Buy Bulk! Save Money and Reduce Food and Packaging Waste

As Earth Day 2019 approaches, here's one simple way to celebrate: buy bulk and help reduce unnecessary packaging waste.

The Founding of Earth Day

U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson founded Earth Day as an environmental teach-in first held on April 22, 1970. As our beautiful planet takes another trip around the sun, our thoughts turn once again toward learning more ways to be good stewards of our homes, our community, and our planet.

Our Commitment to Sustainability

The Co-op takes its commitment to sustainability seriously and to ensure we are upholding our commitment we publish an annual report with the Sustainable Food Trade Association. The report, which is available on our website, includes measurable results toward achieving our sustainability goals and helps us learn where we are succeeding and areas in which we can improve.

Your Commitment to Sustainability

Co-op shoppers have also demonstrated a strong commitment to sustainability. You are motivated to bring your own reusable shopping, bulk, and produce bags; you are avid users of public transportation (we are happy to be located adjacent to Bellingham’s two bus depots); you commute by bike; and you embrace purchasing local goods to reduce the negative effects of long-distance transportation and to support our local economy.

One of the simplest ways Co-op shoppers embrace sustainability is through your enthusiasm for purchasing bulk goods.

saving money, reducing waste, and being better stewards of our environment

The bulk department is all about saving money, reducing waste, and being better stewards of our environment.

Reasons to Buy Bulk

Buying bulk saves money. Bulk foods bypass the extra expenses inherent in individually packaged products. Packaging design, manufacturing, shipping, and production costs are eliminated when foods are shipped in plain, large- quantity containers, and those savings are passed along directly to the consumer.

Buying bulk reduces packaging waste. Bulk quantities eliminate the need for individually packaged items thereby saving an immense quantity of bottles, jars, cans, and paperboard.

Buying bulk reduces food waste. Buy only as much of any product as needed, from one teaspoon of spice up to a 50-pound bag of oats.

Buying bulk increases product freshness. Co-op bulk departments are extremely popular, thereby ensuring product turnover is rapid. Bulk containers are refilled throughout the day simply to keep up with shopper demand.

Buying bulk is simple. Purchase a reusable container in the store or bring in your own clean container to refill. Simply remember to weigh your empty container (don't forget to include the lid), record the tare weight, write the 4-digit PLU number on the container, and fill with as little or as much product as you choose.

how to buy bulk soap at grocery store scale label

The Bulk Department Selection (and Beyond)

The Co-op offers products in its bulk department that can’t be found elsewhere.

Beyond the typical dry goods—flours, rice, grains, pasta, and nuts—the Co-op bulk department also carries bulk honey, tamari, oils, vinegars, maple syrup, agave, nut butters, loose leaf teas, various dried seaweeds, an wide array of spices, and plenty of tasty sweets and snack items.

In the household goods and personal care departments, you can find bulk cleaning products, laundry detergent, shampoos, lotions, and liquid and bar soaps.

Visit soon to explore our extensive bulk selection—you might be surprised. If you’re looking for a hard-to-find ingredient for a recipe, need a little something extra to flavor a dish, just want to try a new spice to expand your culinary repertoire, or maybe you just need some shampoo, it’s likely you’ll find what you need at the Co-op.

If you can’t find what you’re looking for—please ask!

We love to answer questions about bulk foods and products. If we don’t know the answer to your question we’ll go out of our way to find an answer for you. Co-op staff are happy to help and love to talk about food, cooking techniques, and favorite flavors.

Bulk Purchases in 2018

How popular is our bulk department? Turnover is rapid, because Co-op shoppers love to buy bulk! That rapid turnover ensures that the bulk products you purchase are fresh.

photo of bulk grains, nuts, spices, bar soap in various jars and containers

Oats: 45,039 pounds
Coffee: 46,613 pounds
Thompson Raisins: 7,591 pounds
Almonds (only almonds, including candy covered): 14,083 pounds
Anything containing almonds: 23,543 pounds
Quinoa: 4,613 pounds
Organic Black Peppercorns: 255 pounds

30% OFF Coffee Sale! One Day Only!

30% OFF all coffee items

bulk - packaged - espresso - coffee drinks

All locations. While supplies last.

Earth Day 20% OFF Bulk Sale!

Earth Day Sale!
20% OFF all bulk items. Includes items on sale, too!
Shop the bulk aisle, plus general merchandise like bulk dishwashing and cleaning products and body care (bulk shampoos, conditions, soaps, etc.)
Reduce your consumption of unnecessary packaging and stock your pantry with healthful whole foods.
Bring your refillable containers or buy one of ours and save it for future refills.
See you on Earth Day!

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Vendor Profile: Hummingbird Wholesale

by Tim Flores, Downtown Bulk Department

February 2018

Just like the lovely hummingbirds, Hummingbird Wholesale seeks to sip the nectar without harming the flower. It is a family-owned organic food distributor that carefully chooses products by considering the sustainability of farming practices, ingredients, and nutritional value.

