Mayor Kevin Johnson and the Sacramento City Council have unanimously approved a resolution declaring October 2012 as “Co-op Month” and honoring 2012 as the “Year of Cooperatives” in Sacramento.

“Co-ops are a vital part of Sacramento’s economic lifeblood, employing hundreds of workers and injecting millions of dollars into our economy,” said Steven Maviglio, President of the Sacramento Natural Foods Co-op, one of the largest co-op’s in the city. “We appreciate the recognition by the Mayor and Council of the critical importance of co-ops to our city and nation.”

Co-ops are member-owned and controlled businesses that operate for the mutual benefit of members. For more than a century, they have been a vital part of Sacramento and the world’s economies. Major cooperatives in Sacramento include Golden One Credit Union, California Co-op Cab, Farmers Rice Cooperative, and the Sacramento Natural Foods Co-operative.

Co-ops operate in every county in California and in numerous sectors, including financial, credit, energy, telecommunications, food distribution, retailing, child care, housing, and health care.

There are more than 29,000 cooperatives in the United States. They generated more than two million jobs and annual sales exceeding $652 billion. There are more than 800 million owners of cooperatives worldwide, with 1.5 million owners in California alone.