Littleton Food Coop

a community owned market

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Open Daily 7am-8PM

Our Mask Policy is Changing

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Our Management Team recently met to discuss a plan for lifting the store’s COVID restrictions, including our current mask policy. We have been continually monitoring NH State and CDC guidelines, as well as the latest COVID-19 case counts and hospitalization data for our market area. Overall, we have seen a steady decline in COVID numbers in our region, as more and more of the local population is vaccinated. Currently, 75.5% of the staff here at the Co-op have been vaccinated, which is a milestone we are quite proud of. 

We also discussed feedback from employees, customers, and other members of our community, and as usual, the perspectives vary widely. Some urged us to end restrictions immediately or very soon, while others felt it was important to wait longer. From these conversations it is clear that some of us need time to adjust to changes in our policies. We hope to proceed in a way that is not only transparent, but also allows our customers, employees, vendors to feel comfortable here at the Co-op. 

With these things in mind, we felt it was important to give the community notice of our change in policy. As of July 2 2021, we will be relaxing our mask policy for customers as well as employees. As of that date, anyone who has been vaccinated is not required to wear a mask at the Co-op. We are encouraging anyone who is unvaccinated or has health or safety concerns to continue to wear a mask. We offer our online Curbside Pickup service for those who are unable to shop in person.

On July 2 we also plan on re-opening our Cafe space to the community, and we will also resume our regular in-store tastings, classes, and events. It’s been a long time since we’ve been able to host these kinds of activities, and we’re really looking forward to reinstating that vibrant, busy, community-minded atmosphere in our Co-op.

As always, thank you for your support and your cooperation!

COVID-19 and the Co-op

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Update Effective 5/28/2021 Vaccinated customers are strongly encouraged to wear a mask, but it’s no longer required. Customers who have not been vaccinated are still required to wear a mask here at the Co-op, on an honor-system basis. Our employees are required to continue to wear masks for the time being.

We decided to make this change after considering recent CDC guidance and the decline in local case counts. We appreciate everyone’s cooperation, and we trust our community members to do the right thing.

If you’re concerned about shopping in-store, we’re happy to offer our free Curbside Pickup Service. You can place your order online and we will gladly shop for you and bring your order out to your car.

We’re continuing to work hard to keep our store clean, safe, and welcoming for everyone. We’ve implemented many procedures and policies for COVID-19, most of which follow CDC and NH State guidelines. We’re committed to doing the best we can to take care of our customers and our staff, while still keeping our shelves stocked with essentials.

We have many procedures already in place to help protect the safety of our employees, members, and shoppers—procedures we rely on to reduce the spread of foodborne illness and seasonal colds and flu every year. We will regularly update this page as the situation progresses,  so please check back for updates.

  • Masks are mandatory for all persons (over 2 years of age) who enter the co-op. This policy is strictly enforced.
  • Please stay 6 feet away from other people while you shop.
  • Please shop alone, in order to limit the number of people in the store.
  • Stay home and do not shop in the store if you are sick.

Keepin’ It Clean

  • We are making extra efforts to keep the store clean and sanitized, particularly in high-contact and high-traffic areas.
  • Our staff continually cleans throughout the day.
  • For health and safety reasons, we have closed dine-in seating in the co-op cafe. The sinks are still available for hand washing as needed.
  • Our shopping baskets are sanitized each morning. We have sanitizing wipe stations in our entry and exit areas if you’d like to clean your shopping carts and baskets before use.
  • We have touchless hand sanitizer stations now set up in the entry and exit, as well as near the restrooms, produce area, bulk area, meat department and dairy.  Please look for these grey wall-mounted boxes the next time you are in the store.
  • Our cashiers disinfect the register belts and bagging stations between each order, as well as sanitize their hands before waiting on the next customer.   Please be patient while this process is taking place as it is for your health and protection.
  • You may bring your clean reusable shopping bags in the store. Please bag your own groceries at the register. We also have paper bags for 10 cents each, as well as complimentary grocery boxes for you to pack your purchase in.
  • Our credit card pin-pads are wiped down frequently. Please use the stylus to enter your information, since that is easy to clean between uses. We encourage customers to pay with debit or credit cards if possible, since it vastly reduces the amount of cash we have to handle. We also accept touchless payments such as Google Pay and Apple Pay, which are even safer.

Social Distancing

When you visit the store you will see many reminders about social distancing, shopping solo and wearing a mask.  Please keep away from other shoppers as well as our staff while they work, for your own safety as well as ours.

At the registers, we’ve installed plexiglass barriers to protect you as well as our cashiers. There are also marks on the floor so that you know where to stand while you wait in line, and stay a safe distance apart.  We have also discontinued the practice of having additional staff pack up your order.  We felt this introduced one more person handling your food as well as a challenge to proper social distancing at the checkout counter.  Please plan on assisting your cashier in bagging or boxing up your groceries.

