Sharon Fitzsimmons is stocking up on fruit - grapes, bananas and apples. She is carefully packing the colourful load into a carrier to take home.

She doesn't have far to carry the fruit as the shop is only a few minutes walk from her home.

"It is great. I've been coming for about four months now. It is local so I don't have to go into town. It is lovely produce, and it is cheap," says Sharon, 32, who is shopping with her 16-month-old daughter Millie.

At 88, Stella Stoney also loves being able to pop out for her fruit and vegetables to a shop that is virtually on her doorstep. "It is just two minutes away, which is fantastic. I spotted the board outside and came along.

"I thought Why carry it all from town when I can come here?' Everyone is really pleasant and you can buy as much or as little as you want."

Sharon and Stella are among the many people who regularly shop at Windhill Food Co-op, in Christ Church, Hall Lane, Shipley.

One of four across the Bradford district - the others being in Ravenscliffe, Buttershaw and Canterbury - the co-op opened seven years ago and has seen a growing number of customers.

With a long line of trestle tables awash with fruit and vegetables, those not in the know could be mistaken for believing a harvest festival was in full-swing. It is only the ringing of the cash till at the end that gives the game away.

"The idea was to make more fruit and vegetables available to the community, right on people's doorsteps," explains Karina Addy, community food worker with responsibility for the area.

"The produce is sold just above cost price so we don't make a profit. It is about a third cheaper than a supermarket, plus people don't need to travel to get it."

Run by volunteers one day a week, the co-op is busy from opening its doors to closing. "The tills are ringing all day long. Often, people are waiting when we arrive," says Alan Keeling, who selects the produce at 6am from St James' Market. "Sometimes we run out of certain things and have to go for more."

Alan is founder member and chairman of FLINT, the Food Links Network which supports the district's food co-ops.

Like the other volunteers, he gives his time, to collect the produce, set up the shop and serve customers.

"Often there is a huge queue," he says, "It is not only handy, it gives people the chance to get out of the house and have a chat with other people. People don't spend less than they do at the market - they spend the same amount but get more for their money."

Windhill Co-op was originally set up as a joint initiative between Windhill Community Centre and Christ Church Ecumenical Church.

"They got together and decided that a food co-op would go down well in the area," says Alan. "We borrowed £100 from the Methodist Church to start up." Now the co-op is self-sufficient.

The initiative contributes to the healthy lifestyle that the Government takes pains to promote through guidance and recommendations such as five- a-day'.

The co-op is also ticking boxes in its contribution to the environment. It helps to reduce the use of cars, buses and taxis, and employs its own green ways of working.

"We recycle all the carrier bags and boxes by re-using them," says Alan. "Any waste produce is composted and used on the community centre garden."

Angie McKniff, a parental involvement worker at Windhill Church of England Primary School believes shopping at the co-op is one step towards a greener lifestyle.

"I have made a conscious decision to make a visit to the co-op part of my lunch break," says the mum-of-four. "I'm becoming very green and think about how I do things and whether they are helping the environment. This does. It is great socially as well,"

Adds volunteer Roy Pepper: "People who live alone come in and buy just a couple of mushrooms or carrots."

Those buying larger amounts include volunteers from Windhill Community Centre Cafe who need ingredients for the meals served at their lunch club.

The volunteers also carry out deliveries to a number of local premises including the elderly people's unit, the offices of the housing trust, and to a handful of pubs.

Government-issued Healthy Start vouchers to help people on low incomes are accepted at the co-op.

"The shop is such a valuable resource in the community," says Karina Addy, who works for Bradford Community Environment Project in a post funded by the district's Primary Care Trust. The cash till, scales and other equipment is loaned to the group by BCEP.

Leaflets publicising the co-op are available at local health and community centres.

Mum Carly Ward loves the convenience, and the savings. "I've been coming for two years. You can take your time choosing fruit and veg away from the hustle and bustle of the supermarket."

Katie Holmes, 21, brings her two-year-old son Harvey. "It is so easy. I get all our fruit and veg here, to last the week, and don't have far to carry it home."

On her first visit, Hayley Norton, 25, bought a tub of strawberries for her two-year-old daughter Amber. "I'm definitely coming again," she says.

  • Windhill Food Co-op, Christ Church, Hall Lane, off Church Street, Shipley, is open every Tuesday from 9.30am to 3pm. Tel: 588831 (Windhill Community Centre).

Anyone interested in finding out how to set up a co-op food group can contact Karina Addy on (01274) 223236.