​Beverley Lee
Web Team/Past member of Renewable Energy Benalla 
​24 May 2025

Karen Nankervis has been a very active, dedicated and well considered member of the food co-op committee for many years. Karen has decided it is time for her to step down from the committee and re-prioritise her time and energy elsewhere.

Fortunately Karen will continue to be an active food co-op member, including in her role as computer operator.

Karen--the co-op thank you most sincerely for your generous service, excellent ideas, energy and friendship. 

​Rhona Rose​

We have a new coordinator for the food co-op. We are pleased to have long term committee member Sonia Bourke, take on the role. Sonia has been a dedicated member for 12 years and has an excellent knowledge of the products and how the co-op operates. To assist Sonia in her role we have delegated some areas of responsibility to others.  Sonia is centre in the above photo with two new members Teresa and Fiona.

Our membership sits at around 68. One of the first things we will be doing is further promotion to tap into members of our community who may not be aware of the unique asset we have in the Benalla community. Our main form of advertising has been through ‘word of mouth’.
Open dates for the remainder of the year are as follows – December Monday 2nd, at 4pm, Saturday 14th at 9.30am and Thursday 19th at 9.30am.

​The Benalla Food Co-op is in its 13th year of operation and currently has a membership of 68 households with over forty of them shopping regularly.
 
Our main activity has been general ongoing operational issues. Our efforts to remain vermin free have been mostly successful with minimal stock loss. Our ability to improve storage is hampered by lack of spacespace. Initially we planned to purchase an extra cupboard, however that idea changed and have bought extra shelving. A safety step is on the shopping list.

Our product list had a few changes with instant coffee becoming unavailable. We are currently trialling dried mushrooms from Markwood Mushroom and buckwheat kernels.

Our vacuum caused a few difficulties and thank you to Robyn Kelly, who kindly donated a Dyson vacuum.

​The Co-op continues to open earlier on Monday afternoons during winter due to shorter daylight hours and colder weather. This commenced in May. Our markup remains at 20%
 
Thank you Wendy Baker for the overall accounting matters (see Wendy’s financial year report).
 
Thank you Christine for continuing to coordinate the roster, and Peter for ongoing management of the day-to-day accounts as well as the biannual stock take. The Holmes duo have been tireless in their Co-op volunteering and are life members.
 
Thank you Rhona for years of email update news. I will miss our pre-news texts and chats as we collate our narration each week.
Thank you Graeme Greed for ongoing equipment maintenance.
 
Thank you Maren for ordering the spices and Julienne who helps to package the herbs. Thank you Sonia for continuing to allow her front porch to be used for deliveries.
 
Thank you Kay Blore, Karen Nankervis and Judy Schwarzman who promote recycling and empty our recycle containers.
 
Thank you to our 11 duty managers and 13 iPad operators. Jenny Monger has retired from being an iPad operator and Julie McPherson has moved from being a Duty Manager to iPad Operator. Thank you Jenny for years and years of volunteering.
 
Thank you Beverly Lee and Peter Maddock for maintaining our social media and BSFG website presence. Thank you Karen and Graham who regularly ask if there are orders to collect from Melbourne or Myrtleford and happily do so if required.
 
Thank you to my husband Richard who has unloaded the pallets of produce each month for the past 3 years and stacked it all into the cupboards.
 
In closing I would like to say how much I’ve appreciate your friendship and assistance over the last 3 years. Without your help, there would be no Co-op. I applaud Claire as she steps forward to take on the extra load and warmly wish her the very best as I step down.
 
Co-op Committee: Susanne (retiring coordinator), Claire (new coordinator), Christine (rosters), Peter (finance), Rhona (weekly up-dates), Karen (recycling), Judy (BSFG secretary), Sonia (porch for deliveries) and Julie McPherson (moving to iPad operator), Tanya and Rosalie.
 
Duty managers: Graham, Sonia, Tanya, Rosalie, Christine, Rhona, Joy, Robyn, Eleanor, Susanne (retiring) and Claire (stepping up).
 
iPad Operators: Peter, Karen, Glenys, Simon, Stacy, Deanne, Jenny, Julienne, Maren, Marlies, Sally and Robert.
 
Enquiries/feedback welcome via the BSFG website or the Co-op email [email protected]

Following Susanne Bennett’s retirement as coordinator at the end of May 2024, we need someone to fill this role.

