Honest Weight Food Co-op started with a simple idea: chip in together, buy in bulk and make food more accessible. Fifty years later, what began as a basement buying club between 20 friends in Albany has grown into an 18,000-square-foot community-owned grocery, serving thousands of members and customers across the Capital Region with wholesome foods, specialty items and health products.
That dedication hasn’t gone unnoticed. In the 2026 Times Union Best of the Capital Region readers’ poll, the co-op was voted Best Health Food Store/Co-op. We checked in with marketing manager Erika Lopez to see how, after a half-century, the independent co-op continues to grow, evolve and support the community through healthy foods, events and programs that bring people together.
Q: Honest Weight has now been part of the Capital Region for 50 years. What do you think has allowed the co-op to remain such an important part of the community for so long?…