Baker Food Co-op continues to grow in Baker City

Published 11:46 am Monday, August 4, 2025

Shop also offers ‘grab and go’ food options

BAKER CITY — The Baker Food Co-op is a place to find organic fruits and vegetables, local meat, bulk items, spices and supplements, but several days a week it more resembles a restaurant.

On a recent Monday morning, Marjorie Laymance and Hope Salmon chopped, mixed and packaged salads, sandwiches and wraps for the co-op’s “grab and go” section, which has been expanded in the last few months.

“We try to focus on healthy, fresh, different,” said Laymance, who has worked in restaurants for most of her life.

“I scour cookbooks and the web, then adjust them until they become ours,” she said.

Some examples: turkey, cranberry and cream cheese sandwiches; turkey and avocado; Playground Ham with cream cheese, peanuts, pickles and red onion; Mediterranean tuna salad; vegan sandwich; veggie wraps with hummus; and a salad with chickpeas, veggies and a special dressing.

The most popular, Laymance said, is an Asian Thai noodle salad.

All ingredients come from the refrigerators and shelves of the co-op.

“Everything can be duplicated at home,” she said.

The Baker Food Co-op started in 1976 as a buying club to get bulk foods at wholesale prices. After several moves and expansions, the shop settled on 10th Street in the early 1980s.

By 2010, the co-op outgrew that space and relocated to rent a building at 2008 Broadway St.

Just this year, the co-op paid off that loan and now owns the building in downtown Baker City.

“Sales are up and we’re poised for growth,” said Naomi Preston, board president.

And, after a few slim years, she said the co-op is in a better financial position.

“We have breathing room, and can bring in some new products,” she said.

The co-op receives two to three deliveries each week, plus stocks local produce, including kale, heirloom tomatoes, onions and carrots grown by Brian McNaughton.

“When you taste his carrots, they are so much sweeter and better,” Preston said.

The co-op also sells local bison, beef and pork.

“Lots of ways to shop local,” she said.

While produce depends on the season, the co-op always offers a bulk section for different flours, oats, beans and more, plus bulk spices.

“We’ve got a huge variety,” Preston said of the spice section. “We’re constantly refilling those jars.”

The details

The co-op is open to the public, although shoppers can become members for a $25 lifetime fee, plus a yearly $10 maintenance fee. Members receive a 10% discount for the first month, then 5% after that. Another option is a $100 lifetime membership.

Members who volunteer can earn up to a 25% discount.

“Volunteering at the co-op is a really great way to meet people doing something worthwhile, and you get a discount on your groceries,” Preston said.

The co-op has several paid staff, including store manager Teresa Walker and assistant manager Elizabeth Fritz.

“Teresa brings years of co-op experience, and both she and Elizabeth are doing an amazing job,” Preston said.

She said the co-op board also volunteers many hours at the store.

The co-op is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday and Saturday, and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Friday.

Also, the shop stays open late during the First Friday art walk each month, as well as the wine walk held on the third Thursday from March through November.

More information is available on the co-op’s Facebook page or website, bakerfoodcoop.org.