An Oasis in a Food Desert?

Tonight I had a chance to learn more about a fledgling effort to plant a food co-op in what is essentially a food desert in northeast Oak Park and the nearby Austin neighborhood in Chicago.

Having grown up shopping at food co-ops that offered affordable, healthy, locally sourced foods, often in bulk, I'm already a bit biased in favor of this concept.

The Wednesday Journal has many of the details, such as they are, here. Clearly, the Oak Park Food Co-op is in the very early planning and ideas stage.

But there are lots of things about this that I can get behind, including a passion for connecting families to farmers. Not to mention offering healthy food options within walking distance.

It's encouraging that they have another food co-op as a local model, The Dill Pickle in Logan Square.

Oak Parkers can learn more about co-op plans at the PlanItGreen community forum next week, 7-8:30 p.m. Thursday, March 22, at the Oak Park Conservatory.