery dollars? -- Select --Ecossentials Local MarketSunshine Organics (Ecossentials' home delivery)Local grocery store (Mitchell Bros., Pacific Point Market)Regional supermarket chain (Quality Foods)National/International supermarket chain (Save-On, Safeway)Convenience storeSupercenters (Walmart, Costco)Other         3. How much of your grocery dollars does your household spend at your primary store in an average week? -- Select --A little (0 - 25%)Some (26 - 50%)More than half (51 - 75%)Almost All (76 - 100%)Don't know       4. On average, how often do you shop at your primary store? -- Select --More than 1/WeekOnce/WeekTwice/MonthOnce/MonthLess than 1/Month     5. Where do you regularly purchase the following types of products? Grow or process our own Buy mostly in primary store Buy mostly elsewhere N/A Grocery items (cereal, juice, canned goods, etc) Dairy (milk, eggs, yogurt, soy, etc) Fresh fruits & veggies Frozen foods Meat, poultry, fish & seafood Deli/ready to eat foods Coffee/tea Bread & bakery Bulk products     6. From the list below, on a scale of 1 to 5 with 1 being most important, please choose ONLY THE TOP 5 FACTORS you consider when choosing where to shop for groceries: Product selection/variety -- Select --12345 Cleanliness of store -- Select --12345 Quality/freshness of products -- Select --12345 Knowledgeable staff -- Select --12345 Prices -- Select --12345 Friendly/courteous staff -- Select --12345 Location of store/convenience -- Select --12345 Availability of brands I/my family likes -- Select --12345 Availability of natural/organic foods -- Select --12345 Availability of locally grown foods -- Select --12345 Cooperative ownership (if it were available) -- Select --12345     SATISFACTION 7. Please rate your primary store in terms of how well it is meeting your needs with respect to the following store characteristics: Very Well Well Somewhat Well Somewhat Poorly Poorly Very Poorly No Opinion Product selection/variety Quality/freshness of products Prices Location of store/convenience Hours of operation Atmosphere/ambiance of store Cleanliness of store Knowledgeable staff Friendly/courteous staff Availability of brands I/my family likes Availability of natural/organic foods Availability of locally grown foods How well does the store meet your needs overall?       8. Do you have any comments regarding how your primary grocery store is meeting your needs with regard to the preceding store characteristics?     9. Please rate your primary grocery store in terms of how well it is meeting your needs in the following product categories: Very Well Well Somewhat Well Somewhat Poorly Poorly Very Poorly No Opinion/ Don’t Buy Grocery items (cereal, juice, canned goods, etc.) Dairy (milk, eggs, yogurt, soy, etc) Fresh fruits & veggies Frozen foods Meat, poultry, fish & seafood Deli/ready to eat foods Coffee/tea Bread & bakery Bulk products       10. Do you have any comments regarding how your primary grocery store is meeting your needs with respect to the preceding product categories or products offered/not offered?     11. How important would these features be for you to shop at your food Co-op? Very Important Important Somewhat Important Not Important No Opinion Member-ownership of the business Member-owner promotions Patronage refund for member-owners (money or credit based on annual purchases) Financial return as a member-investor of the co-op (also see Q 26) Member-owner appreciation days Ability to run & vote for board of directors   PERSONAL CHARACTERISTICS 12. Please indicate your level of agreement with the following statements: Agree Somewhat Agree Somewhat Disagree Disagree I am proactive about my health. Nutritional value is more important to me than price when buying food. Organic foods are very important to me and my family. I exercise on a regular basis. I buy local foods when available. I shop in places where I feel a sense of community. As much as possible, I shop at locally owned retailers. I am willing to pay a little more for products that are produced more sustainably/with less environmental impact. I engage in activities that address political/social issues.       13. What is your gender? -- Select --FemaleMaleOther         14. What is your age range? -- Select --18 - 2425 - 3031 - 3435 - 3940 - 4445 - 4950 - 5455 - 6465+       15. What is your highest level of education? -- Select --Less than high school diplomaHigh school diplomaSome college/tech/trade school 2-year college/tech/trade school degree4-year college degreeGraduate/Professional degree       16. What is your approximate gross annual household income? (If a spouse, partner, or other household member with whom you share income is filling out their own Food Co-op Interest Survey and has already answered this question on behalf of the household, please indicate your answer as "$0." If you don't share income, just indicate your own individual gross annual income.) -- Select --$0Less than $15,000$15,000 - $24,999$25,000 - $34,999$35,000 - $49,999$50,000 - $74,999$75,000 - $99,999$100,000 - $149,999$150,000 or morePrefer not to say     17. Including you, how many of the following live in your household? 