“What if, like the hummingbird, all people would sip the nectar of the earth without harming the flower? Is it possible? At Hummingbird we know it is possible.”

When you spend time shopping in the Co-op's bulk department, and among our grocery shelves, you will start to notice the bright yellow labels identifying products from Hummingbird Wholesale of Eugene, Oregon. We highlight Hummingbird in our stores, as it is one of those rare businesses that is privately owned but operates with values similar to our co-op.

Hummingbird endeavors to serve people and planet by providing high-quality nutritious food grown as sustainably and locally as possible.

The business treats its employees with utmost respect, and operates a warehouse with laudable social and environmental practices. They track their sustainability impacts by reporting annually to the Sustainable Food Trade Association, just like we do.

hummingbird wholesale enjoying food outdoors

Hummingbird makes an organic lunch every Tuesday and Thursday for staff who gather to share delicious food and enjoy each other's company.

Photo courtesy of Hummingbird Wholesale.

The company has helped create an incredible food system in Oregon’s Willamette Valley while serving customers as far away as Bellingham. Hummingbird has partnered with local mills and farmers to grow and process organic foods previously unavailable in our region, sometimes in response to requests for specific food crops from its customers, like our co-op.

It has grown the organic food system by helping farmers transition to organic farming and also pioneered Distributor Supported Agriculture (DSA) that, like the Consumer Supported Agriculture (CSA) many of us are aware of, supports and shares the financial risk faced by farmers.

taking large steps to achieve a tiny footprint and zero waste

This small family-owned company states that it is “taking large steps to achieve a tiny footprint and zero waste.” For example, a lower carbon footprint is achieved by delivering up to 2,000 pounds per delivery to local Eugene businesses via energy-efficient electric-assist cargo tricycles. Bulk liquids are delivered in reusable food grade deposit return containers with an 83 percent return rate, thereby diverting thousands of pounds of plastic from landfills every year.

hummingbird wholesale organic bulk foods bike

Karl, above, started making cargo bike deliveries for Hummingbird in 2001. Since then, the bike delivery team has grown to three people and two cargo bikes with trailers (at right). Now, nearly all local deliveries in Eugene, Oregon, are done by bike. In 2017 the bike team: made 1,800+ bike deliveries, peddled more than 1,000 miles, and hauled 300,000+ pounds of product.
Photos courtesy of Hummingbird Wholesale.

Our bulk department stocks many amazing products from Hummingbird and, with few exceptions, they are organic: cranberry and heirloom yellow eye beans, mung dal and black lentils, dried peaches and persimmons, raw sprouted almonds and pumpkin seeds, and bulk maple syrup. There’s even organic quinoa penne pasta.

The bulk Washington honey is one of the few non-organic items (because you cannot control the nectar-collecting habits of bees) along with the chocolate covered hazelnuts and almonds. You can also find Blue Lotus masala chai, and organic black Dakota popcorn on our grocery shelves.

sip from the nectar without harming the flower

Give Hummingbird products a try—the quality and intention to “sip from the nectar without harming the flower” is undeniable!

Learn More

Learn more and read the company’s annual sustainability report on its website.

Bulk Foods—Variety, Affordability, Quality

by Tim Flores, Downtown bulk department head

ingredients bulk foods popcorn pistachios jars m&m

Save money and reduce food and package waste when you buy bulk.

I love to work in the bulk food department for a variety of reasons.

I am passionate about quality whole foods, waste reduction, and shopping efficiently to save money.

Here in the bulk department, we’re all about savings and lessening our impact on the environment.

Buying bulk can help you save money and reduce food and package waste. Buying only what you need, at a good value, and reusing your packages cuts out the little inefficient costs that otherwise can start to add up to extra expense.

Another benefit of shopping bulk is product freshness. The Co-op bulk departments are very popular and that means product turnover is rapid. Bulk containers are refilled throughout the day just to keep up with demand.

Shopping bulk is simple. Our bulk departments offer reusable containers that can be refilled repeatedly. Even better, we love it when you bring in your own clean containers to refill. Just remember to weigh your empty container and record the tare weight, write the 4-digit PLU number on the container, and fill with as little or as much food as you want.

I am endlessly amazed at the quality of whole foods and spices the bulk department gets from around the world. At the Community Food Co-op, we are ever aware of what it takes to get all these amazing dried goods to our store, and we try to source the freshest, most ethically produced, and best organic goods available on the market. With this in mind, we always seek good prices to pass along to our community of shoppers. When you shop bulk, you are buying foods that are generally cheaper than the identical pre-packaged product on the shelf.

You can find things in the Co-op's bulk department that you just can’t find anywhere else.

