Saint Paul, MN – Ukraine’s cooperative businesses and members are at risk as Russia’s invasion of the country enters day six. In a show of solidarity, National Co+op Grocers (NCG) has partnered with the Cooperative Development Foundation (CDF) and NCBA CLUSA to launch a fundraising drive to support the Ukrainian cooperative community’s immediate and ongoing needs during this time.
COOP Ukraine, which includes 15,000 enterprises, 3,000 restaurants, seven hotels, 300 manufacturing businesses and shops, and 300 markets throughout Ukraine, is working to maintain operations so member-owners can continue to rely on co-op goods and services.
"The sense of support and solidarity we feel from around the world gives us strength," said Illia Gorokhovskyi, board chair of the All-Ukrainian Central Union of Consumer Societies (COOP Ukraine), adding that the country's cooperatives are continuing to serve their members. "Despite these circumstances, consumer cooperatives are making efforts to provide the population with the necessities of life, primarily food, and delivering them to where it is most needed."
NCG has pledged a 100% match for all donations up to $100,000 made by the retail food co-op system. The cooperative community values the importance of lending support to those in need. In honor of the sixth principle, cooperation among cooperatives, CDF will donate funds to help cooperatives impacted in Ukraine. Donations can help CDF provide Ukrainian cooperatives with immediate and ongoing support through CDF’s Disaster Recovery Fund. Donations can be made online or by sending a check to CDF at 1775 Eye St. NW, 8th floor, Washington, DC, 20006, indicating Disaster Recovery Fund in the memo line.
About CDF’s Disaster Recovery Fund
The Disaster Recovery Fund helps cooperatives and cooperators get back on their feet after disasters or other emergency hardship situations. 100% of money donated to the Disaster Recovery Fund will go to support cooperatives. CDF does not charge an administrative fee for management of the Fund. In the last four years, the Disaster Recovery Fund has provided nearly $500,000 in grants to cooperatives, families and communities affected by disasters in the United States, Puerto Rico, the Bahamas and Uganda.
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 food co-op owners and shoppers everywhere. Our 149 member and associate co-ops operate more than 200 stores in 38 states with combined annual sales of $2.4 billion. NCG is a winner of the dotCoop Global Awards for Cooperative Excellence and a Certified B Corporation. See a map of NCG member co-ops. To learn more about co-ops, visit www.grocery.coop.
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Media inquiries may be directed to Eric Davis (edavis@curiousplot.agency; 612-202-9407).