MC Meeting Minutes Monday October 26, 2009
Meeting opened: 7.30pm

ATTENDANCE
MC: Genevieve Derwent, Jo Rose (facilitator), Sam Byrne, Linda Grkinic (minutes)
Others/visitors: Nija Dalal (Co-op Coordinator), Monika Baumann (Groceries Coordinator), Helena Syrett (Shop Coordinator), Olivia Lovell (Shop Coordinator), Lisa McIntosh (Cleaner), Rosie Lambert, Colin Armiger (Blue Mountains Food Co-op Board)
Apologies: Amity Lynch (Shop Coordinator), Jamie Payne (F+V Coordinator)

CONFIRMATION OF PREVIOUS MINUTES

Proposal: That the September 2009 minutes (meeting held Oct. 12) be accepted. Genevieve/Sam CARRIED

PROPOSALS CONFIRMED BY EMAIL

Proposal: That any gravity bin fundraising funds remaining after the purchase and installation of gravity bins be used to fund some of the additional Groceries Coordinator hours required to support the final two installations. (20/10/09) Genevieve/Sam CARRIED

Proposal: That the Co-op Coordinator’s request for reduced hours be approved. The coordinator will now work 28 hours per week with an hourly rate of $28.60. (22/10/09) Genevieve/Sam CARRIED

MEMBERSHIP

NEW MEMBERS

Proposal: That Alfalfa House accept applicants with membership numbers 5649-5707 as members. Sam/Genevieve CARRIED

RESIGNATIONS and FORFEITURES

Proposal: That Alfalfa House accept the resignations of member 3800 be accepted and that shares of members 2575, 2584, 2911, 2896, 3006, 3085, 3109, 3355, 3589, 3596, 3623, 3907, 3908, 4123, 4125, 4180, 4191, 4275, 4280, 4352, 4389, 4467, 4473, 4504 and 4555 be forfeited. Jo/Genevieve CARRIED

STAFFING

Nil

OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND SAFETY (OH+S)
• Julia has returned to work: 1 day a week rather than the previous 2 days per week.
• Monika had a near miss where she could have potentially injured her ankle in the drain grate in the back garden. The grate is too small for the drain hole. Nija ordered the correct sized grate on Oct. 26.

REPORTS

FINANCE
• The position of Treasurer is currently unfilled so there was no Treasurer’s report. A new treasurer will be nominated after the AGM.
• MC received the September Profit and Loss Report (P&L) from Julia. Alfalfa House made a loss for September. Julia reported that notable factors were a drop in non-GST sales by approximately $10,000 and a small increase in grocery sales. Julia predicts another possible loss in October, based on the P&L to date. Genevieve recommended that the new MC (after the AGM) keep a close eye on expenditure and review the budget at the next MC meeting if this P&L trend continues.
• Sam raised that there are small discrepancies between the budget reports from the Groceries and F&V Coordinators, Julia’s reports and the 2009/10 budget. This may be due to variations in including GST in figures. Sam will work with Julia to identify ways to improve consistency in reporting.
• Julia advised staff pay rises included in the 2009/10 budget have been included in the October pays.

CO-OP COORDINATOR
• The AGM will be held Nov. 17 and the next MC meeting is scheduled for Nov. 23. Nija questioned whether the November MC meeting would go ahead so soon after the new MC had been elected. Jo proposed meeting Monday Dec. 7 and having a combined Nov/Dec meeting. This will allow a couple of weeks for the new MC to group after the AGM and avoid having a December meeting during the Christmas/New Year period.
• Genevieve will pass on new information about the new award coming into effect on Jan. 1, 2010 to Nija and Julia to be shared with staff at the next staff meeting.
• The climate camp's food grant was approved over email.

Proposal: That the report be accepted. Genevieve/Linda CARRIED

F & V PRODUCE

Proposal: That the report be accepted. Sam/Jo CARRIED

GROCERIES
• Monika reported that there was another gravity bin installation. AH now has flexible/modular shelving that allows staff to move bins around based on seasonal availability. The final gravity installation is due to take place on Nov. 14.

Proposal: That the report be accepted. Jo/Genevieve CARRIED

STAFF MEETING
As there has not been a staff meeting since the last MC meeting there was no delegates' report.

CORRESPONDENCE
• Letter to MC from volunteer Miriam Williams. Miriam is conducting research on community organisations for her PhD.

FOOD GRANTS Nil

CURRENT MATTERS

POLICY
• There is a blank space in AH policies under the heading “Packaging for Customer Use”. AH objectives detail our minimally packaged philosophy. Nija recommended removing the heading from the policy manual as there does not appear to be a need for an MC policy.
• There is a blank space in our policies under the heading “Packaging for Food”. Our objectives cover our commitment to select food based on ethical principles and to use environmentally-friendly packaging. Nija recommended removing the heading from the policy manual as there does not appear to be a need for an MC policy.