Beyond the usual dry goods such as flours, rice, grains, and nuts, the Co-op bulk department also carries bulk honey, tamari, oils, vinegars, maple syrup, agave, nut butters, loose leaf teas, various dried seaweeds, and plenty of amazing sweets and snack items.

Visit to see what is available in our extensive bulk spice section—you might be surprised. If you’re looking for a hard to find ingredient for a recipe, need that little something extra to flavor a dish just so, or if you’re curious and just want to try new spices to grow your culinary repertoire, it’s likely we have what you need.

If you can’t find what you’re looking for—ask!

The Co-op specializes in customer service. There is always someone available in our stores who is happy to help. Bulk department managers (Tim–Downtown store and Michael–Cordata store) are great resources to find what is in stock or what might be available to order. We love to answer questions, and if we don’t know the answer to your question we’ll go out of our way to find an answer for you!

If your household eats a lot of certain staple foods, spices, teas, or coffees, you might consider placing a special order. Co-op member-owners can special order bulk products in case sizes for a 20 percent discount off the shelf price. Simply go to the service desk, ask what case sizes are available, pre-pay for your order, and return to pick it up when it arrives fresh from our suppliers. Case sizes range from as little as 1 pound for spices, up to 50 pounds for oats (one of our most popular bulk items), but the most common case size for bulk products is 25 pounds.

Bellingham and Whatcom County are amazing places to live and work, and the Co-op is proud to serve our community with two big and beautiful stores. While our stores serve different sides of town, and the layout of each store is different, we love to work together to make our product selection as linear as possible and provide a great selection in both bulk departments. But, if you can’t find what you need when shopping at either of our stores, check in with staff as it may be available at the other store.

Please come in often to discover what’s new in bulk.

I personally love to talk all things food, and I enjoy the opportunity to talk with you about cooking techniques, favorite flavors, or any odd question you might have about bulk foods or organic foods in general. So the next time you’re shopping, I invite you to stop by to chat and to discover what’s new in bulk.

Co-op Shoppers Love to Buy Bulk

In 2014, Co-op shoppers literally bought tons of bulk food!

Totals represent combined sales from both stores.

42,943 pounds
Oats—all varieties

38,869 pounds
Coffee Beans—all varieties

11,205 pounds
Thompson Raisins

18,497 pounds
Almonds—all varieties

2,289 pounds
Organic Quinoa, plain

267 pounds
Organic Black Peppercorns

Chia—Tiny but Mighty

by Dave Straub, Cordata produce department

Chia has the ideal balance of fatty acids we need for healthy joints, digestion, and brain function.

There is evidence that chia (pronounced ‘chee-ah’) was cultivated by the Aztec empire, rivaling corn in cultural and economic significance. These tiny seeds have a slight nutty flavor, are stunningly beautiful, and are versatile in nutrients and use.

I was first exposed to chia as a child in the form of an inane infomercial for Chia Pets. Luckily, this ancient superfood has regained some dignity since its debut sprouting green ‘hair’ on novelty terracotta statues. The past few years have seen an all-out chia revival, due partly to the constantly increasing demand for functional food with multiple health benefits.

Lauded for its high omega-3 content, chia has the ideal balance of fatty acids we need for healthy joints, digestion, and brain function.

It also contains all the essential amino acids needed for our bodies to use as a complete protein, making it a perfect ingredient for meal replacements and protein powders like Garden of Life Raw Meal found in your Co-op’s wellness department.

Other benefits include calcium, lots of fiber, and a variety of micronutrients.

Agriculture has kept up with our increase in chia consumption. Newly developed cultivars have increased production in the U.S. and abroad.

This is good news for fans of organic. Chia leaves produce a natural insect repellent and there are no major pests or diseases affecting chia crops, so organic farming comes naturally for the hearty chia plant.

I’ve been enjoying chia for years.

My pantry is never without a mason jar full of chia from the bulk department.

It is an easy option for adding nutrients and texture to my oatmeal or my favorite smoothie recipe. Today, chia is used in numerous products that you can find at the Co-op. I spent the last couple of weeks on a chi-adventure exploring the aisles and trying out everything I could find.

For breakfast I tried Qi'a Superfood from Nature’s Path Organic. Qi'a has only three ingredients; chia, hemp, and buckwheat. It is nutrient dense and filling. For a more decadent breakfast try Chia Plus gluten-free frozen waffles from Nature’s Path Organic.

GT’s Synergy Cherry Chia Kombucha is so good I’ve been drinking it every day. Chia seeds are hydrophilic, meaning they absorb twelve times their mass in water and develop a gel-like coating. When added to a drink such as kombucha, it takes on a pleasant jell-o like texture. (Side note: the gelatin quality of soaked chia also makes it an excellent egg replacement in baked goods.)

Hope you enjoy some chia soon, in whatever way you choose!