J Patrick Patterson, In These Times - Across the country, entire neighborhoods are losing their grocery stores — and not just big chains, but independents as well as family-owned shops and markets....
"Grocery prices have gone up, depending on the category, 30-60% in the last five years. If you’re talking about french fries and tater tots, you’re talking nearly 70% increase in price since 2019." — Errol Schweizer, Former National Vice President of Grocery at Whole Foods
Have city-run stores been tried?
Yep! But mostly in rural areas. Baldwin, Fla. — a town of about 1,300 — opened its own grocery store, in 2019, after the last independently owned one closed. The store was run like a public utility, emphasizing fresh food, fair prices and community jobs. Though the store struggled to remain open and eventually closed, its presence provided a glimpse of what local access to fresh food can do for a community.
St. Paul, Kan. — a town of about 600— lost its only grocery store in the 1980s. Residents relied on volunteer-run efforts and a local café to fill the gap until 2013, when the city stepped in. Within a few years, the small grocery was even turning a profit.
Chicago has floated the idea, and a city-commissioned study from the Economic Security Project, released in 2024, determined a municipal store would be feasible with funding, coordination and a long-term commitment...
Grocery retail is a hard business, with thin margins and tricky supply chains, so places would be taking on real financial risk. In Chicago, Mayor Brandon Johnson’s administration eventually shifted to building a network of public markets for food vendors, farmers and small grocers to sell directly to the community.
Still, private markets don’t guarantee access to food, and small towns like St. Paul have made it work.
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