“Rising Food Prices and the Responses of Cooperative Initiatives” was the theme of a one-day event organised within the framework of the “Cooperation Ecosystem in Thessaloniki and Central Macedonia” on Wednesday, 22 April 2026, at OK!Thess.

The event addressed issues such as the causes of rising food prices, profiteering by intermediaries, high taxation and soaring energy costs.

The event was opened by Giorgos Blekas, former Associate Professor of Food Chemistry at Aristotle University of Thessaloniki and Vice-President for Infrastructure of the People’s University of Social and Solidarity Economy. Among other issues, he referred to the quality of the food reaching our tables, which is also being adversely affected by rising prices.

Members of four organisations within the Cooperation Ecosystem that work in the field of food then presented the proposals and practical alternatives that cooperative initiatives can offer.

Despoina Ioannidou, President of the Women’s Agricultural Cooperative of Traditional Products of Agios Antonios, presented the work of the cooperative. It succeeds both in creating employment opportunities for women farmers and in promoting traditional, handmade products without intermediaries, while maintaining affordable prices and high quality.

She was followed by Katerina Kallergi from the Work Integration Social Cooperative Enterprise “Treli Rodia”, one of whose main objectives is the social and occupational reintegration of people recovering from addiction. Alongside this important social mission, Treli Rodia produces and sells aromatic plants, vegetables and fruit from traditional varieties directly, without intermediaries. It also cultivates an estate with 420 pomegranate trees, offering high-quality products at affordable prices. The use of traditional varieties could play a decisive role in reducing production costs.

Michalis Panagiotidis, a member of the solidarity economy cooperative “The Agricultural Grocery Store”, a cooperative of producers and consumers, presented its core principles, which challenge the idea that food should be treated as an arena for speculation. He also referred to the two large markets organised each month at the former tobacco warehouses in Nea Krini and at Aretsou Beach. These markets bring producers directly into contact with consumers, without intermediaries who profit at the expense of both people and the natural environment. The initiative emerged during the previous economic crisis through the “Without Intermediaries” movement, which gained such widespread support that it provoked political reaction and repression.

Finally, Filippos Polatsidis presented the association “Pervolarides”, which organises workshops on food utilisation, urban cultivation and education around the commons. One of the association’s main objectives is to recover food that would otherwise be discarded and process it into sauces, jams and other products. Based on cooperation and care, it also organises activities in support of vulnerable social groups, cultivating and distributing vegetables and food to people in need and providing meals to homeless people.

Highlighting the work of these four organisations in response to rising food prices is particularly important, especially in view of the implementation of the Mercosur agreement between countries of Latin America and the European Union, which is expected to affect both producers and consumers, particularly in terms of food quality. Building new cooperative initiatives and strengthening existing ones is therefore vital for everyone.

The discussion was moderated by Aspa Papafilippou, PhD in the Sociology of Cooperatives and Vice-President for Education of UnivSSE Coop.

The development of the “Cooperation Ecosystem in Thessaloniki and Central Macedonia” is implemented with the support of the People’s University of Social and Solidarity Economy, “UnivSSE Coop”, and co-funded by the European Union through the NSRF Programme “Central Macedonia 2021–2027.”

Watch the presentations here.