Local Food

Twenty-five Illinois Farm Bureau members recently graduated from the Agricultural Leaders of Tomorrow, an extensive leadership development program designed to help participants develop leadership and advocacy skills and to become a voice for Illinois agriculture.

When Ken Ropp returned to the family farm in 2000, milk prices were at a then-all-time high and the prospect of him joining in the family dairy business was bright. Six months later, milk prices were at record lows.

A new twist in a sugar cookie recipe was among the numerous samples showcasing locally-grown food during the Illinois Product Expo at the state fairgrounds’ Orr Building.

In an effort to elevate rural communities, Illinois Farm Bureau partnered with county Farm Bureaus to award 23 Rural Development Grants totaling $105,000 to support local projects across the state.

The National Association of State Departments of Agriculture held its 2025 Winter Policy Conference. Members adopted 16 policy amendments and 10 action items.

The National Association of State Departments of Agriculture set its federal policy focus for 2025, prioritizing five key issues.

Sharing our agricultural journey is not only rewarding, but also serves as an opportunity to educate and inspire others about the importance of farming in our daily lives.

Agricultural students at Belvidere North High School learn a variety of skills, including how to raise and care for quail and chickens.

With U.S. and Illinois pork producers being some of the first to be impacted directly by news coming out of Washington, D.C., Jennifer Tirey is ready to arm producers and allied industry with timely information.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced $14.7 million in federal grant funding will be used to extend the state’s Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement Program beyond June 30.

Formerly called the Million Meals program, the rebranded Hoosier Hogs to Homes program is on a mission to fill Indiana food pantries with ground pork.

The Make America Healthy Again, or MAHA, platform is generating a lot of interest in how our food is produced. Farmers and ranchers welcome a healthy discussion — we always have.

Scott Halpin’s term as Illinois Farm Service Agency executive director concluded with the change of federal administrations.

Indiana Grown, a program that promotes locally grown and made products, is celebrating accomplishments from several Hoosier schools in 2024.

It Takes a Village is a nearly three-acre, urban nonprofit farm in Sauk Village, a suburb of Chicago, that opened in response to the last grocery store closing in the community in 2019.

PrairiErth Farm will host a fruit tree pruning workshop on Feb. 8.

During a special reception for county leaders at the 2024 Indiana Farm Bureau State Convention, the organization recognized the achievements of county Farm Bureaus in 2024.

We are down to the short rows of 2024. Winter is upon us. Christmas is days away. The older I get, the more quickly the days, weeks, months and years pass by.

Cattle and sheep graze on permanent pasture, cover crops and crop residue on Pasture Grazed Regenerative Farm in northern Illinois.

If you want to enjoy a taste of Indiana goodness, add an Indiana Grown Holiday Box to your Christmas wish list this year.

Just west of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway you can find Freshly Dairy — a small, family-owned farm that prides itself in its mouthwatering milk and long product shelf life.

Americans who think of petrified hot dogs, frozen burritos and salty snacks when they imagine getting food at a gas station or truck stop may be pleasantly surprised during their next road trip.

Cabbages are not exactly the typical big university landscaping, but at Northern Illinois University, cabbages — and other vegetables, fruits and herbs — are the first step in what could be a food revolution.

Chef Bryan Flower hurries toward one of the raised “free-to-pick” vegetable, flower and herb beds that flank Neptune North residence and dining hall on the Northern Illinois University campus in DeKalb.

Volunteers built a high tunnel with Purdue Extension in Lake County — the first phase of a new demonstration garden for the community in northern Indiana.

Coffee Creek Farmers Market in Chesterton won Indiana’s Ultimate Farmers Market Challenge this year.

The Fort Wayne TinCaps and Indiana Pork are donating nearly 2,300 meals of ground pork to the Community Harvest Food Bank of Northeast Indiana.

Schools across the country are celebrating National Farm to School Month this October.

An Illinois State University organics class toured a farm and milling facility to see up close the field-to-bag process.

Regenerative farming and soil health are the focus for pastured-raised animals at Terra Vitae Farms.

Illinois Stewardship Alliance representatives took the oft-used phrase “where the rubber meets the road” literally as they traveled across Illinois to host listening sessions as part of the group’s golden anniversary celebration.

Over its 50-year history, the Illinois Stewardship Alliance’s causes may have shifted, but it has never lost its focus on advocating for local farmers and communities.

A team of nine people from Huntington University traveled to serve local communities through sustainable agriculture projects to Momostenango, Guatemala.

Beef production spans generations in the Hanson and Kuipers family in Iroquois County where they operate a forage-based program utilizing a paddock grazing system along with growing corn, soybeans and wheat.

Several tribal nations reported that a federal food distribution program they rely on has not fulfilled orders for months and in some cases has delivered expired food.

Amid all the hoopla surrounding the 2024 elections, the Indiana Bacon Festival has a ticket that most everyone can agree on — “Bacon for President 2024.”

An agricultural production system that integrates crops and livestock into a single interconnected practice in one field was the top yielder in Precision Technology Institute’s trials last year.

Indiana food banks will receive $2 million to support their efforts in feeding Hoosiers, according to an announcement from Lt. Gov. Suzanne Crouch and the Indiana State Department of Agriculture.

Indiana State Fair guests shopped locally made and grown products at the Indiana Grown Marketplace this year. The store featured 407 products representing over 90 Hoosier businesses.

Corteva Agriscience is not only innovating to ensure a safe, nutritious and affordable food supply. Employees are getting their hands dirty in a garden and donating the produce, honey and flowers to others in need.

The DeKalb County History Center is one of five organizations in the United States selected to host the “Food: Gathering Around the Table” exhibit.

The Land Conservancy of McHenry County has received a $135,000 grant from the Chicago Community Trust to support the growth of the local food system in McHenry County.

The earth provides an overabundance of food, but the distribution of that food is the struggle.

Wet and hot conditions in northern Illinois are impacting crop growth, as well as providing an opportunity for increased disease pressure this year.

The Illinois Agri-Women organization has awarded five scholarships for students studying agriculture.

Oregon High School students didn’t just learn framing and roofing in their ag construction class — they also learned about giving back and how hunger might be living right next door.

The Illinois General Assembly approved a record $53.1 billion spending plan that included some good and bad news for agriculture-related programs.

Dakarai Howard focuses on urban agriculture and food systems as the senior policy adviser for the Illinois Department of Agriculture.

Food companies are using technology to improve sustainability at every step of the supply chain.

Indiana Farm Bureau awarded scholarships to three young women pursuing careers in agriculture.