(This story was updated to add new information.)
CANTON – StarkFresh has announced the immediate closure of its Canton location and an eventual end to all operations by September.
“Over the past 12 years, we’ve worked tirelessly to create more equitable food access in Stark County, and we are proud of the impact we’ve made,” according to a statement posted online June 30 from the StarkFresh board of directors.
“After deep reflection, careful analysis, and exploring every possible path forward, due to a combination of financial and operational challenges, we’ve made the difficult decision to wind down our grocery operations in a thoughtful and phased way, and close StarkFresh down completely.”
The nonprofit officially started in 2013 with efforts that included a farmers market in northeast Canton and a backyard gardening program. Later initiatives included a mobile market, urban training and cooperative farms, and numerous community projects to improve food security in Stark County.
The Canton grocery store opened in 2020 at the Food Justice Campus, 321 Cherry Ave. NE, which included a kitchen and office space. StarkFresh announced the closure of that location in March with a Facebook post that shared plans to reopen across the street in April.
“Over the next month, we will focus on liquidating assets and ending our lease and vacate by August 1,” according to the board’s recent statement.
The StarkFresh grocery store in Alliance, which opened in 2023 at Alliance Commons on Linden Avenue, will remain open until Aug. 15 so customers can use any outstanding food vouchers. Then, the entire agency will close by Sept. 1.
Executive Director Tom Phillips described StarkFresh as more than a nonprofit and grocery in an emailed statement.
It’s “a community-driven effort to rewrite the rules around who deserves access to healthy food” with stores “where people felt seen, where their choices were respected, and where dignity was at the center of every transaction.”
“I’ve worked alongside some of the most passionate, committed people I’ve ever known: staff, volunteers, board members, and neighbors who believed in this mission as much as I did,” Phillips said. “And while we’re proud of what we accomplished, the truth is, the financial and political environment just didn’t give us the room to keep going. That’s the heartbreak.”
StarkFresh distributed more than 2 million pounds of food, served over 64,000 residents through retail operations, and supported the local economy with more than $1 million in sales since its inception. Phillips said the need for those services remains.
“My deepest hope is that StarkFresh’s story inspires others to keep pushing for equity, for justice, and for the idea that everyone deserves access to good food not just as a service, but as a right,” he said.
Richard Harper, vice president of StarkFresh’s board, said the decision to close was a difficult choice made after months of deliberation. Establishing a nonprofit grocery store in a “food desert,” an area without easy access to affordable and nutritious foods, was a particular point of pride for his family.
“My family’s connection to StarkFresh began in 2020, when my wife, Katie, served as an Americorps VISTA, dedicating herself to addressing food insecurity in our community,” Harper wrote in an email. “Her work inspired our entire family to join this cause, and when I joined the board a little over a year ago, it felt like continuing a legacy we’d helped build.”
Harper and the board as a whole thanked staff members, volunteers and everyone who has supported its mission through the years.
“Your passion turned StarkFresh into more than an organization — it became a movement rooted in justice and compassion,” he said. “While this goodbye is painful, I am forever grateful for the privilege of working alongside this community. Our StarkFresh family will carry the lessons of this mission forward, just as we hope the seeds we’ve planted — literal and metaphorical — will continue to grow in the hearts of those we served.”
Canton Mayor William V. Sherer called StarkFresh’s closing “a complete loss for the city of Canton.”
“It’s devastating for our community because they were able to serve so many residents,” Sherer said. “With the environment we exist in politically, especially on the national level, with cuts to food banks across the country, it’s just tough to survive financially.”
Staff writer Kelli Weir contributed to this report.
Reach Kelly at 330-580-8323 or kelly.byer@cantonrep.com
This article originally appeared on The Repository: StarkFresh closes Canton grocery immediately, will cease all operations
Reporting by Kelly Byer, Canton Repository / The Repository
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