In the aisles, please give employees extra space when they are stocking.  It is a difficult and challenging job keeping the shelves full while the store is open.  Please do not reach over employees or other shoppers to retrieve something from the shelves.  Maintain a safe 6-foot distance and ask about the item you need.  Our staff will gladly move aside or reach the item for you.

Here are some of the policies (and tips) we’ve implemented to keep everyone safe & healthy:

  • Masks are mandatory for all persons (over 2 years of age) who enter the co-op. This policy is strictly enforced.
  • Please stay 6 feet away from other people while you shop.
  • Please shop alone, in order to limit the number of people in the store.
  • Stay home and do not shop in the store if you are sick.
  • Make a shopping list, considering ways to minimize shopping trips.  Plan your shopping trip ahead of time by using our map!
  • Cover your cough or sneeze, wash hands often, use sanitizer and only touch items you intend to buy.
  • Only buy what you need, and leave some for your neighbors.
  • If possible, pay with a debit or credit card, or use contactless payment, which is far less germy than cash.

Food Safety

Our employees follow a strict set of standard operating procedures when handling products. No employee goes near the Co-op’s prepared foods or other products without extensive training on how to handle them properly and safely.

For the time being we are discontinuing our self-serve hot food stations, including soups, pizza, and self-serve coffee. Pre-packaged grab & go options are still available. All of our fresh-baked items are now packaged.

According to the Harvard Health Blog, it’s not clear if the virus can spread through food. Even if so, it would be highly unlikely. Regardless, health officials cannot absolutely rule out the possibility of transmission from infected food handlers – which is why we ask our staff to stay home when they are sick.

Supporting our Staff

Because of the increased risk of exposure that comes as a result of working in a grocery store, all of our staff are receiving hazard pay bonuses.

Out of care for our community, our policy has always been for staff to remain at home when they are unwell. All of our employees accumulate paid time off to cover sick time.

We have several options in place to provide paid time off for those employees who are self-isolating due to illness or immune vulnerabilities, as well as those who need to stay home to look after their children.

Events and Sampling

We have discontinued all food demos & sampling at this time. We are also suspending all community info tabling events.

We’ve also made the hard choice to postpone our sampling event days, in-store classes, and workshops.

In order to promote healthy social distancing practices, we have moved our monthly Board Meetings, our Annual Meetings, and Board Elections online.

We have suspended our regular Member Appreciation Days & Senior Discount Days since we don’t want to encourage shoppers to crowd the store on a single day. Instead we are offering extended “Floating Member Discount” and “Senior Five & Dime Discount” periods so that our Members can use their discount during those allotted times, during one shopping trip, and on the day of their choice.

Supplies

You may have heard stories about grocery stores running out of food and household needs as consumers stock up on the essentials. One of our strengths is that we source from multiple suppliers and don’t pull from a central warehouse.

We are working diligently with our suppliers to keep essentials and pantry staples in stock, but please bear with us as some items may become out of stock or unavailable.

Work with Us

Finally, we ask all of our members, shoppers, and employees to partner with us in this.  Please be courteous and mindful as you shop, realizing we are all working through these challenges together.  Please be patient when needing to wait, or when a product is unavailable due to supplier issues.  Social distancing is key – please stay 6 feet away from other shoppers and store employees.

WHO has great advice on how to be responsible in order to protect yourself—and by extension your community—from the virus.

Please shop alone, shop efficiently, and wear a face covering.  Again, we love seeing you all, and we’ll be here when brighter times are back for the usual smiles and chit-chat we all love in our co-op community. But for now, we’d like to try to reduce the number of people in the store at any given time, for the health and safety of everyone.

If you are older or in need of assistance with your grocery shopping, please give us a call. At this time we are unable to offer delivery or special shopping hours due to logistics and safety concerns. We do offer a Curbside Pickup service for seniors, people who are highly vulnerable to COVID 19, or people who are sick and staying isolated.

Learn More

More thoughts or questions? Reach out anytime. For general questions please call the store at (603) 444-2800 or email your comments to info@littletoncoop.org.  Remember that our employees on the front lines have their hands full with the challenging new essential position they have found themselves in.  If you have a concern or suggestion, please ask for a manager.  You can also email cwhiton@littletoncoop.org.  We will be glad to listen and provide assistance.

Updated 02/02/2021

 

A PSA Regarding a Positive COVID Test at the Co-op

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To Our Members & Community,

In the interest of transparency, we wanted to inform you that on the evening of Monday, December 28, we learned that a staff member from our store tested positive for the novel coronavirus (COVID-19).  

