Customers at the Eastside Food Co-op were met with caution tape and empty coolers when they went to purchase products requiring refrigeration. The co-op’s refrigeration systems went offline following the theft of copper tubing and other metals essential for running cooling systems on Oct. 22. (Patti Hoffmann)
In the early hours of Wednesday, October 22, a theft resulting in vandalism occurred at the Eastside Food Co-op, located at 2551 Central Ave. NE. The incident is believed to have taken place around 4:30 a.m.
Employees arriving for work at 5:00 a.m. discovered evidence of a rooftop break-in, which appeared to have been interrupted. A bicycle, bolt cutters and elements from the building’s condenser unit were found abandoned at the scene, suggesting the suspect may have fled after being startled.
The meat and seafood department, along with the prepared foods, were empty and couldn’t be replaced with items until the refrigeration was fixed. (Patti Hoffmann)
According to reports, the vandal targeted copper tubing and other metals that were connected to the store’s refrigeration and HVAC systems located on the roof. The suspect gained access to the co-op’s trash storage area and used a ladder located there to gain access to the roof. The damage affected the store’s dairy, deli, frozen foods, produce and meat sections and anything else that needed refrigeration.
Eastside Food Co-op Marketing Manager Tucker Gerrick called the act “emotional and collateral damage for the employees and for the people who shop at the Co-op.” He said Eastside has 12,000 owners and typically has 1,000 transactions a day.
On October 23, Eastside shared images outlining the extent of the damage on social media. In the pictures, a blue dumpster sits in their parking lot, filled with boxes of produce and other food products.
A dumpster filled with food that spoiled due to lack of refrigeration. An estimated hundreds of thousands of dollars of food were lost due to the stolen copper. (Provided)
Loss from the damage, as well as from missed sales and lost products, is expected to be in the hundreds of thousands of dollars. Eastside has insurance which should cover the loss, but details are still undetermined at the time of reporting. The incident is still under investigation.
In order to dissuade vandals from stealing copper, a new Minnesota law, HF 4461, went into effect in January. The law requires anyone selling scrap copper to a junkyard or dealer to have a state-issued copper seller’s license. Dealers must verify the seller’s license before completing a purchase. Residents and businesses can still recycle copper