Letter from the GM

Spiral Food Co-op has been serving the community for 47 years and in that time, we grew from a start up in the basement of the Armory to our current location with 2,351 co-op member-owners. We moved into our larger space back in 2022 and have more than doubled store sales, increased offerings, and added more jobs in the community while supporting small farmers and producers.

Since we are a cooperative, it was difficult to fund an expansion project like this luckily, we had partners like the City of Hastings, Minnesota Consortium of Community Development, and Vermillion State Bank help loan us most of what was needed for the project. We received many contributions, preferred shares, and loans from member-owners who understood that as a community owned business this happens with your support.

Here we are again looking for you to help the co-op after a particularly difficult year. Within the past 12 months we’ve endured a multiday power loss, road closures limiting access to the co-op for months, and a cash crisis due to an accounting error. All the while the co-op has endured and continued to provide quality food and keep shelves stocked during this challenging time. To continue we are seeking help from many different paths including other cooperatives.

So how can you help? We are looking to raise $80,000 from all sources withing the next few months. This money will be used to pay vendors and build cash on hand through operations. We have already received some help from members and other cooperatives through member loans and have recently opened a GiveMN.org page with the assistance of CDS Cooperative Development Services as a fiscal sponsor. Donations through GiveMN are tax deductible and allow people to donate, Member or not. Through our fiscal sponsor, we are also able to accept gifts via Donor Advised Fund, Required Minimum Distributions, preferred stock, and more.

Please reach out to me or our Board of Directors if you have questions or want more information on how to help keep Spiral Food Co-op healthy.

In Cooperation,

Matt Malecha

gm@spiral.coop 651-437-2667  or board@spiral.coop