Food Co-op Symbols Explained

When you shop in a food co-op or peruse the Co+op Deals flyer, you’ll notice symbols meant to give you more information about a product. These are helpful if you’d like to prioritize brands or products that align with certain values or quality standards. Here’s a guide to learn more:

Organic

The USDA Organic seal is only used on products with at least 95% organic ingredients. Organicstandards require avoidance of synthetic chemical inputs (pesticides, fertilizers), bioengineered seeds, growth hormones, antibiotics, irradiation and sewage sludge.

New

You guessed it! This means a product is either brand new or is a new addition to the co-op.

Local

There’s no standard definition for locally sourced products, so each food co-op defines this label based on a distance, state or county lines or watershed. Check out your local co-op to learn more.

Co-op Trade

The co-op way of doing business is to be open, fair and democratic. As a co-op, we love supporting other cooperatively ownedenterprises — it’s one of our cooperative principles! Look for this mark to find brands cooperatively owned by their workers, farmers or community.

Inclusive Trade

Co-ops around the country are committed to fostering diverse and inclusive communities. Look for this symbol to find brands owned by people who identify as women, Black, Indigenous, people of color, disabled, LGBTQIA+ and veterans.

Co+op Basics

Co+op Basics offers everyday low prices on many popular grocery and household items. From milk to beef to cereal, you’ll find value-priced brands exclusive to co-ops and independent grocers, as well as low prices on some of your familiar favorites.

BOGO

You don’t want to miss these deals! Buy one, get one free deals appear regularly in the Co+op Deals flyer and are the ultimate savings. Sometimes there is a limit on the number of free products you can receive within one shopping trip, but you can shop every day of the sale!