Cooperatives: Origins of the Cooperative Movement

The modern consumer cooperative originated in nineteenth-century Great Britain. It was a response to the depressed economic conditions brought about by the Industrial Revolution, which effectively did away with the prevailing rural agrarian way of life in England. The depression of the 1840s also caused widespread unemployment and crushing poverty, especially in many newly industrialized urban areas. Corrupt company stores controlled most of the food supply, selling contaminated food at inflated prices.