The Los Alamos Food Co-op at 95 Entrada Drive is seeking community support. Courtesy image 

From the Los Alamos Food Co-op:

• The Community-Owned Grocery Has Stabilized, Rebuilt, and Launched a $100,000 Campaign to Secure Its Future

The Los Alamos Food Co-op — the only locally owned natural grocery store in Los Alamos County — is moving forward. After navigating a difficult period, the co-op has stabilized its finances, rebuilt its management team, and is growing its sales. Now it’s asking the community it has served for more than 15 years to help secure what they built together.

Over the past two years, the co-op has undertaken a rigorous financial and operational turnaround. A stable management team has corrected significant financial reporting errors and reduced operating costs. Sales are growing again in 2026, and the co-op is seeking donations to improve the store.

This kind of resilience isn’t new for the co-op. When the co-op faced the possibility of closure in 2024, the community responded — members and shoppers donated more than $20,000 to support the business. That community commitment, combined with disciplined operational changes, is what made the turnaround possible.

To complete the current momentum, the co-op seeks the support of its community and has launched a fundraising campaign with a goal of $100,000. The funds will replace aging refrigeration, store equipment and expand the deli to better serve its customers. Donations are tax-deductible through a partnership with a cooperative nonprofit.

“This co-op exists because this community built it,” General Manager Thomas Salazar said. “It’s more than a grocery store. It’s a community asset that employs more than 20 people, carries local products, and keeps more of every dollar spent here in Los Alamos. Over the past two years, our staff, members, and shoppers have worked hard to stabilize the business and rebuild momentum. Now we’re asking the community to help us continue to move forward.”

What disappears if the co-op disappears is more than a store. It’s over 20 local jobs. It’s the relationships with local farmers, the locally sourced products that make up more than 25 percent of the co-op’s sales, and a community gathering place. As a cooperative, the co-op’s profits, decisions, and values remain rooted in Los Alamos — accountable to the community, not to distant shareholders.

Residents who want to invest in the co-op’s future can donate at givemn.org/story/LosAlamosCo-opMarket. The most powerful support, as always, is simple: shop at the co-op.

About the Los Alamos Food Co-op:

The Los Alamos Food Co-op is Los Alamos County’s only locally owned natural grocery store. Founded by community members and operated as a consumer cooperative, the co-op has served the region since 2011, offering natural and locally sourced foods while keeping its economic impact rooted in the community it serves.