Our two natural food co-op storefronts both have a full array of departments in an effort to offer our shoppers the ability to use their co-op their main shopping spot if desired. We offer a variety of organic, non-gmo, local, fair trade and artisan foods, wellness products and mercantile items. Although our stores are relatively small, our impact on our community is big!
All staff are members of at least one department and many decisions regarding store operations, products, and sales are made at this level. Some staff are also department managers, so are directly responsible for product selection, ordering, and sales analysis.
For ideas or requests regarding our in product selection please make a suggestion!
Our bakery section maintains a commitment to local and regional small business producers and provides a variety of alternatively sweetened, gluten free and vegan baked goods in addition to delicious conventional items such as bread, pastries, bars and cookies. Many deliveries are brought to us daily and our bakers range from folks with classic European pastry training to those with a whole grain baking tradition and beyond.
**Gluten-Free Statement
Our bakery suppliers make every effort to avoid cross contamination in their gluten free goods, however if you have Celiac disease, or experience wheat sensitivities, please use caution when shopping our bakery section.
In 2020 our membership decided we should offer beer and wine and so this department was born. We offer numerous products from local and international producers. These include natural, organic, and ethically made beers, wines, ciders, and meads. We’re always on the lookout for new and exciting libations. We also carry a variety of non alcoholic items including alcohol free spirits, beers and wines. Thank you for being so supportive and cheers!
The majority of products in bulk are organic and many of our products are cross cultural, from all over the world. As often as possible, we purchase fair trade products to support cooperative agriculture globally.
What you can find:
- beans & legume
- candy
- chilled miso
- coffee & teas
- dried fruits
- flours & whole grains
- grains
- nuts, seeds & nut butters
- pastas
- sea vegetables
- spices
- sugars & sweeteners
- & more!
Break into the mold! Our cheese department is an excellent place to try something new. We have affordable staples, like cheddars, mozzarellas, and jack cheeses, but thanks to our low prices you can also be more adventurous and try something from our international or local selections. We carry a variety of delicious choices ranging from local goat cheddar to classic French brie and Greek feta, as well as vegan cheese substitutes. Enjoy raw and organic cheeses from cows, sheep and goats. We hope you’ll find an option for every diet.
Our cheese department is proud to continue our tradition of carrying the best and most varied selections and pairings for our customers’ enjoyment. We also carry cheese making supplies for those who prefer to do it themselves.
Our dairy and chill department is where fresh and healthy meet delicious. We offer you the best selection of local dairy and all of our milk and yogurt is hormone-free. We also offer a variety of dairy alternatives. One of our specialties is providing a wide selection of probiotic and fermented foods, such as raw sauerkraut, kimchi, kefir beverages, kombucha and natto. Many of these are local, too!
Our salad bar offers an array of fresh chopped salad fixings, creative salads, house made pickles and salad dressings, and packaged items including salads, meats, full meals and desserts. Every day there will be new tasty foods for your enjoyment.
Our cooks start with the finest ingredients, often turning vegetables and fruit harvested and delivered from local farms that morning into delicious fare for you to enjoy that day! Daily, different delicious ingredients are featured, and everything is made right here, at the store. We’re even able to share some recipes with our members, and soup cookbooks are for sale at the salad bar.
Another deli favorite are our sandwiches that we make fresh every day but Sunday and sell out of our grab and go coolers in both stores, as you can find our packaged foods at our Westside store as well.
The self-serve salad bar, soup, coffee and tea is open at our Eastside store from 8 am until 7pm. Sandwiches and packaged items are sold until 9 pm at both stores. Hot coffee and tea have also returned to our Westside store.
We love to hear from you. What did you particularly enjoy? What could we do better? What would you like to see that we don’t yet have? You can fill out a suggestion form at one of our stores or here. Thank you for sharing food and community with us
It’s cool to shop through the glass. We are the destination for staples you expect from a grocery freezer section, yet we fulfill your expectations for unique standards in the marketplace. We have an emphasis on organic and sustainable bulk fruit and vegetables, non-GMO ingredients, and numerous local and Pacific NW vendors. Whether you need raw materials for smoothies and baking, treats for a particular diet, or quick dinner and snack solutions, we have options for you!
Cultivate a natural life with us! Come check out our selection of organic and ethically sourced garden and urban farm supplies. At both stores we offer a variety of basic gardening supplies and chicken feed outside of the front Co-op door, and a newer display inside, near the produce department, you will find seeds, and other gardening and canning supplies. The west side garden center is permanently closed, but we still sell gardening supplies at both stores!
Our grocery department offers variety, convenience, and good value in shelf stable pantry basics and prepackaged foods. Whether you are looking for a quick snack or a full meal, our buyers select delicious and nutritious products with great care, taking into account our members’ dietary needs and the justice principles the Olympia Food Coop strives to uphold. We work closely with the National Co+op Grocers, our many distributors, and small vendors to continually offer promotional specials on the products we carry.
Our meat department offers ethically raised fresh and frozen meat and seafood.
Our highest values
- Locally, or regionally grown meats/products. We source items as close to Olympia as possible, to reduce the distance products travel before getting to you and to support our local an economy.
- Humanely raised and harvested meats. We prefer farms and companies that have earned certification for humane treatment, and are dedicated to animal welfare.
- Land stewardship. We look for farms and companies that have been awarded stewardship certification and have the highest environmental standards.
- Organic, Free-Range, Free-Roaming, Vegetarian-Fed, Grass-Fed, Wild caught. We strive to offer organic options wherever possible, while maintaining more affordable options as well. All our chicken, pork, and lamb are vegetarian fed. All our fish options are wild-caught fish, never farmed. Our buffalo is raised with the utmost respect for land and the animal on the prairies of South Dakota.