The coordinator keeps their finger on the pulse of the co-op, oversees its running and is alert to any issues which arise. The coordinator is well supported by a committee and is encouraged to delegate roles where appropriate.

Ideally the role would be the responsibility of one person.

Financial remuneration in the form of a discount on all shopping, would be offered to the coordinator.

Past experience indicates that the coordinator’s role takes around two hours each week.  An additional 2 hours is needed to pick up and process orders (usually once a month).

The coordinator is not expected to be included in the duty roster…although doing so occasionally is an advantage.

Some of the roles currently done by the coordinator could be delegated, to share the load among members.

The duties of the coordinator include:

• Communicate with committee as required.
• Maintain food co-op supplies. Check stock, (eye-balling and via computer records), order new stock, collect pallet delivery from Midland Freight, Benalla.  Check delivery against order, number and shelve each item. Ordering new supplies is done from home. Pallet pick up takes around 2 hours (generally once a month).  This requires two strong, well organised people with a ute or trailer to pick up together.  The heaviest bags weigh 25kg (sugar bags).  Flour weigh bags weigh 12.5kg, oats 15kg, vinegar 20kg.
• Reply to emails, including welcoming new members and answering members’ questions.
• Between open times, check that food co-op is maintained in clean, orderly manner.  E.g. Checking honey and oil not leaking between shopping days.
• Oversee the annual compliance check with BRCC.
• Instigate and run committee meetings. (These are on a needs basis--generally two a year.)
• Order local products and arrange for pick-up or delivery. (eg oil, vinegar, pumpkin seeds, honey, rye and spelt flour, muesli, dried mushrooms)
• Write an annual report and present to BSFG’s AGM.
• Investigate options of supply, quality, price and delivery of potential new products.
• Ensure annual membership fees and member details are up to date.
• Buy items as needed to support efficient running of co-op. Eg pencils, funnels, scoops, tubs.
• Maintain supply of product order forms etc…
• Note and solve occasional problems such as moths or bugs in products.

Contact Christine on 0438 624866 or Rhona ([email protected])

If you have a glut of zucchinis and have run out of friends to share them with, have a look at this website of 69 delicious zucchini recipes. Many of the dishes (eg lasagne, soups and frittata) freeze very well.

32 Reasons why Zucchini is the Most Versatile of All Vegetables

Excess tomatoes, eggplant, zucchinis and beans are ideal for making ratatouille. This freezes well.

Rhona Rose
(From the Food Coop Bulletin - Feb 1 2024)

Jenny Monger was one of the inaugural members of the food co-op. Jenny has always risen to the challenge of learning new tasks, as demonstrated when she readily took on the challenge of being one of the co-op’s computer operators.

Jenny has been most supportive of the smooth running of the co-op by often doing extra shifts. For this, Christine Holmes, who organizes our roster, has been especially grateful.

Jenny will do her last shift as computer operator on Thursday December 21.

Members will continue to see Jenny and her husband Alan shopping at the co-op.

We thank Jenny for her many years of active involvement, good ideas, diligent work and her friendship..

The Benalla Food Co-op is in its 12th year of operation and currently has 65 members with over forty households shopping regularly.

The Co-op Committee remains unchanged, and it’s been a relatively quiet year. Our main business has been general housekeeping and running issues, with our aging vacuum causing the most trouble.

This year we’re trialling earlier opening hours on Monday afternoons during winter due to shorter daylight hours and colder weather. This will commence in June.

There’s a fluctuation in members’ shopping habits that result in some days being quieter than others. Just when we decided Thursdays were our quietest day, they became busy again.

Our product list remains unchanged with 118 products. Members pay for their shopping via Square or cash. A majority of members use Square.

Product procurement has an element of pot luck and sometimes what I order is not what you receive, and sometimes items are out-of-stock.

Our efforts to remain vermin and pest free has been mostly successful with minimal stock losses. Ongoing monitoring and hygiene are required to avoid the problems we faced in 2021-22.

Our ability to improve storage is hampered by space, however it’s been decided to purchase one extra cupboard.

Thank you Christine for continuing to coordinate the shop roster, and Peter for ongoing management of the day-to-day accounts as well as the biannual stock take.

In 2021 Christine was recognised for her 10 years of coordinator service and given a life membership.

Thank you Wendy Baker for the rest of our accounting matters. Wendy reports a surplus for this financial year of $3,073.25. This is an improvement from the previous year despite our markup remaining at 20%.