Upon learning of the result, we spoke with our local health department. We immediately performed additional sanitizing and disinfecting procedures in all areas of the store where that employee had worked. This employee works in the Pricing and Receiving department and has minimal contact with the public; they last worked at the co-op on Wednesday, December 23, and are self-quarantining at home as recommended by their healthcare professional. To our knowledge, the employee never exhibited symptoms while at work and had minimal contact with customers and other employees.

The Littleton Food Co-op has identified all staff members who may have been in close contact with the affected person and is supporting these employees as they self-monitor, although at this time we believe this is an isolated case and there is no communal spread in the store. Our co-op has a generous sick and vacation policy, and we are working with staff members on a case-by-case basis to ensure they have the support they need. Across our co-op as part of our regular policy, we ask that any staff exhibiting symptoms of respiratory illness or fever stay home, contact our HR department, and notify their physician.

Our co-op prides itself on its cleanliness and food safety standards, and we are taking multiple steps to best serve you, care for our staff, and be a responsible member of our community. We have implemented rigorous daily cleaning practices throughout our store.  Since March, every other hour each department performs a sanitation rotation, disinfecting all common touch areas in all parts of the store.  Each night, a professional store-wide disinfection is done by our janitorial services to all common touch areas, shopping carts, offices, electronics and floors.  

Furthermore:

  • All staff members are pre-screened for temperature and symptoms daily before work
  • All staff self-monitor themselves throughout the day and stay/go home if sick
  • All employees are required to wear masks (worn correctly, fitting tightly to the face and under the chin) at all times
  • All employees are asked to maintain 6-foot social distancing from others
  • All common areas such as offices, bathrooms, and shared electronic equipment are disinfected and cleaned routinely every day.

To learn more about the steps we are taking, please visit  www.littletoncoop.com/covid19.

If you have any further questions, please contact us at info@littletoncoop.org.

Thank you!

Mask Policy Update

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We want to thank you all for the overwhelming support for our safety practices – there have been lots of changes and we really appreciate your patience and cooperation along the way. Starting Wednesday July 22, masks will be mandatory for every person over 2 years of age who enters the Co-op, without exceptions.

We will be strictly enforcing this new face covering policy in the store, for the safety of our staff and customers. Masks or face coverings must be worn correctly, and should cover the nose as well as the mouth. If you do not have a face covering you will be offered a free disposable mask by a member of our management team. 

For those of you who are unable to wear a mask for medical reasons, or who are unwilling to wear a face covering, we offer a reasonable accommodation via our Curbside Pickup Service. Just place your order online, let us do the shopping, and when it’s ready we bring it out to your car! This free, flexible service is available through our website at www.littletoncoop.com/curbside. 

Again, thank you all for your patience and understanding in these difficult times. We care about our community and wear masks for your health – please do the same for us! 

COVID 19 Community Resources

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Here is a list of links and resources we’ve collected to help people in our community who have been impacted by the Coronavirus pandemic. We’ll update this post with new information and links as we find them.

General Assistance

Dial 2-1-1 if you have questions or concerns surrounding the COVID-19 outbreak. This free statewide information and referral service is operated by Granite United Way. They have also provided us with free masks to give away to the community – just ask at the Service Desk!

Civic Info Pages

GoLittleton.com
Bethlehem Select Board News
Littleton Chamber of Commerce
Lisbon
Franconia
Whitefield
Dalton

Food Pantries

Littleton Food Pantry: 70 Redington Street, Littleton
Little Free Pantry: 189 Main St, Littleton (in front of the Congregational Church)
All Saints’ Community Food Cupboard: 35 School Street, Littleton
Good Neighbor Food Pantry: 44 Church Street, Franconia
Bethlehem Food Pantry: 2155 Main Street, Bethlehem (inside Town Hall, open by appointment)
Lincoln-Woodstock Food Pantry: 194 Pollard Rd, Lincoln

Food Access Map

UNH Extension has created an interactive online map with local resources and information for those in need as well as those who would like to donate or volunteer.

Recovery Support

AskPETRA.org is your free and confidential guide to North Country resources for daily needs, Substance Use Disorder treatment and recovery options. During the COVID-19 outbreak, our helpline is open to connect anyone in the Northern NH to local resources for daily basic needs.

 

New Hampshire Stay at Home 2.0

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On May 1st, Governor Sununu’s Economic Reopening Taskforce announced new guidelines for retail establishments operating in New Hampshire.  We were pleased to see that most of these recommendations and mandates were already being followed here at the Co-op, and had been for quite some time.  Among those many notable procedures not already mentioned above are:

  • All co-op staff must wear cloth face coverings at all times in the workplace.
  • All co-op staff have been trained on proper mask wearing and hand washing.
  • Hand sanitizer stations have been set up in all departments, each register, and around the store for shopper use.
  • All co-op staff are screened daily before reporting to work with a temperature check from a touchless thermometer as well as a series of health questions regarding COVID exposure and symptoms.
  • Signage must be in place inside and outside the store promoting cloth face covering use and 6-foot social distancing reminders.
  • All co-op staff are empowered to monitor and enforce the compliance to social distancing practices of customers and staff alike.
  • Customer self bagging promoted at the front end to reduce exposure of one more staff member per register.
  • Curbside pickup service established to assist medically vulnerable or elderly shoppers.

