An Introduction
to
Daily Bread Co-operative
Roots
Daily Bread started life in the Northampton
parish of St Peters, Weston Favell. A group of nine committed
Christians who had been meeting regularly in a house group
since 1974 formed a vision of taking the Gospel of sharing
and mutual support into a simple business environment. Their
aim was to show
that there is no contradiction between Jesus’ instruction
to leave all that we have to follow him and the basic necessity
of working together to meet worldly needs.
How to pursue profit without being greedy? How to generate
wealth without compromising the teachings of the Gospel? How
to balance individual freedom and creativity with collective
responsibility to care for each other and for the wider community?
These were questions which occupied the thoughts of these early
pioneers.
To set the ball rolling, they formed a simple co-operative
which would be owned and controlled by its workers. Daily Bread
was registered as a co-operative business in March 1976 under
the Industrial and Provident Societies Act, the first of its
kind to adopt a new set of Model Rules for Industrial Common
Ownership.
As for any business, capital had to
be raised, premises found, and a business plan devised. Trading
started on the 1st October 1980 with a working group of three
and has grown steadily, including part time staff to 20 people
and sales of over £1million
in 2002.
Our Preamble has five main headings:-
1. work is fundamental
"We wish working together to be a creative experience. We
will share the policy decisions that affect our work." We aim
to earn our living in an enriching manner. As a workers' co-operative,
each member owns a nominal £1.00 share. All policy decisions
are taken at a weekly meeting which all the working group is
expected to attend. Officers such as Chairperson and Manager
are elected from among the members, thus ensuring that democracy
is carried through to every level. Decisions are taken by those
who have to put them into practice. Such participation is both
fulfilling and necessitates respect for the views of each worker.
Experience shows that with a working group of not more than
20, no further administrative structure is needed and an efficient
working fellowship is attained. Further growth will be through
other, independent co-ops.
As a Co-operative, we decide what to
do with profits. These are either re-invested in the business
or given away. We also decide how to pay ourselves. We have
taken the decision to pay by need rather than status. This
means that a person working as a packer who has a large family
may receive more remuneration than the manager, who may have
fewer family responsibilities. This is contrary to popular
practice, but goes some way to meeting the practice of the
early church "…and they
sold their possessions and goods and distributed them to all,
as any had need." Acts 2.45
Daily Bread remains true to its roots on the site where it
was first opened 23 years ago: The Old Laundry on the Bedford
Road, Northampton. This building is in grounds owned by St
Andrews Hospital and retains some of the Victorian charm associated
with its former function.
Values
How do we pursue profit without being greedy? How do we generate
wealth without compromising basic Christian beliefs? How do
we combine individual responsibility with care for each other?
It is these questions of how to organise Christian work with
which Daily Bread Co-operative is primarily concerned. We have
shown that it is possible for a viable business to have explicit
social and spiritual objectives built into its organisation.
We believe that a co-operative is the ideal vehicle for expressing
concerns for fellow workers. The members of Daily Bread have
agreed on a statement, called the Preamble, which expresses
our religious and business values.
2. the world is fundamental
"We recognise that we are part of the
rich world, but we do not accept that contemporary value
judgements and trading patterns are unchangeable. Therefore,
we shall give a significant percentage of our total remuneration
to causes outside the co-operative, with special reference
to Third World causes."
We are a business dealing in commodities, often imported
from the Third World, and sometimes on unfair terms. All too
often, most of what the shopper pays for goods goes to the
retailer, wholesaler, packer or shipper. Very little makes
it back to the people who do the hard work - the Third World
farm workers. Accepting that, small as we are, we cannot dictate
to multinational companies about terms of trade, we endeavor
to help the developing world. We give aid as well as trade.
A sum of money is set aside each year to be used in supporting
various projects in developing countries, often in the shape
of intermediate technology to help local producers. In this
country, we actively support local businesses, especially those
sharing our aims and beliefs.
3. commitment is fundamental
"Our inspiration comes from Jesus Christ.
What we do is a venture of faith"
The Christian Gospel is the same as ever, but we must work
it out in the world in which we live. We work out our Christian
commitment through our social objectives and also through our
daily worship. Worship is a central part of the working day
and decisions about work and people often spring directly from
it. Our time of prayer lasts for half an hour each day and
is led by members on a rota basis. We are ecumenical and interdenominational.
Out of our different backgrounds has come worship which has
challenged and united us, particularly the communion service.
The Christian faith is not something to practice only on
Sundays. Daily Bread Co-operative is a business geared to the
world as it is, but rejecting some of the conventional commercial
and industrial wisdom. The working members are all Christians,
and we believe that a co-operative business structure is a
Christian one. However, it is also possible for this to become
a model for much of our society in the future - a seed which
may enable more people to participate in a co-operative business.
4. food is fundamental
"We wish to trade as suppliers of wholefoods which have good
nutritional value and are good value for money." We stock a
variety of dried fruit, nuts, seeds, herbs, spices, beans,
pulses, grains, flakes, wholemeal and white flours, (together
with fresh yeast for bread), pastas, spreads, oils, drinks,
fruit juices and mueslis. From the humble beginnings when Daily
Bread stocked only a few simple commodity items, we now stock
over 3000 different products.
We support the organic movement and
are registered with the Soil Association to manufacture and
sell more than 400 organic products. We also have a wide
range of gluten-free and wheat-free products for the benefit
of those on special diets. We even have a number of cooked products, including popular flapjacks
and granola breakfast cereal. Products are available in varying
sizes, from small (100g) to bulk quantities at competitive
prices. Wholefoods are natural, non processed foods which
are without additives. We endeavor to provide information on
their nutritional value and also have a series of food information
leaflets, including recipes, and a wide selection of wholefood
and vegetarian books. We will not stock anything that we know
to be genetically modified.
5. other people are fundamental
We will support people recovering from
mental disorders by offering them employment in a supportive
setting." It is not
enough just to look after ourselves, and mental illness is
a woefully misunderstood problem. Our working group includes
people who are recovering from mental disorders, or are in
need of a supportive work environment these are associate workers,
and this is often part of their rehabilitation . They work
alongside members in what we hope is a relaxed and supportive
setting. They are paid on the same basis as members of the
co-operative and are expected to produce a good day's work
in return. We can help them adjust to the discipline of a working
life and get prepared to return to open society. It should
be emphasised that we do not hold any professional qualifications
relevant to working with the mentally ill. We simply try to
provide a caring atmosphere in which associate workers and
members can grow together.
One World
Strive Overseas Ltd is a charity run
in conjunction with our sister company Daily Bread Co-operative
through which Third World and some other donations are made.
It was an existing charity which had been defunct when Daily
Bread took it over in 1984. Each year, Daily Bread pays to
Strive through Gift Aid a sum which is a percentage of the
gross wage bill. Since 1984, donations in excess of £120,000
have been made. In the past we have given to Mother Teresa,
and to numerous works in India as well as schools in developing
countries, orphanages, mission and humanitarian stations.
Strive Overseas have had a long standing relationship with
Intermediate Technology supporting specific projects throughout
the developing world.
The Community Fund
The Community Fund was set up on the same basis as Strive,
but with the aim of supporting local charities and other good
causes.
Sources of other information
Small is Beautiful by E.F. Schumacher first published in 1973
The Bible, a Description of the Early Church as described in
Acts chapters 2 and 4.
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