LANSING, Mich. — The East Lansing Food Co-op is providing essential access to fresh, affordable food in a neighborhood where nutritious options were once limited.
- The co-op focuses on keeping prices low while providing local and fresh produce to the community.
- New tariffs on steel and aluminum could impact the prices of canned goods at grocery stores.
- Despite concerns, the co-op has enough inventory to minimize immediate price increases for customers.
WATCH: East Lansing food co-op fights food insecurity while navigating tariff challenges
Once considered a food desert, the East Lansing neighborhood now has a lifeline through the East Lansing Food Co-op, which stocks hope for the neighbors it serves.
"Providing as much local and fresh produce and food as we can to the community," said Ariana Winkle.
The co-op serves a community where neighbors have limited access to affordable and nutritious foods.
"We really try to keep food prices low and keep a lot of staple items like bananas and milk," Winkle said.
But she says tariffs are impacting some of the products there, like coffee and chocolates.
"Personally, I'm very concerned about spices," Winkle said.
Another wave of those taxes on steel and aluminum, implemented Wednesday, could bring impacts to the co-op as well as other grocery stores. Beans, soups and fruits are all packaged in aluminum or steel.
"These materials are critical in the manufacturing and packaging of food products," said David Ortega.
I talked with another MSU professor back in April about the goal of the tariffs to focus on more American-made products and the potential impact on goods in grocery aisles across Mid-Michigan.
Ortega, an MSU food chain supply professor, says the price change could be seen over time.
"The specific price impact is really going to depend on the specific item that we're looking at, but it can range, and it'll be noticeable. It's something you'll see go up in price at the grocery store," Ortega said.
But good news comes from the co-op, with Winkle telling me her grocery has canned goods in stock, enough to last a while.
When asked about the likely impact at the co-op, Winkle responded, "It will be minimal for as long as we can help."
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