Multi-stakeholder Cooperatives

Weaver Street Market started in Carrboro, North Carolina, in 1988 and has grown into the largest retail multi-stakeholder cooperative in the United States. Today, it includes four grocery stores, a restaurant, and a food production facility.

What makes Weaver Street Market unique is that ownership is shared by both shoppers and employees. Along with consumer members, workers are also part owners and have a voice in how the co-op is governed. This shared ownership model helps ensure that decisions reflect the interests of both the people who shop there and the people who work there.

Maple Valley Cooperative began in 1991 and transitioned to a cooperative business in 2007. It is known for being an early leader in organic and fair-trade maple syrup production. The co-op brings together more than 30 maple producers from seven states, including Wisconsin, Minnesota, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, and Vermont. These producers work together to make high-quality certified organic maple products using environmentally responsible practices while ensuring farmers receive fair pay for their work.

The co-op includes five groups of members: producers, customers, investors, vendors, and employees. Its board of directors is made up of seven members who represent these groups fairly, giving different stakeholders a voice in decision-making. Today, Maple Valley is a successful cooperative focused on protecting the environment, strengthening communities, and using cooperation to create benefits for everyone involved.

Wisconsin Food Hub Cooperative

The Wisconsin Food Hub Cooperative (WFHC) is a farmer-led cooperative owned by the producers and the Wisconsin Farmers Union. The WFHC is dedicated to securing the most profitable markets for our producer-members.The hub makes it easy for the retail, institutional, and foodservice sectors to buy locally. The WFHC helps local farmers by providing them with the opportunity, through marketing, sales, aggregation, and logistics, to access wholesale markets they could not access easily before.The WFHC is committed to building an economically sustainable local food network.

Meatsmith Co-op

Meatsmith Co-op is a producer- and worker-owned meat processing cooperative that promotes the well-being of people, animals and land by providing access to humane on-farm harvest, nose-to-tail butchery, locally produced meats and educational opportunities, all with a focus on fostering the economic growth and resilience of our community.