We are also constantly monitoring the number of customers within the store at any given time to make sure we do not exceed the 50% total capacity mandated by the governor.  As of yet, even during our busiest peaks we are well below that number, but we will continue to monitor to make certain.  We have limited the number of shopping carts to assist in this measure, so if you arrive and there are no carts available, please be patient and wait for the next cart.

Frequently Asked Questions

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Q: Is the Co-op planning on offering a Senior-only shopping time?

A: We take the well-being of our senior customers very seriously. In our management meetings we have discussed the idea of setting up a dedicated shopping time for seniors, but we decided that for the health and safety of our older and vulnerable customers it would be dangerous and inappropriate to encourage elderly people to congregate in our store.

If you or someone you know needs help with shopping, please reach out to bcolpitts@littletoncoop.org. Our Community Outreach Coordinator, Becky Colpitts, can try to put you in touch with community resources for volunteers and services. You can also contact the 211 hotline for Granite State United Way to find assistance.

Q: Can the Co-op offer pick-up, delivery, or curbside service?

A: We now offer a Curbside Pickup service for seniors, people who are highly vulnerable to COVID 19, or people who are sick and staying isolated. You may place an order online or by phone, and come pick your order up outside of the store.

Again, if you or someone you know needs help with shopping, please reach out to bcolpitts@littletoncoop.org. Our Community Outreach Coordinator, Becky Colpitts, can try to put you in touch with community resources for volunteers and services. You can also contact the 211 hotline for Granite State United Way to find assistance.

Q: Are you limiting the number of customers in the store?

A: We’re limiting the number of shopping carts that are available at the store entry area, thereby limiting the number of customers in the store at any given time. We count the number of shoppers in the store at frequently throughout the day to monitor capacity.  We’re also restricting our entrance and exit areas so they are one-way.

Please help us reduce traffic in the store by shopping alone. Leave your children at home if you are able to do so, and refrain from bringing your spouse or family members with you.

Q: Can you make the aisles one-way?

A: We’ve talked about that option extensively with our staff and managers, and we decided it’s not a good fit for the store at this time. The consensus among our staff is that it’s much quicker to skip the busy aisles and loop around to come back. If we set up traffic rules not only would we have a difficult time enforcing them, but it would also cause major backups and pinch points.  Our Co-op has many narrow corners and differently-facing aisles, so letting shoppers choose the path of least resistance will allow for a quicker, safer shopping trip, especially when armed with our store map and a plan.

Q: Why aren’t all the employees wearing gloves?

A: Gloves are not a substitute for hand washing or regular hand sanitation, and can pick up and transfer the virus just as easily as bare skin. Gloves are not meant to be worn for an extended period of time, since they can cause cross contamination if they are not changed almost constantly. We wear gloves in our food service areas and our bulk department, as part of our regular food safety protocols. Our staff have the option of wearing gloves for their own protection but they are not required to do so.

Q: Should I wear gloves when I shop?

A: If you would like to wear gloves when you shop you are welcome to do so. Please remember that gloves transfer virus just as easily as bare skin, and you should still avoid touching your face or any items you do not intend to purchase.  Disposable gloves are available in the Bulk Department for your use at any time.  They are required for customers using the bulk scoop and gravity bins, but you may use them elsewhere in the store as well if you wish.

We’d appreciate it if you’d put on a clean pair of gloves or sanitize your hands (at the sanitizer station on the inner door) before you enter the store, so that you don’t inadvertently bring the virus into our community. Also, please dispose of your gloves properly when you leave; use a trash receptacle and do not discard used gloves on the ground or in the grocery carts.  There is a trash receptacle in the exit, near the entrance, and at the cart corral for this use.

Q: Should I wear a mask when I shop?

A: The CDC recommends that people wear masks when in public, to protect the community from asymptomatic transmission. The State of New Hampshire requests that customers wear face coverings at all times when inside a retail establishment.  Please wear a mask when you come to the co-op.  If you forget your mask, we will provide a free one to you!  Just ask at the service desk and one of our friendly associates will get you one.  We do apologize it is a bit of a walk from the entrance, but we wanted to make sure these were kept in a safe, sanitary location.

Q: May I still bring my reusable bags to the store?

A: UPDATE Aug 2020: Yes, you may bring your clean reusable bags to the store. Please bag your own groceries at the register. We also have paper bags for 10 cents each, as well as complimentary grocery boxes for you to pack your purchase in.

 



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