Published
bimonthly by North Farm Cooperative for its customers/ members. To submit
original articles or provide feedback, please e-mail the Editor, Norma
Woods.
In This Issue:
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Communication Within The Co-op
By Bill Lathrop, North Farm General Manager
In my role as general manager of North Farm, I continually see how communication is often the root cause of success or failure in our relationship with you. This is true whether the communication is between North Farm staff members, between North Farm and customer members, or between different individuals within the same member organization.
One of the things I have learned from meeting with members is how difficult it is to communicate effectively with all of you. Despite the fact that we produce monthly publications and our managers and staff regularly attempt to communicate via mail, e-mail or telephone — frequently the message does not get to who it needs to, when it needs to.
A significant obstacle in our efforts is the fact that most members are not individuals, but organizations with their own members or employees. Organizations are dynamic, and leadership roles are subject to change. As a consequence, we can lose track of whom we need to be communicating with.
We have made significant investments in technology to help reduce the barriers to effective communication. We are now implementing a number of tools to help improve our communications. Our Web site
(www.northfarm.com) is undergoing regular updates to provide more information about products, and soon information about your next delivery and the status of your account. This will allow anyone from your organization to have access to the information you need to have a smooth and successful relationship with North Farm.
We will also begin using e-mail much more extensively. We have begun collecting e-mail addresses from our members. We will soon be offering a monthly e-mail newsletter to share specials, late-breaking product information, and other relevant news from the natural foods industry. You may subscribe to this service by
e-mailing us at nfcoop@northfarm.com or via NF-One. Please be assured that we will never share your e-mail address or other personal information with any third
party.
No matter how technically sophisticated we become, we will never be able to replace face-to-face human interaction as the most effective form of communication. For that reason, we spend a significant amount of time and energy with you at our annual General Membership Meeting (GMM). This family event includes workshops and seminars, the annual member business meeting and a Natural Products Show where many of our vendors provide hundreds of food and product samples. We also offer some spectacular show deals (with products up to 40% off) for those who attend this meeting.
The theme of this year’s GMM, which takes place this year on May 12 and 13, is “Cooperation Among Cooperatives”. In connection with this, we have planned our conference to coincide with the “New Energy and New Horizons Cooperative Community Conference” sponsored by the University of Wisconsin Center for Cooperatives. North Farm members are invited to also attend seminars at this conference, which will focus on cooperative management issues.
I sincerely hope you can attend the GMM. Our experience has been that it is a tremendously energizing day for all members and staff. More information is
on our Web site, click on GMM.
I’m always open to finding better ways of communicating with you. Please e-mail your thoughts to
wlathrop@northfarm.com.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Answered by Andy Fritchen, NF-One Support
When I try to connect to North Farm, I get a message that it can’t locate the modem. Why can’t it find the modem?
Check to see what com port your modem is set to use. You can do this by clicking on your Windows Start button, Settings and then Control Panel. Double-click on Modems and click on the Diagnostics tab. You should see a list of com ports. Note the one that has your modem listed.
Then, in Visual NF-One, click on Setup and then Computer Configuration. Click on the Communications Setup tab. Make sure the com port shown here matches what you saw in the Modem Diagnostics. If it doesn’t match, change the setting here so that it does.
If the settings match, try setting the Communications Port Speed to 19200.
I've downloaded my invoice and I’ve printed the individual invoices. Why aren’t Sale Prices and/or Sales Tax showing up?
Go to the Setup menu and choose Buying Club Setup. Under the Invoice Options tab, make sure that the box is checked for each of the charges or discounts you want to distribute to the members.
Why am I getting an error message that says that some files don’t exist when I attempt to Enter Member Orders?
Certain files are not included in the installation files. You are required to download them from the BBS. To retrieve the product data files, select Update Product Data from the Ordering menu.
I just downloaded the installation files from the Web site. Why am I getting an error message saying it can’t find
c:\temp\vnfone\setup.tdf?
Go to Start / Run and type c:\temp\vnfone\setup.exe and click on the OK button. That will start the installation.
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Year 2000
Holidays
North Farm will observe the following holidays this year: Memorial Day (May 29), Independence Day (July 4), Labor Day (September 4), Thanksgiving (November 23), Christmas Day (December 25) and New Year’s Day (January 1, 2001).
We will close our offices and no trucks will deliver on these holidays. Customers who normally receive deliveries or place orders on these days will be notified of alternate order and delivery days. We may need to change the delivery and/or ordering days for some other customers so that we can effectively manage the volume of orders. In all cases we will notify you at least 30 days prior to any changes. Please plan ahead for these holidays to ensure uninterrupted service.
