Located under the freeway on Folsom, off Thirteenth Street (yes, there is one) you will find Rainbow Grocery and General Store. At first blush, walking in here is a blast of aromatherapy. They keep the herbs and teas up front and they are sold in bulk. Anise, lemon, cinnamon, chamomile and then some, displayed behind plexi-glass tubs. A lot of their stock is sold that way, bulk means no packaging, that equals lower cost and less pollution, get the drift?

Birthed in the Mission in 1975 by a group of flour power children who wanted something better in a supermarket, a few changes in locations and bylaws produced "a worker-owned cooperative dedicated to earth friendly food products." These kids are strictly vegetarian. Very green and on a very large scale. Goals that include buying locally and thinking globally, a living wage for their people, community support, discounts, bicycling and recycling. Tofurky for twenty? Towards the back, in the case.
- by Victoria Joyce