Vision

Sustainable Community through Food Resource Empowerment
A community that is empowered and united to nourish itself while manifesting a shared desire for
health, wellbeing and a sustainable world.

Mission
To provide food &
goods and operate a community-owned enterprise grounded in sustainable
living practices that reflects our values.

Values
Quality Foods, Healthy Community, Sustainable
World
The Durham Food Co-op is a social and economic structure through which its members voluntarily and
intelligently cooperate for the common good. In the spirit of cooperative
endeavor, we affirm and promote the following values:

1. Quality
   Provide quality food and goods.
   We affirm life by promoting healthful food, environmentally constructive
   products and packaging and through the distribution of nutritional
   information and education.

2. Community
   Create opportunities for active involvement in community. We
   affirm the intrinsic worth and creative potential of each human being. It
   is our intent to allow member participation in a community-accessible
   workspace and to provide training for the mutual benefit of the Co-op and
   its members. It is our intent to positively affect the surrounding
   community through outreach programs & collaborative efforts. We support, embrace, and celebrate the
   diversity of our community.

3. Sustainable
   Promote sustainable production and fair trade of food and goods. We
   are committed to our food policy, which reflects buying practices for food
   and body aids with consideration towards moral and ethical production,
   environmental stewardship, healthy living, and safety.

4. Local
   Promote and facilitate the distribution of locally produced foods.
   We affirm the Co-op's role in the support and development of
   local and Southeast regional food distribution systems.

5. Service
   Provide knowledgeable staff and a positive shopping environment. We
   accept as our responsibility the necessity to invest in the development of
   our workers, and to create a welcoming atmosphere.

6. Education
   Educate to empower. We are committed to helping our community
   learn more about growing, choosing, preparing, and using natural foods. We
   are committed to learning and teaching about alternative ways of living
   that are healthy for ourselves, our community, and our planet.

7. Cooperation
   Follow cooperative principles put forth by the International Cooperative Alliance.

We affirm the necessity of continuous
effort and persistent application of our values in order to effectively sustain
a healthy and viable cooperative. It is our intent to maintain quality and
continuity within our organizational structure.

Revised December 2007