Products offered:
- Beef
- Pork
- Lamb
- Poultry
- Buffalo
- Seafood
Our mercantile department offers an extensive selection of imaginatively crafted products that promote sustainability. In our mercantile department you will find a wide array of reusable storage containers and dishes, recycled glassware, cast iron cookware, organic fair trade socks and leggings, environmentally sustainable beeswax candles, handmade local items, and cards, knit ware, and incense. We also offer local artisan wares such as t-shirts and jewelry.
We are honored to have supportive long term connections with the great local and international companies that supply our products.
Our produce department has Fresh Food for Everybody! Stimulate your senses with vibrant seasonal selections available in your produce department. We are dedicated to ensuring that the best variety of fresh, local, and organic selections are here every day!
Fresh
We work closely with regional distributors to bring you a wide selection of fruits and vegetables throughout every growing season!
Local
We cultivate long term relationships with local farmers through our Local Farms Program to ensure the best available produce and to support a healthy local economy. When you choose produce from the aisle, it could very well have been harvested from the farm that morning. That’s how dedicated to local we are!
Some local farms we purchase from regularly include:
Boistfort
Brownfield
Burnt Ridge
Cedar Slope
Helsing Junction
Here to There
Kingfisher
Little Big
Newaulum
OPMA (Okanogan Producers Marketing Association)
Piece by Piece
Pigman’s
Rising River
Wobbly cart
Organic
Leading the way in organics for over 30 years! Our practices are guided by our mission and values and embrace all industry standards. You will only find the best organic, pesticide-free, and wild-harvested produce here!
Social Justice
We are proud of our partners—and you can be too! You will find selections from these amazing programs and producers in your produce department.
GROW Bananas
Organics Unlimited
Equal Exchange
Tilth Producers of Washington
CO+OP Stronger Together
Organically Grown Company
Produce Statement
We in the Produce Department believe in supporting sustainable agriculture by providing certified organic, pesticide free, and transitional produce as often as possible. Purchasing sustainably grown food contributes to the health and well being of the planet and its inhabitants. When we support practices that maintain the balance of the ecosystem, we ensure a safe and healthy food supply for ourselves and future generations.
Vision
- educate membership about produce and the Co-op’s buying practices
- educate ourselves about specific product uses, as well as farmer, distributor, and industry practices
- encourage members to move beyond their usual buying habits by focusing on the aesthetics of fresh produce
Values
- offer fair prices for locally grown or directly purchased crops
- provide fresh organic, transitional, or pesticide free produce at an affordable price to the membership
- support local farmers by providing as much local produce as possible
- strive to save resources by reusing materials and reducing transportation of food
- provide information about produce
- stimulate the local and regional economy with our buying practices
- demonstrate the viability of local commerce by acting as a model for bio-regionalism
- honor fresh food as a life-giving energy source that excites the senses and has healing properties
The Olympia Food Co-op offers our own line of supplements. Scroll below to find out more information about our other local, regional, and major brands of supplements and body care items.
Local & Regional
Listed below are products from the state of Washington and Portland, Oregon, and can be found at both of our locations, unless otherwise noted.
Alaffia
Alaffia purchases Shea butter directly from worker-run cooperatives in west Africa (predominantly Togo), ensuring fair wages and supporting the traditional methods used to produce butter from the Shea nut. Their ongoing programs support education, health care, and general life quality within the region where the workers live. Alaffia’s headquarters are located in Olympia, where they produce high-quality body care items at accessible prices.
Camamu Soap
Hand-made soaps from Portland, OR, are delightfully scented with essential oil blends. We dare you to smell them and not fall in love with Camamu!
Cannabis Basics
(East side only) Topical body care products with hemp and marijuana derived ingredients, conscious hand-crafting with love
Cascadia Terroir
Delightful Essential oils, hydrosols and room sprays, deodorants, and balms produced in Olympia and featuring the essences of Pacific Northwest plants
Eclectic Institute
Potent freeze-dried herbs in capsules from Gresham, OR
Host Defense
One of two local supplement producers we carry. Certified organic, sustainably cultivated, grown and processed in the Olympia area, non-GMO verified, and Bee Friendly. Host Defense mushroom teas, extracts and capsules offer a variety of health benefits and act as “functional foods,” providing highly digestible and absorbable sources of nutrition.
Island Thyme Botanicals
Luscious skin and body care produced with love on Orcas Island
Master Tonic
Made in Yelm, this tonic is inspired by traditional Fire Cider recipes.
Oly Topicals
Beautiful golden skin care oils and salves and dreamy bath soaks and room sprays, produced right here in Olympia!
Portland Bee Balm
Lip balm from beeswax collected and made in Portland, OR.
Riverdance Soapworks
Handcrafted Soaps made in Shelton, WA.
Uncle Harry’s Natural Products
Uncle Harry’s is a Washington-based business offering natural alternatives to basic personal care items at very affordable prices. Look for Uncle Harry’s on the shelf and in our section of bulk products!
Vital Leaf Woman-owned CBD company in Portland, OR, producing award winning topicals and capsules
Yoga Way of Life (Westside location only)
Formulated with Ayurvedic doctors in India, produced in Kirkland, and completely delightful! To learn more about using Yoga Way of Life in your personal care practice, check out these videos
MAJOR BRANDS
Here are our highlighted major brands we’d like to share with you. The following vendors can be found at both locations, unless otherwise noted.
Acure Organics
Badger
Boiron (Homeopathics)
Pranarom Dr. Hauschka (Eastside location only)
evanhealy
Griffin Remedy
Health Force Nutritionals
Mega Food
Mineral Fusion (Eastside location only)
Nordic Naturals
Pranarom
OTHER RESOURCES
Here are other resources to assist in wellness research:
Skin Deep Database – Environmental Working Group