If you have any questions or do not receive notice of order and delivery day changes but feel you may be affected, please contact Member Services at
1-800-236-5880. We appreciate your support in helping North Farm employees enjoy these holidays with their families and friends.
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Changes To Minimums
GREAT NEWS! All products currently sold in minimum order quantities of 3 each are now sold as 1 each, effective March 6, 2000.We are excited about this change that brings more individualized service. For those retails who do special orders for their customers this will provide you with many more opportunities to expand your services. For buying clubs, you will no longer need to take time out of your busy lives to find others who might be interested in purchasing items with you. This change will reduce the amount of time your order placer spends contacting members when minimum order quantities are not met.
We will continue to review our selling units in the upcoming months and are excited about the possibilities of enhancing our service to our members.
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Manufacturer’s Profile:
Equal Exchange Coffee
Founded as a worker-owned cooperative in 1986, Equal Exchange’s mission has always been to connect U.S. consumers with small-scale producers of coffee, tea and other food products. The three founders (Jonathan Rosenthal, Michael
Rozyne, Rink Dickinson) had all worked at Northeast Co-op (a cooperative distributor) and found that commodities such as bananas, coffee, tea, sugar and nuts were coming and going through the co-op warehouse without buyers or consumers having any idea of who grew them and under what conditions.
As the three founders discussed how to take positive action on these issues, they became aware of the fair trade movement. Fair trade was much more developed in European countries such as Holland, Ger-many and England. Fair trade organizations were committed to buying from small-scale third world producers on favorable terms (higher prices, better credit, etc.) and marketing those products to “ethical” consumers who wanted to support the producers.
Equal Exchange was born as a fair trade organization with a hybrid, cooperative structure. The aim was to create a culture that would be entrepreneurial and innovative. The mission was non-profit. The by-laws were written so that upon dissolution, all assets would be donated to other fair trade organizations. Governance was set up as a worker cooperative, where worker owners would elect the board that would direct the organization and hire management.
Coffee was a natural place to start. It is the second most traded commodity in the world and is far and away the most important small farmer agricultural product in the world. Countries such as El Salvador, Costa Rica, Mexico, Peru and Nicaragua
have had an impressive network of small farmers’ cooperatives. As the fair trade movement grew, particularly in Europe, more farmers’ groups became part of these networks and fair trade became more developed.
Equal Exchange has remained focused on coffee and has worked closely with our natural allies to build the demand for fair trade coffee. Not surprisingly, cooperative distributors and retailers have been the most committed to building direct links with the small farmers with whom we trade. Some of these co-ops, such as North Country Co-op (Minneapolis), New Pioneer (Iowa City) and Willy Street (Madison) have sent representatives to visit coffee cooperatives. There they learned about the issues the producers face and educated the producers on co-ops in the U.S. and the American market.
Over the years Equal Exchange has grown at a steady rate. In its first year it bought about 20,000 pounds of coffee. In 1992 it bought about 260,000 pounds of coffee. This year it will buy about 1,800,000 pounds of coffee from its producer partners. Similarly, it began with three members in the worker co-op and by 1992 it had five members in the co-op. At the time of this writing it has 23 worker-owners.
In the near future fair trade will grow significantly. Cooperatives such as North Farm and the co-op retailers have created the conditions for success. Co-ops have natural advantages marketing fair trade products because it is inherent in their mission. As co-ops we need to strengthen our links, build upon our competitive advantages and benefit from the increased interest in fair trade. At the same time we need to innovate and create the next co-op to co-op product.
 Equal Exchange
251 Revere St
CANTON MA 02121
781-830-0303
www.equalexchange.com
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Volume Discount Correction
(Home Shopping Insider version)
By Jan Torkildson
Member Services Manager
Due to an internal error, your March/April Price List contained incorrect information related to the Volume Discount Program changes, effective March 1, 2000.
The correct information is as follows:
VOLUME DISCOUNT PROGRAM
North Farm offers a volume discount program to motivate and reward members for larger purchase volumes. The volume discount on each North Farm invoice is equal to the volume discount percent multiplied by the qualifying purchases.
Volume Discount Percent
The volume discount percent is determined by the schedule at right where purchases are calculated as follows: The volume discount will be calculated based upon the current invoice, plus or minus adjustments from the previous invoice. All
purchases are included in the calculation of the volume discount percent.
Qualifying Purchases
The volume discount percent is applied to all qualifying purchases. Qualifying purchases include all products with the following exceptions:
• Products on sale at 20% off or greater, for which North Farm already passes on a significant discount.
