What is a buying club? Many people have never even heard of this concept and I’m continually amazed at how most people still consider things like organic fruits and vegetables to be something that ‘snobs’ eat! I’ve really heard people say this and it hurts to hear because I feel if they only knew the benefits (or even worse, how bad conventional food is!) that they would switch in a heartbeat.
Even sadder are those who KNOW and just can’t afford it!
As everyone is usually looking to lower their food costs I recommend buying clubs. These are local co-operatives where people usually volunteer a little of their time to keep the group running (things like sweeping after close, helping to stock the shelves, put together orders, etc.) in exchange for getting access to wholesale prices on perishable and non-perishable items.
Some buying clubs have connections to local farmers for fresh, raw cow and goat’s milk, but also other local products at cheap prices. In addition, they buy from Azure Standard, Frontier, Tropical Traditions, and other companies that cater to buying clubs. Local farmers also bring in their eggs to sell or trade at prices that are much more reasonable than those crooks at the farmer’s market or grocery store sell them for. If you bring back the egg cartons to refill often these clubs will give you a little discount for each carton they get back.
So you’re ready to find or start a buying club, huh? I’ve got some links below that can get you started with that:
http://startabuyingclub.com/
http://www.coopdirectory.org/
http://www.unitedbuyingclubs.com/
http://www.foodcoopinitiative.coop/buyingclubs
Let’s say, though, that there are no local buying clubs and you can’t or don’t want to start one in your area. There is now a really great alternative I heard a week ago called Thrive Market. They have a good selection of natural products now, but their customer service said that the selection will get even bigger soon. They’re a new company, just started, and their mission is to make healthy food affordable for everyone. They only deal in non-perishables for now, but think of Costco or Sam’s Club but for a place like Whole Foods? Their prices are even cheaper than Amazon in most cases, and a LOT cheaper than Whole Foods.