Thank you Graeme Greed for ongoing equipment maintenance, and Rhona who keeps members informed with news via her weekly email updates.

Thank you Maren for ordering and packaging the herbs and to Sonia for allowing her front porch to be used for deliveries from suppliers.

Thank you Kay Blore and Karen Nankervis who are improving our recycling efforts.

Thank you to our 11 duty managers and 13 computer operators who take on extra shift responsibilities.

Thank you to Louisa for developing a series of Co-op promotional templates for use on Facebook and to Beverly Lee and Peter Maddock for maintaining our Facebook and BSFG website presence and for tolerating my questioning as I attempt to get my head around the benefits of social media.

Thank you to my husband Richard who unloads the pallet of produce each month and helps me store it. In closing,

I would like to recognise all of you. Together we’re the Benalla Food Co-op community. The Coop is run by you, it’s a great team effort and you are the key component that keeps us operational.

Co-op Committee: Susanne (coordinator), Christine (rosters), Peter (finance), Rhona (weekly up-dates), Karen (recycling), Tanya and Rosalie (Community Garden), Judy (BSFG secretary), Sonia (porch for deliveries) and Julie McPherson.

Duty managers: Graham, Sonia, Tanya, Rosalie, Christine, Rhona, Joy, Robyn, Jack, Eleanor and Susanne.

Computer Operators: Graham, Peter, Karen, Glenys, Simon, Stacy, Deanne, Jenny, Julienne, Maren, Marlies, Sally and Robert.

Enquiries and feedback welcome via the BSFG website or our business email [email protected]

Susanne Bennett
​May 2023

For more information, including the current price list, go to the Food Co-op page!

In the twelve months since I last gave an annual report on the Benalla food Co-op, there have been some considerable changes and events take place.
​
We had our first open day on 3rd May in 2011, having arrived at exactly ten years of operation. 
 
In 2011, when we had our first open day with twelve members and 28 products on offer, we did not envisage the successful outcome we now experience. Apart from the aims of the co-operative that you will be familiar with, I believe a huge contributing factor is an underlying appreciation at the food coop for the friendly atmosphere when shopping, and the empowerment of an independent group running it. It has enabled friendships to develop and provides an opportunity for like minded people to share company and commitment. 
We now stock 120 food items determined by request, quality of the product, availability, from where that product is sourced, and of course, popularity.  
 
Membership sits at around 70. This fluctuates over any given year, but importantly there is a large group of regular shoppers requiring us to open once per week.
Over the years, I have particularly enjoyed researching products and discovering new suppliers.  There has always been opportunity to introduce new products and discontinue others not so popular. In all we have twelve product suppliers.  We are proud to support many valued local and regional producers in our district such as King Valley Walnuts, Florence Court Olive Oil from Benalla, Lima East honey, nuts and seeds from the Pumpkin Seed Company, and our latest addition, Apple Cider Vinegar from Stanley.

There are a huge number of tasks required with running the food co-op. Duty managers, duty assistants, computer operators, taking delivery of products, unpacking products, paying the bills and the list goes on. It was always my belief that by spreading these tasks amongst the members, we are in the true sense a 'co-operative',  run by the members. This has enabled us to keep the prices affordable whilst offering high quality products, benefitting all who participate. 

Drastic changes to our operational procedures required to comply with COVID restrictions in 2020, became a serious focal point. We were no less busy than usual with a large number of community members joining the food co-op throughout the early part of COVID restrictions.  In recent times we have been able to relax many of those procedures whilst continuing to maintain a COVID safe environment.                                           
Ten years is good reason for some celebratory events, the first being, and a lucky door prize for the tenth customer, who shopped on the 3rd May 2021. Then on the 4th June, food co-op members are invited to attend a dinner to celebrate 10 years of operation along with my retirement.
 
After ten years as coordinator, I felt it was time that I hand over to someone else. Susanne Bennett came to mind and after some thought, she agreed to take on the position for which we can all be grateful.  We can look forward to a committed member who will bring leadership and a lovely presence to the forefront. I wish Susanne all the best, lots of fun and with the knowledge that you have the support of all the committee with you.

Christine Holmes

​'​Wednesday, 24 March 2021 
​     
Dear Food Co-op Members,

I am writing to report to you that after ten years, I have decided to step down and retire from being the Benalla Food Co-op Coordinator. I thought it would be fitting to also give a little history of the developments over the years as to how the food co-op evolved.