Proposal: That the headings “Packaging for Customer Use” and “Packaging for Food” be removed from the List of Alfalfa House Policies.
Sam/Linda CARRIED

• Monika presented policy changes related to supporting other co-ops and food grants.

Proposal: That the meeting accept the policy changes relating to other co-ops and food grants. Jo/Genevieve CARRIED

XMAS/STORE PROMOTIONS
• Groceries and F&V Coordinators do not believe the Calendar vouchers have translated into higher sales in the months following or an increase in average monthly spend. Benefits do not seem worth administrative requirements.
• Jo has spoken to a number of people in the local area about how they feel about AH. Many say they feel intimidated about coming into the store and about how to shop. Many also think it’s compulsory to volunteer to be a member. Jo asked staff to discuss ways to make the shop more welcoming for new members and ideas for local promotions. Sam endorsed the importance of reaching out to people who live locally.
• Jo volunteered to do a letterbox drop if a decision is made to distribute flyers. If staff agrees with flyer proposal, Nija offered to create a flyer.
Monika suggested making a box with ‘how to shop’ flyers accessible at the front of the shop.
• Genevieve suggested enhancing the connection with the Watershed, as they have started offering sustainable food choices workshops.
• Colin reported that on Wednesdays Blue Mountains Food Co-op has volunteer ‘angels’ available to help people learn how to shop and offer suggestions. A similar idea may be benefit AH.
• Lisa suggested becoming a business member of 2SER. Nija to create a proposal.
• Jo suggested approaching journalists to write articles. Nija reported that she regularly gets approached by journalists and did an interview with Time Out today. Jo encouraged keeping clippings of articles.

LEASE
• The landlord would like to separate the leases for upstairs/downstairs and take back the lease for upstairs. She would like to carry out much needed repairs and renovations upstairs, then charge market rent for the area. While this is her preference, she is open to negotiation with AH.
• Office staff do not think it is viable to move the office space upstairs. Sam raised that it is not an AH objective to sublet/be landlords so we should consider the advantages of separate leases. Julia agreed as we are effectively collecting rent from upstairs without benefiting financially from the arrangement. Releasing the upstairs space would also remove headaches as it is in sub-standard condition with significant safety concerns. Lisa asked if would be possible to rent only one room upstairs. Nija thinks this would be unlikely as the landlord intends to renovate and will probably seek to let space to one tenant.
• The landlord’s proposed rent for downstairs (if spaces were separated) is $2400 pcm. Julia reported our current rent is $3300 pcm for both spaces and we collect approx $1200 pcm for upstairs rent, reducing our shop rent to approx $2100. Sam proposed we negotiate with the landlord and say we are interested in signing a long-term lease but don’t want to pay more for the shop space than we are now. Julia to enter into discussions with the real estate agent/landlord. Sam offered to take part in the discussions.

Proposal: That Julia negotiate with the agent/landlord and pursue a 3+2 lease option, where we continue to pay the same rent for the shop space as we do now. Julia to share AH plans to beautify the shop to increase the attractiveness of the proposal (e.g., the wall mural). Sam/Linda CARRIED

BLUE MOUNTAINS FOOD CO-OP
• Colin said he took advantage of the opportunity to come to an MC meeting as an AH member while he was staying in Sydney. He is also on the board of the Blue Mountains co-op and is keen to build relations with other co-ops. The Blue Mountains board has been through some dramatic times recently and is now stable. They have a relatively new board, the majority of whom have only been on board since March 2009.

OTHER MATTERS

CLEO'S MILK
• Nija reported that Shop Coordinators have been approached on three occasions with suspicious ‘shoppers’ wanting to taste test the Cleo’s milk. This has occurred once with Julia and twice with Aidan. Recently, Aidan was filmed on a mobile by one of these ‘shoppers’ as he was talking to them. This could be part of a current affairs type investigation about stores selling ‘controversial’ products such as unpasteurised milk. Genevieve emphasised that signs on the fridge and warnings on Cleo’s milk say not suitable for internal consumption, and feels comfortable stocking it under these conditions. Shop Coordinators also explain to customers that Cleo’s milk is intended for bathing and not internal consumption. AH will continue stocking Cleo’s milk under existing conditions but if staff become concerned about stocking the milk they should raise the matter for review.

MC CANDIDATE
• Rosie expressed an interest in volunteering for MC. She shared that she is a lawyer, lives in St Peters, and recently returned to work after maternity leave. She has been interested in AH for some time but found the shop a bit intimidating. Sam asked if she would be interested in joining MC. She feels very in tune with AH’s environmental objectives, enjoyed being at the meeting and plans to stand for the MC at the AGM.

Meeting closed 9.09pm