Saint Paul, MN – National Co+op Grocers (NCG) and its 165 member co-ops raised more than $139,000 in recent weeks for the North American Traditional Indigenous Food Systems (NĀTIFS), a nonprofit dedicated to revitalizing Indigenous food systems and promoting cultural preservation within Native American communities.
Through a promotion that ran from Oct. 30 through Dec. 3, NCG member co-ops donated $0.05 for every Field Day product purchased by their shoppers. Field Day is NCG members’ value brand, offering 270+ high-quality, more affordable food and household products.
NĀTIFS is founded by Lakota Chef Sean Sherman (known as the Sioux Chef). Through initiatives like the Indigenous Food Lab, NĀTIFS offers training programs, educational workshops and support for Indigenous entrepreneurs to empower individuals and foster economic development.
By addressing economic disparities, food insecurity and the loss of Indigenous food knowledge, NĀTIFS aims to restore health, wealth and cultural identity to Indigenous populations. The organization's commitment to promoting Indigenous foodways education, facilitating food access and revitalizing ancestral knowledge underscores its mission to create positive social impact and support underserved communities.
“NCG’s promotion provides critical and timely support for NĀTIFS,” said Sherman. “We’re grateful for their work and for the contributions from their members and shoppers in helping us achieve our goals.”
“We partnered with NATIFS on this promotion because their work reflects some of the core values of food co-ops: concern for community and food sovereignty, or the right for people to have a stake in their local food system.” said C.E. Pugh, NCG Chief Executive Officer. “NCG was also deliberate in our choice to put our most popular line of “value” goods on sale and tie a donation to that, because more affordable food options rarely get discounted further. We want to send a message that not only is the food co-op a more affordable option, when you shop with us, even if you’re on a tight budget, you get to participate in supporting positive changes in our society."
The idea for the promotion came from one of NCG’s largest member cooperatives, PCC Community Markets in Seattle, which had previously hosted a similar promotion locally. “Cooperation among cooperatives is why NCG exists,” added Pugh. “Food co-ops have a long history of working together to strengthen their individual communities, PCC Community Markets is a great example of that.”
About NCG
National Co+op Grocers (NCG), founded in 1999, is a business services cooperative for retail food co-ops located throughout the United States. NCG helps unify food co-ops in order to optimize operational and marketing resources, strengthen purchasing power and ultimately offer more value to natural food co-op owners and shoppers everywhere. Our 165 member co-ops operate more than 240 storefronts in 39 states with combined annual sales of nearly $2.5 billion. NCG is a winner of the dotCoop Global Awards for Cooperative Excellence and a certified B Corp. Find a map of NCG member co-ops. To learn more about co-ops, visit grocery.coop.
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Media inquiries may be directed to Eric Davis at edavis@curiousplot.agency, 612-202-9407.