It has been over ten years (2010) since I had the first thought to start a food co-op in Benalla. I flagged the idea at a forum on sustainability organised by the then, Benalla District Environment Group (now BSFG). Nothing came of it for a while and I didn’t want to take this on alone. But one by one a few others gave expressions of support.

They were Kathy Murphy, Lynne Seaman (relocated to Brisbane) and Tanya Walker. We met together over a period of 9 months to discuss a plan of action. Venue, freight, supplier, food health and safety were just a few major considerations that had to be worked through.

Initially, without any finance, we relied on setting up costs coming from a membership fee of $10 and members volunteering seed money. This was paramount to getting started and significant as it demonstrated the willingness of the small number of interested people wanting to make it work.   Along with the seed money, we were also supported by the Brunswick Uniting Church who donated $500 to our cause (they had been running a successful food co-op for some years).

I hunted around for a venue, the most difficult aspect of us being able to function, and wrote to the Benalla Uniting Church Council. Not only were they happy for us to use the old kindergarten hall, but also allowed us to store our products permanently, whilst only having to pay hire costs on an hourly basis. We are most grateful to the Uniting Church for the ongoing use of this space.

Our initial set-up was pretty basic with an array of coloured recycled food tubs we collected from hotels and restaurants, and Peter and I sourced old rickety wardrobes in which to store our products.
 
Finally we were up and running as an 'action group' under the banner of the Benalla Sustainable Future Group.

We had our first open day on 3rd May in 2011 and although we only had 12 members, we felt we were off to a good start and were able to purchase 28 different products. We opened one morning per month.
 
In 2012, we were successful in receiving some funding from Benalla Rural City Community Grants Program, and able to purchase three lockable metal cupboards and a computer. In no time our membership expanded and the number of products increased.  With the small mark up to cover costs, we were soon able to repay members for their investment of seed money.

We believed it was important to keep the prices affordable, whilst offering highest quality of products.
 
In 2013 The Food Co-op was featured on Channel 10 Shepparton Weeknights TV program. 
                                                                                                                                                                     
From our small working group, we established a committee of six members in October 2014, with Sonia Bourke and Judy Schwarzman coming on board.     
                                                                
By 2015, with membership increasing to 70, a demand for more products and food sales doubling, we extended the open days from one day per month to two. Two of the original committee members resigned (Kathy and Lynne) and so we were back to a committee of four plus Peter Holmes as BSFG/food co-op treasurer.  
 
We celebrated five years of operation in 2016. As time went on, other interested members joined the committee - Loren Atkinson (2016), followed by Rhona Rose, Rosalie Thomas and Julie McPherson.

The Benalla Food Co-op currently has just over 70 members and 118 different products. All products are chosen very carefully with environmental and ethical considerations, along with supporting local and 
With the advent of COVID 19 it became a priority to have and encourage the preferred digital method of online payment. Each member who operates the computer system has been trained up to do this. I would like to thank Tanya Walker and Peter Holmes for overseeing this transition.

A number of weeks ago I put a number of options to the committee as to how we could continue running the coop in the advent of worsening outbreaks of COVID. Each committee member contributed thoughtful and suggestive responses ranging from how we currently manage to the use of online ordering and the use of paper-bags. The majority of committee members were happy with the current procedures as long as COVID numbers remained low in Regional Victoria.

I would like to acknowledge there have been a few general members who have chosen not to shop at the food co-op during this time. Other than that, during the COVID restrictions, the food co-op has been busier than the same period of time last year, and we have had fourteen new members join the co-op, which is quite astonishing.

​If you would like to check financial statements refer to the treasurer's report (BSFG Annual Reports, when published).

I would like to thank all the duty managers and computer operators who do a wonderful job carrying out extra responsibilities. We have had a number of new members take this on.

I would like to thank Julie McPherson who has the relentless job of organising the roster, Rhona Rose who keeps you up to date on a weekly basis, Loren who sometimes takes delivery of our orders along with Sonia who takes delivery of special items such as Tradewinds and dried fruits from Mildura.

Lastly, I would like to thank all our amazing dedicated committee members, who are committed to the well being of the food co-op and for me personally are a truly wonderful group of people who offer support, make suggestions and are prepared to work through any arising issues. I am profoundly grateful to be working with you all.