Culinary Education Program Update from Krish

Dear member-owner and co-op community,

I am writing to share an important update about our Culinary Education program.

After careful consideration, we have decided to discontinue our cooking classes and camps. The program will conclude with this summer’s kids camps on August 28, 2026. All other in-store events — member gatherings, store anniversaries, tastings, and vendor fairs — continue unchanged.

This was not an easy decision. Culinary education has been core to PCC’s identity for more than four decades, and I know what this program meant to our community. Unfortunately, operating costs have risen while classroom participation has declined. Our Culinary Experiences team explored every viable model to sustain the program, but the reality remained the same: costs consistently exceeded revenue. The program has operated at a considerable loss for years, and the trajectory shows no sign of changing.

As stewards of the co-op, we have a responsibility to ensure that what we do in service of our purpose is also economically sustainable. At our current scale and in the current environment, culinary education is not. This doesn’t mean our co-op is in financial distress — we have made real progress toward long-term health and that remains a source of great optimism. What it means is that we sometimes face hard choices about what we can and cannot sustain. This is one of them.

The most difficult part is its impact on the people who made this program special. Our colleagues poured their talent and heart into it, and we recognize the uncertainty this brings. We’re committed to supporting every affected staff member with care and respect throughout this transition.

For over forty years, our Culinary Education program brought our community together through food. That legacy is part of PCC’s history and always will be.

We know this is disappointing. While this marks the end of a chapter, our commitment to bringing people together through food remains unchanged. We’re exploring thoughtful ways to fulfill that mission in the years ahead.

Thank you for your understanding and support.

With gratitude,

Krish