Mission: People’s Grocery is a health and wealth organization – our mission is to improve the health and economy of West Oakland through the local food system. Through programs, advocacy, and leadership development, we actively pursue "food justice," the idea that access to healthy foods is a human right.

History: People's Grocery was founded in 2002 to combat the negative effects of living with limited access to healthy food, disenfranchisement from food production and lack of nutritional knowledge and resources. Over the past eight years, People’s Grocery has created innovative food distribution models, urban agriculture programs, and public health and nutrition projects in West Oakland. Our work has been replicated by peer organizations and our leaders have spoken around the nation about our success.

After years of thought leadership and model urban agriculture and food enterprise creation, in 2008 and 2009 the organization devoted increased resources toward incubating a for-profit grocery store, a long-term goal. In January 2010 co-founder Brahm Ahmadi left People’s Grocery to spin-off People’s Community Market, which hopes to open its doors in 2012. In the long-term, People’s Grocery and People’s Community Market hope to create a for-profit/non-profit partnership that can holistically support solutions for food insecurity in West Oakland.  


Using the foundation of successful and innovative programming, People’s Grocery refined its organizational goals and launched refocused programs intent on connecting residents with opportunities to create health, wealth, and food systems improvements in West Oakland.