Illinois Farm Programs

Centennial Agribusiness Program
The Centennial Agribusiness program was established to honor the generations of businesses who have worked to produce, process, and/or distribute agricultural products in Illinois for 100 or more years.

Centennial/ Sesquicentennial / Bicentennial Farm Program
The Centennial/Sesquicentennial Farms program honors generations of farmers who have worked to maintain family farms in Illinois. To qualify for Centennial/Sesquicentennial Farm status, an agricultural property must have been owned by the same family of lineal or collateral descendants for at least 100/150 years.

Specialty Crop Grant
The Illinois Department of Agriculture received specialty crop block grant funds from the U.S. Department of Agriculture for the Specialty Crop Block Grant - Farm Bill. A portion of those grant funds will be used to fund the Illinois Specialty Crop Grant Program. Through this program all Illinois specialty crop projects can apply for grant funds to help increase the competitiveness of the Illinois specialty crop industry.

Dairy Business Innovation Alliance Grant

The DBIA has established a grant program that will solicit, review and approve proposals from dairy farms and businesses within the region, who will then receive a financial grant to help bring said ideas to fruition.

Examples of applications qualifying for grants could include:

• Modernization, specialization or expansion of farmstead or plant infrastructure to support product development or improvement.
• Increase sales of current product quality/range through product development, packaging and marketing.
• Value chain and commodity innovation to develop specialty dairy products from their operations.
• Ensure quality compliance to give businesses greater access to the food industry, e.g. to supply local stores and processors.

To access the DBIA Grant Application click here.  Visit DBIA for more information.