Apples for peanuts: New co-op discounting for low-income members

Just because you’re getting public assistance doesn’t mean you’re stuck at Pathmark. The Greene Hill Food Co-op in Clinton Hill officially opens this Saturday much to the delight of locals or anyone caught up in work shift purgatory at the Park Slope Food Co-op. In true food co-op fashion, they’re offering discounted memberships to low-income residents enrolled in some form of public assistance (SSI, Medicaid, SNAP/Food stamps, etc.) under the ecologically themed “Apple Plan.” If you qualify, you save $20 on your administration fee and can pay off the $150 member fee over five years, instead of six months. Fresh, local food, now even fresher for your wallet.

People who qualify for the Apple Plan are eligible for a reduced, non-refundable administrative fee ($5, instead of the normal $25) and the option to pay off the fully refundable $150 member investment over a period of five years.

The co-op also offers three other regular payment plans, essentially ranked in order of the things you’d want in a salad. The Carrot Plan allows members to pay in seven monthly installments of $25 over the course of a year, plus a 3 percent surcharge per installment. The Lettuce Plan lets members pay everything up front ($150 investment and a $25 administrative fee), while the Avocado plan is the same as the Lettuce plan, but asks members to make an additional $150 contribution to the organization. The co-op notes that all contributions go towards accommodating more low-income individuals.

As with the Park Slope Food Co-op, the Green Hill Co-op requires members to work two hours every four weeks. And for those people looking to erase some work shift debt, the Park Slope Food co-op will honor hours spent working at the Greene Hill co-op towards future Park Slope co-op hours, assuming you’re caught up already.

Greene Hill Food Co-op (18 Putnam Ave., between Grand Avenue and Downing Street, Clinton Hill. Opens Saturday). Hours: Wednesdays and Saturdays, 10am-2p.For more info, visit www.greenhillfoodcoop.com.

Follow Andrew: @Lindermania.