Write Us!
We welcome your comments and give each one attention and serious consideration. Send them to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or fill out a Customer Comment form in the Owner Resources area. Each month a small selection is printed in the Reader; publication does not necessarily indicate an endorsement of views stated in a customer’s original comment. Many more comments can be found in the commons or in the binder near Customer Service. Thank you!
Endangered Species
Q: I received a skate fish filet from Willy Street Co-op from someone who knew I liked fish and thought I’d like to try this. I’ve never heard of skate fish before so I looked it up and the internet tells me it is considered a critically endangered species. How does Willy Street Co-op end up selling a critically endangered species? :(
A: Thank you for your recent customer comment. I appreciate your concern regarding sustainable seafood, as it is of critical importance that we are never selling or purchasing seafood that is in danger of being overfished. As you may know, our vendors and our staff use the Monterey Bay Aquarium seafood watch program to vet the products we sell. This program uses a “green, yellow, red” system to indicate the status of a certain species from a certain fishery. While there are a small number of fisheries globally that indicate that skate wing is over-fished, the vast majority of fisheries have ample supply and are listed as “green” by the program. Our supplier will only purchase from fisheries that maintain this status. Thank you again for reaching out, and please let me know if you have any further questions. Best, Nick Heitman, Category Manager: Meat, Seafood, Beer, Wine & Spirits
Rubberbands
Q: First of all, we love the Co-op so thanks for all you do to elevate the way we shop and eat. We’ve come to do the bulk of our shopping at Willy Street Co-op because you’re the only store in town (that we’re aware of) that will allow us to bring our own containers for bulk items (and declare our own container’s tare weight), saving the landfill from bag after bag of unrecyclable plastic! We especially love that you offer bulk greens and mushrooms. We’re there every week to fill our (mesh cloth) bags with new produce!
On that same note, each week I cringe a little bit as I debate whether to add broccoli to my cart. The rubber band that holds the two heads together is wasteful and unnecessary. I do my best to avoid broccoli at the Co-op, sometimes heading elsewhere for that item just to avoid the waste. Would you consider removing that band and selling broccoli by the head? Thanks again for all you do!
A: Thanks for taking the time to comment. Regarding the rubberband: you are welcome to remove it and purchase the amount that is best for you. The industry packs broccoli by the bunch, which includes the rubber band, or as crowns (without the stalk). Crowns are significantly more expensive, and we see the stalk as a nutritious part of the vegetable. While some of the stalks are sold to processors, many are just tossed, adding to food and energy waste. For these reasons, we choose to offer the bunched product.
So, feel free to purchase any amount of broccoli that fits your needs. And if it makes you feel better, we often pick the unwanted rubber bands from the displays and reuse them! Thanks, Andy Johnston, Produce Category Manager
Cranberry Quality
Q: I wanted to respond to and help clarify regarding a recent customer comment about the quality of the dried cranberries found at the Co-op.
As a small, local, organic cranberry grower, Ruesch Century Farm has enjoyed a long and friendly relationship with the Co-op, and I was glad to read in Dave’s response that the quality issue was with prior sources for dried cranberries, not the fresh cranberries supplied by our family farm and several others each fall. We put a lot of time and energy into our harvest and sorting methods to deliver the best quality organic cranberries we possibly can!
I also wanted to thank the Co-op for stocking a selection of fresh, frozen cranberries in the freezer section year round—sometimes that can be hard to come by at other stores. I love making cranberry recipes throughout the year and sometimes need to stop at the Co-op to restock with these frozen berries.
To turn fresh or frozen berries into dried, boil a pint of cranberries with half a cup of water and half (or more) cup of sugar until it’s turned into a gelatinous consistency. Then, spread the sauce into a thin layer on a parchment paper lined pan and bake at lowest heat for a couple hours. While the resulting dried cranberries may not have the exact raisin-like consistency we expect from store-bought “Craisins” I have used this method for adding dried cranberries to granola several times! And it tastes great-almost like a fruit roll up!
At a larger scale, drying cranberries is an intensive process that it hard to do economically, especially for organic berries; our family has looked into it several times! It’s good to know the demand is out there, though, for quality, dried cranberries as well as the fresh ones we find at the co-op each fall! -Kristin Ruesch Gilkes, On behalf of Ruesch Century Farm
A: Thanks for taking the time to respond to the customer comment regarding dried cranberries. I appreciate all of the work that you and your family do to ensure that your customers receive the best quality product.
Thank you for the instructions for how to dry your own cranberries, along with the understanding of how difficult this process is on a large scale. We sell an enormous amount of dried cranberries year round, so it’s nice to know about the work that goes into this process.
I’m also glad to hear that you’re happy with our selection of frozen cranberries. It’s nice to be able to offer seasonal products year round. Thanks! -Dave Andrews, Grocery Manager—West
More Vegan Food
Q: Thank you! I really love that you’re bringing in more vegan foods like your vegan pot pie and you brought back your vegan breakfast sandwich. I stop into Willy Street Co-op just for these items sometimes.
A: Thank you for taking the time to let us know your thoughts on the vegan items you are enjoying. I hope you have a lovely week! Katie O’Connell-Jones, Owner Resources Coordinator, Willy West
Customer Comments
Q: Hi, I really enjoy the Customer Comments section of the Reader, because it lets me know all sorts of things about how the Co-op works and cool facets and benefits of shopping and membership, but a lot of the time what I enjoy most is how gently and politely you handle disappointed or upset customer concerns. I’m continually impressed at how thoughtful and patient you can be, even when the comment is neither.
Today, all that reading came to my aid when I had to handle a patron complaint at the library. I was able to step back and think about how you might respond, and it really helped me empathize with this person and how best to address their concerns. Thanks for setting such a good example on a difficult task!”
A: Wow! This made my day - thanks for writing in with your appreciation; all of us at the Co-op are really grateful for your kindness! It is nice to know that we are making a positive impact. All of us really try our utmost to provide thoughtful and caring responses. Have a wonderful day, Kristina Kuhaupt, Customer Experience Manager
Ownership Number
Q: What do I do if I can’t find my ownership number?
A: Thank you for reaching out about your Owner number. When you are in the store shopping the cashier has the ability to look you up by name at checkout so that you don’t need to have it memorized. If you would like an Owner card with your number on it, customer service should be able to make one up for you. Don’t hesitate to reach out if there is anything else I can help you with. Have a great day! -Rosalyn Murphy, Owner Records Administrator
Bag Handles
Q: The length of the handles on our reusable bags is very awkward. If you don’t sling it over your shoulder or strain your arm, they drag and bang on the ground. They don’t fit on the shoulder when wearing heavy clothes. Most people don’t carry groceries on the shoulder.
A: Thanks for the comment! We have a few different reusable bags. I’m guessing that you mean our recycled cotton canvas one? That one has longer handles than our plastic one. I checked with a few others and this is the first complaint that we’ve heard about the handle length, although it’s true that the bag is designed as a shoulder tote. -Brendon Smith Communications Director