• Fluid milk, which is significantly discounted due to the nature of the milk market.
The volume discount program is only available to members with accounts in good standing.
Note: Items which are not qualifying
purchases will be identified on your North Farm invoice with a “v” symbol in the code column.
Volume Discount Schedule
|
Purchases
|
Percent Discount
|
|
$0 - 1,999 |
0%
|
|
$2,000 - 2,999
|
1%
|
|
$3,000 - 3,999
|
2%
|
|
$4,000 - 4,999
|
3%
|
|
$5,000 - 5,999
|
4%
|
|
$6,000 - 6,999
|
5%
|
|
$7,000 - 7,999
|
6%
|
|
$8,000 - 8,999
|
7%
|
|
$9,000 - 9,999
|
8%
|
|
$10,000 - 12,499
|
9%
|
|
$12,500 - 14,999
|
10%
|
|
$15,000 - 17,499
|
11%
|
|
$17,500 - 19,999
|
12%
|
|
$20,000 - 24,999
|
13%
|
|
$25,000 - 29,999
|
14%
|
|
$30,000 - And Greater
|
15% |
SHIPPING AND HANDLING CHARGES
If your order falls below $1,000, you will be subject to a 2% shipping and handling charge on all orders placed the following month. This charge, previously known as a “volume surcharge”, is subject to all accounts. This charge will be based on the ordered amount, not the delivered amount. (You will not be penalized for items not in stock.) Further, members who pick up from North Farm will not be assessed this fee.
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Volume Discount Correction
(Buyer's Edge Version)
By Jan Torkildson
Member Services Manager
Due to an internal error, your March/April Price List contained incorrect information related to the Volume Discount Program changes and Shipping and Handling Charges, effective March 1, 2000. The correct information is as follows:
VOLUME DISCOUNT PROGRAM
North Farm offers a volume discount program to motivate and reward members for larger purchase volumes. The volume discount on each North Farm invoice is equal to the volume discount percent multiplied by the qualifying purchases.
Note: This is a very aggressive discount structure aimed at providing our retail members more opportunities to purchase from North Farm. For example, if your purchases averaged $12,000 previously you would have qualified for a discount of 6%; our new structure provides a 9% discount.
Volume Discount Percent:
The volume discount percent is determined by the schedule at right where average monthly purchases are calculated as follows: At the end of each month, North Farm will total all transactions (including invoices, credits and debits) to determine the monthly purchase amount. This amount will be used to determine the volume discount percent from the schedule.
All purchases are included in the calculation of the volume discount percent.
Qualifying Purchases:
The volume discount percent is applied to all qualifying purchases. Qualifying purchases include all products with the following exceptions:
• Products on sale at 20% off or greater, for which North Farm already passes on a significant discount.
• Fluid milk, which is significantly discounted due to the nature of the milk market.
The volume discount program is only available to members with accounts in good standing.
Note: Items which are not qualifying purchases will be identified on your North Farm invoice with a “v” symbol in the code column.
Volume Discount Schedule
|
Purchases |
Percent
Discount |
|
$0 - 1,999 |
0% |
|
$2,000 - 2,999 |
1% |
|
$3,000 - 3,999
|
2%
|
|
$4,000 - 4,999
|
3% |
|
$5,000 - 5,999
|
4% |
|
$6,000 - 6,999 |
5% |
|
$7,000 - 7,999 |
6% |
|
$8,000 - 8,999 |
7% |
|
$9,000 - 9,999 |
8% |
|
$10,000 - 12,499 |
9% |
|
$12,500 - 14,999 |
10% |
|
$15,000 - 17,499 |
11% |
|
$17,500 - 19,999 |
12% |
|
$20,000 - 24,999 |
13% |
|
$25,000 - 29,999 |
14% |
|
$30,000 - And Greater |
15% |
SHIPPING AND HANDLING CHARGES
If your average monthly orders fall below $1,000, you will be subject to a 2% shipping and handling charge on all orders placed the following month. This charge, previously known as a “volume surcharge”, is subject to all accounts. This charge will be based on the ordered amount, not the delivered amount. (You will not be penalized for items not in stock.) Further, members who pick up from North Farm will not be assessed this fee.
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Member Services’ Expanded Hours
As of January 4, 2000 we have expanded our hours.
You
can now call to place orders between 7 a.m. and 4 p.m. C.S.T.
We will continue to have staff available until 5 p.m. to
handle your basic customer service needs. Please call us at:
608.241.2667 800.236.5880
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