1 2 3+ None Adults (18+) Children       18. What is your postal code?       19. Are you member of a food co-op? -- Select --YesNo       20. If yes to question above, which one? Name of Co-op, City, Province or State.       21. Please indicate if you’re a member of the following organizations:   Skookum Food Provisioners Co-op   Ecossentials staff   Powell River Farmers’ Institute   Powell River & District Agricultural Association   One or more Powell River area farmers markets   All of the above   Other local or regional food-based organization (please specify):   None of the above       22. Please rank your top three (1-3) preferred SOURCES of information regarding our future Food Co-op news & information. Local postings (signs, bulletin board, flyers, pamphlets, etc.) -- Select --123456 Co-op Facebook page or website -- Select --123456 Informal conversations (with co-op Board or staff) -- Select --123456 Formal meetings (annual mtg., Board mtgs/listening sessions) -- Select --123456 Emails -- Select --123456 Mailings (co-op newsletter, annual reports, special mailings) -- Select --123456     23. How important to you would the following TYPES of information be regarding our Food Co-op? Very Important Important Somewhat Important Not Important No Opinion Board of directors news Community events (e.g. festivals, celebrations) Co-op progress reports Financial information/reports Health, nutrition, & ingredients information Food production practices (e.g. genetically modified organisms; organics/organic standards) Locally produced products Food preparation & recipes Food safety Fair trade Producer profiles Livestock treatment The environment     24. How satisfied are you with your primary store’s current delivery of this information to you? Very Satisfied Satisfied Somewhat Satisfied Somewhat Dissatisfied Dis-satisfied Very Dissatisfied No Opinion Health, nutrition, & ingredients info Food production practices (e.g. GMO; organics/ organic standards) Locally produced products Food prep & recipes Food safety Fair trade Producer profiles Livestock treatment The environment     FINANCE & GOVERNANCE ISSUES In order to convert Ecossentials Local Market into a co-op, a new cooperative would be formed that would undergo a significant capital raising and membership campaign. This campaign would have no limit on member shares, but would have a limit of 150 possible investor-members based on BC Securities Commission regulations regarding co-op capital raising. Following the model of the Knives & Forks Community Investment Co-op on Bowen Island, each investor would be invited to invest in no more than two (2) RRSP-eligible investor shares at $2400 each. The campaign target would be to sell up to 200 co-op investor shares, with proceeds of the capital raising campaign used to: 1) Convert Ecossentials Local Market Inc. to cooperative ownership and management. 2) Provide for a strong, debt-free balance sheet, setting the enterprise up for success. This capital raising goal is likely to be supported by institutional support - organizations such as the Knives and Forks Food Investment Co-op (knivesandforks.ca) and Rhiza Capital (rhizacapital.com) which have expressed interest in supporting the development of co-ops (and this idea in particular) on the Coast. First Credit Union, Vancity Credit Union, The BC Cooperative Association, and others will also likely provide assistance. 25. With this information in mind, how important to you are the following features of the co-op investor share option? Very Important Important Somewhat Important Not Important No Opinion The ability to invest in my community Fixed maturity date for investor-shares Ability to sell/transfer investor-shares to other Co-op members Financial return on the investor-shares RRSP eligibility for investor-shares In-store promotions for investor-shareholders Ability to purchase investor-shares over time.       26. How much would you be willing to invest in RRSP-eligible co-op investor-shares? -- Select --$1600$2400$3200$4800$0 - I would not be prepared to support the co-op through the purchase of investor-shares.       27. What do you feel is a fair lifetime membership fee? -- Select --$0 - $50$51 - $100$101 - $150Other (please specify)         28. Please indicate your willingness or interest in serving on a committee, board of directors, or in some other capacity for a Powell River area Food Co-op. -- Select --Very InterestedInterestedNeutralNot InterestedWould like more info       29. Any final comments you’d like to make? One thing we’re wondering is what to call our new food co-op. Ecossentials Food Co-op is an obvious possibility, but this could also be a tremendous opportunity for re-branding with a new name, including changing from Ecossentials to Skookum Food Co-op. If you have any other suggestions, we’re all ears. And if your suggestion becomes “the one,” we’ll think of some fabulous prize to be awarded!