Ordering from BFC

To order from Brighton Food Co-op (BFC), you must either become a member (see How to Join) or else arrange to order as a Guest. A Guest can order only one time -- subsequent orders require membership.

BFC obtains its products from a variety of sources and tries to accommodate a variety of member circumstances in the ordering process. The primary source is the United Natural Foods (UNF) warehouse in Indiana, which carries a large variety of products supplied by many vendors. But we also order from Frontier Co-op, Besteman's Produce, and various other vendors outside UNF, many of them local to the Brighton area.

The key role in the ordering process is that of the Batcher (also known as Order Coordinator or Order Collator), who takes orders from members, consolidates the orders, adjusts quantities to meet the requirements of the suppliers, and then submits the consolidated orders to the suppliers. BFC has four Batchers: UNF, Frontier, Produce, and Outside Vendor (OV).

BFC holds a distribution every 4 weeks. The dates of these distributions and related ordering events are posted in the calendar on the home page of this website. The events follow an established pattern:

About 2 weeks before the distribution, the Batchers email updated product information to the BFC membership. The UNF Batcher in particular attaches a pricelist and setup file for use with the FoodLink program and also a file listing special discounts for the month.
Individual member orders are due to the Batchers 10-12 days before the distribution.
A couple days after the initial order-due date, the UNF Batcher emails the Unfilled Cases Report showing items that were ordered whose quantities did not add up to the minimums required by UNF.
Members then have a second due date 2-3 days later to adjust/resubmit their orders to meet the minimums. Besides adjusting quantities of items already ordered, members can also add new items, but only in whole case quantities.
A couple days before the distribution, the AM Work Coordinator sends out an email with the times when the UNF and Besteman trucks are expected to deliver the orders on distribution day. The email also annnounces shift times geared to those delivery times and requests that members reply with the shift they intend to work.

The methods for submitting BFC orders vary according to the Batcher involved and can be summarized as follows:

UNF - Orders must be prepared and submitted using either the FoodLink program (which runs on the member's PC) or the FoodLink-compatible online order form at the UNF website.
OV - Orders (including produce orders) should be submitted via email, either in the body of the message or as a text file attachment. However, the OV Batcher may also be willing to take orders via FAX, U.S. Mail, or hand-delivery.
Frontier - Orders should be submitted via email, either in the body of the message or as a text file attachment.

Note that phone orders are not currently accepted for any orders, although in situations of dire emergency it may be possible for you to work out something with the Batchers over the phone.

Note also that batching is a tough job that quickly becomes unmanageable unless members observe certain guidelines. A former Batcher has summarized those guidelines HERE. Please read them before placing an order.

The rest of this page describes in greater detail the acceptable methods for submitting BFC orders.

UNF Orders using FoodLink

FoodLink is the preferred method of ordering because it offers a "padded cell" environment that virtually eliminates errors and drastically reduces the amount of work the UNF Batcher has to do. It also provides a good idea how much an order will cost. Click HERE for specific instructions on obtaining and using FoodLink. After you download and install the FoodLink program, you need to contact the UNF Batcher and request two files: (1) the Setup file, which contains crucial contact information, including the Batcher's email address and your own Member ID and email address, and (2) the Products file, which contains product information, including prices. The FoodLink program will not work properly until these files are uploaded into the program. For some helpful hints on building your order in FoodLink once you have it set up properly, click HERE.

Note that the communications software within the FoodLink program does not work very well with certain Internet Service Providers (AOL, Yahoo, SBC), so some members may have to prepare the order using FoodLink, then attach the order file to an email and send it to the Batcher.

UNF Orders using UNF Web Form

If for some reason you are unable to obtain FoodLink or can't get it to work on your PC, you can use the UNF Online Order Form at http://www.unitedbuyingclubs.com/forms/FoodLinkOrderForm.htm. Please be careful when entering product codes into this form. Unlike FoodLink itself, this form provides no feedback to confirm that you are ordering what you think you're ordering! Also, make sure you enter the correct email address for the UNF Batcher. Otherwise your order may go to the wrong person or simply disappear! Click HERE to obtain the e-mail address of the current UNF Batcher.

Outside Vendor Orders

Here are the steps for placing an order for items from the "Outside Vendors" List:

Click HERE to obtain the e-mail address of the current OV Batcher .
Send the OV Batcher an email listing the items you want. Each item on your list should include Product Code (from the Catalog in the BFC Handbook or from the OV section of the BFC Website at www.brightonfoodcoop.com/vendors.htm), Brief Description, and Quantity.
The email should also indicate how many Produce Shares you want, if any. Like other OV items, produce items have Product Codes, and orders for those items must be submitted to the OV Batcher. But unlike other OV products, produce is offered primarily in "shares". Each month, after reviewing which items Besteman has on special and what items have been requested by members, the Produce Batcher decides on a whole set of items to order. At distribution that set will then be divided into a certain number of equal shares, with each share containing exactly the same items in the same number or weight. There's one OV Product Code for Produce Share, but the content of the share will vary from month to month. You can also place special produce orders, but in most cases, a special order requires the purchase of a whole case of the item.

Frontier Orders

Here are the steps for placing an order for items fromFrontier Coop:

Click HERE to obtain the e-mail address of the current Frontier Batcher .
Send the Frontier Batcher an email listing the items you want. Each item on your list should include Item Number (from the Frontier Catalog or from the Frontier Website at http://www.frontiercoop.com), Brief Description, and Quantity (preferably a range). Frontier occasionally changes its Item Numbers, so please use updated catalogs. If you use the website instead, please follow the links all the way down to the individual item window to obtain the Item Number for each item you want to order. Note that both the website and the catalog list retail prices. BFC prices are not listed, but will be closer to wholesale.