At the East End Food Co-op, we focus on sustainability and respect for the environment in everything we do. If you are looking for resources to help you with recycling, go here!

Sourcing & Buying Practices

Our goal is to source goods that are produced using humane and ecologically sound methods that don’t exploit people, animals, or our environment. We prioritize local, organic, Non-GMO, fair trade, and cooperatively-produced items that are minimally processed and packaged in recyclable containers.

Eliminating Food Waste

Through our partnerships with organizations like 412 Food Rescue, each year we donate over 20,000 pounds of healthy, fresh food and redistribute it to those in need!

Recycling

We responsibly dispose of a variety of materials, from boxes to lightbulbs, ensuring that much of the waste generated by the Co-op does not end up in a landfill. Our recycling mix, which consists primarily of cardboard, averages 820 pounds a day. In a year, this adds up to almost 300,000 pounds of cardboard and other materials that are recycled rather than thrown away!

Composting

On average, we compost 5,075 pounds of food scraps every month. For nearly 10 years, we worked with Steel City Soils, a cooperatively-managed group that recycled food and yard waste to create high-quality compost. We currently work with Zero Waste Wrangler, a locally-operated waste hauling company that transports our organic food scrapes to a local farm dedicated to rebuilding strip-mined land.

Supporting Sustainability in the Community

Through the Register Round Up program, Co-op shoppers have collectively given nearly $30,000 to organizations dedicated to supporting our local land, air, and waterways. Clean Water Fund, Tree Pittsburgh, Grounded Strategies, Pasa Sustainable Agriculture, First Waves, Pennsylvania Resources Council, and Nine Mile Run Watershed Association are just a few of the groups that help us build a sustainable community.

Awards & Recognitions

We are the proud recipient of an NCG Sustainability Star in recognition of our social, environmental, and local impacts, and we won third place in the small-business category of the 2016 Green Workplace Challenge, a program of Sustainable Pittsburgh and its business network, Champions for Sustainability.

Bike Friendly Business

East End Food Co-op is one of 71 certified Bike Friendly Businesses in the state of Pennsylvania. The League of American Bicyclists granted the Co-op Bronze status because of our expansive bike parking, indoor DIY repair station (located in the lobby of The Factory near the Penn Avenue entrance), bike education, and advocacy efforts.