Berkeley Student Food Collective

your student-run nonprofit grocery co-op is gonna be in the paper so much, you’re gonna get tired of us being in the paper 📰

the The Daily Californian covered our support, alongside UC Berkeley Young Democratic Socialists of America, for the boycott called by Starbucks Workers United!

our tiny, mighty member-governed grocery co-op has been building these relationships for years. since 2022, our members have met with local Starbucks worker-organizers to learn what organizing a union actually looks like. we’ve shared meals with founding union leaders, including , and collaborated with and .

because food justice happens in our neighborhood. in the coffee shop down the street. in workers organizing together for dignity and a say in the conditions of their work...and in whether the rest of us show up for them.

in our own Collective, we get to practice self-determination through our cooperative structure. that comes with a responsibility to support people fighting for it across the food system.

thank you to the Daily Cal for covering student-worker solidarity. read the story, honor the workers’ call to boycott, and help turn a little press into big community support ✊

another piece in the about us: this time talking about how the Collective is an incredible, affordable place next to campus to get into your PSL bag.

yes, we have delicious cheap organic local produce served by a woman-owned B-Corp () or a nonprofit local distributor (), but we also have incredible autumnal treats from worker cooperatives like , local teas like Numi Organic Tea, or cult favorites' seasonal editions like .

and ofc, it's never more of an honor than when we're featured alongside our trusted longtime partners at , with whom we get to REVEL in creating a better, more equitable food system every day :)

did someone say chocolate? shift collective baddies tore through tcho’s choco latté (avg 7.7/10) and sunnies’ smore snack (8.5/10)

the damage

she ate a whole bar herself (there’s four ppl on the shift sharing three)

last drop

oh, you like juice?? let us guess, you drink Dole? the company that literally did military coups over democratically elected governments? or MinuteMaid, from Coke, who literally assassinated union leaders in Guatemala? or Naked Juice, from Pepsi, who just withdrew their lawsuits trying to sue farmers for...growing potatoes for "plant variety infringement" aka uhhhh planting the seeds from the last harvest lmaoo.

if you're a REAL juice head then you probably know about about Voila! Juice, a FIFTY year old local Berkeley juice maker that's been in the game since they started as a pop-up on the Downtown Berkeley BART plaza in literal 1978. not many brands stick around this long so you know this sh*t's so good it's got ~Staying Power~.

anyway it's THICK it's FRESH and it's made by real ones right here in your neighborhood soooo we strongly consider making it your New Thing if it isn't already. plus it mmmm tastes better. yum. juice.

Selection Of Member-Designed Nametags
circa © 2026
𝓕𝓸𝓸𝓭 𝓒𝓸𝓵𝓵𝓮𝓬𝓽𝓲𝓿𝓮 𝓜𝓮𝓶𝓫𝓮𝓻 𝓖𝓪𝓵𝓵𝓮𝓻𝔂

DM us to purchase; prices start at $650

throwback thursday bc we stand on the shoulders of giants !! giants like Maggie Li, Board Chair, circa 2018.

Board member Julia speaks with a new member, circa 2018.

2018.

Layla brings food to an afscme3299 dining hall worker strike line c 2019.

Board member sisters Athena and Sonia Scott sirca 2016.

Members meet with a retail consultant from the Alameda County Small Business Development Center, circa 2016.

Board member Danielle Chen serves food at an open house circa 2016.

Member Margot reworks a grab'n'go board circa 2018.

Food Collective collaborates with the early Basic Needs Center circa 2018. BNC cofounder Ruben Canedo Sanchez sits in the background.

Board Member Dana Price circa 2018.

Longtime member and prolific animal rights activist Kitty Jones hosts a bake sale outside the Collective circa 2016.

Member Nikola Kendis and her baby, who she gave birth to as a member circa 2017.

squeeze one out with the boys 🤙 w local vendor

it’s basically a gogurt, but sophisticated. adult. elevated. & also dairy-free.

they have a whole lineup of yogurts made with cashews that we stock that are widely considered to be the best value by professional chefs (citation: look it up there's an article about it). it’s an easy way to get probiotics to soothe your tummy and chalk-full of other vitamins and nutrients for when you need to Be Healthy but literally Don’t Have Time To Eat Real Food Because Of Midterms And The General Disintegration Of Order.

started over a decade ago and the Food Collective, because of student leadership, was one of the first retailers to offer them — back when they were still delivering themselves in-person. it’s a great example of a cherished local brands that students are incubating because they’re willing to take a chance on new local vendors in a way that established supermarkets aren’t.

come by to try Forager’s stuff and also maybe the next wave of delicious, local food innovation. ideally in a squeeze pack.

there are powerful collective food justice struggles happening...in our neighborhood?

this summer, dining hall staff and workers throughout the Graduate Hotel on Durant & Dana — right up the street — walked out of work and onto the picket line to protest understaffing, undercompensation, and to protect their workplace from unsavory Hilton corporate directives.

despite huge pushback from Hilton — they won their union with Unite Here Local 2 in a 96% vote! to celebrate — and share about their upcoming contract negotiations — their worker leaders and union staff joined us to talk about what it means to take collective action in the food system...*very* locally.

also joining us were staff organizers from our local grocers' and retail co-ops' union, UFCW Local 5, who've been fighting hard to protect good union jobs at local Bay Area Lucky's stores.

these brave workers and their support staff delved into conversations about what kind of collective methods and tactics it takes to make sure that jobs in our local food system are safe and dignified...and how students can use their own collective power to help their neighbors and coworkers in the food system.

get 𝓬𝓾𝓵𝓽𝓾𝓻𝓮𝓭 between classes

so we all knew that is local, yes? just a short drive north to petaluma — creamy ice cream with crunchy chunks galore. tap it with your spoon, break through, get a little crunch in every bite. an excellent use of your between-class break instead of studying for the midterm your professor has inexplicably set for next week.

and yes, the “culture” part means something: these little cups contain live probiotic cultures, plus prebiotic fiber, and are made with A2 dairy (whose milk we also carry hehe). they’re also gluten-free.

speaking of ingredients, Alec’s uses regenerative organic certified cane sugar, so honestly....flex. obvi you won't be able to taste it, but we love to see our hometown brands pushing themselves to try and not totally wreck the ecosystem in the name of efficiency.

so anyway...come investigate the freezer. for uhhh cultural reasons.

muffins for your 8am. cupcakes for mmm literally any reason 🧁

meet , the local east bay bakery making your cute little treat with a cute little mission. jk it’s a big mission.

their muffins and cupcakes are baked from scratch since 1993 by folks facing barriers to work imposed by broader societal failures — formerly incarcerated people, people experiencing housing insecurity, and people recovering from substance use disorders.

your local student-run co-op works with local vendors who are trying to use food as a platform for broader social change — and who uhhhh make really good food.

come by the collective and pick up a muffin for tomorrow morning. or a cupcake for right now. we support both.