Agencies
Services
Illinois Resilient Food Systems Infrastructure Program
Purpose:
The purpose of the Resilient Food Systems Infrastructure (RFSI) program is to build resilience in the middle of the food supply chain, to provide more and better markets to small farms and food businesses, to support the development of value-added products for consumers, fair prices, fair wages, and new and safe job opportunities.
The RFSI purpose is expanding middle of the food supply chain capacity for locally and regionally produced foods, to offer better market opportunities and new streams of revenue to small and mid-sized agricultural producers (including those who may not have access to value-added opportunities or processing to meet market demand for premium or value-added products, such as underserved producers).
RFSI projects should expand the capacity and market opportunities for local and regional producers in the middle of the food supply chain. The food supply chain involves the following stages: 1. Production, 2. Processing, 3. Aggregation/Distribution, and 4. Markets/Consumers. For the purposes of RFSI, “middle-of-the-supply-chain” refers to the middle stages: 2. Processing and 3. Aggregation/Distribution.
RFSI - 2025/2026 Subaward Summaries
| Recipient | Project Title | Summary | Total Federal Funds Awarded |
| Rendleman Orchards Inc. | Rendleman Orchards' Refrigeration Improvements to Increase Storage Capacity for Fresh Produce Supplied to Illinois Food Banks | To purchase cold storage for local fresh fruits, vegetables, and value-added products. With the increase in cold storage, Rendleman Orchards will work with local growers in Southern Illinois to source and aggregate additional fresh produce that would typically go to waste and not reach the market. | $91,094.00 |
| Mercer County Better Together | Project Flourish: Building local producer capacity through a collaborative approach to processing, aggregation and distribution. | To outfit a shared-use commercial kitchen with industrial-grade equipment. This project will build local producer capacity to aggregate and process a wide variety of products, including salad mixes, baked goods, value-added products, dairy and prepared meals. | $78,194.26 |
| Klein's Quality Produce | Van purchase to upgrade cold chain capacity for local produce deliveries from Klein's Quality Produce | To purchase a new refrigerated cargo van for transporting farm fresh local produce—to increase the amount of freshly harvested produce transported from farm to market. | $71,244.00 |
| Angelic Organics Learning Center DBA Farmers Rising | Farmers Rising steps into middle supply chain activities with local food delivery in Northern Illinois | To purchase a refrigerated trailer—helping at least 25 farmers extend the storage capacity and seasonal availability of their fruits and vegetables. | $36,225.00 |
| Sola Gratia Farm | Expanding Sola Gratia Farm and Enhancing Food Safety for Broader Distribution | To purchase walk-in coolers and wash-and-pack line equipment for fruits and vegetables—supporting food safety and greater efficiency with more post-harvest processing, cold storage, and aggregation capacity. | $87,776.00 |
| The Mill at Janie's Farm, LLC | Increasing Janie’s Mill Capacity with Continuous Conveyor and Heat-Sealer for Bags of Milled Grains | To purchase a continuous conveyor and automatic heat-sealer for bags of milled grains. This new equipment will allow Janie’s Mill to process locally produced grains into flours, cracked and flaked grains, cornmeal, polenta, and other consumer-ready grain products. | $17,222.00 |
| Silver Creek Farms, LLC | New Cold Storage Space for Increased Production and Distribution for Silver Creek Farms | To purchase a walk-in cooler to aggregate agricultural goods grown by 60 local farmers in the Down at the Farms cooperative network. The project will streamline distribution of more than 250 different products. | $24,014.00 |
| Benson Farm Family Foods, LLC | Farm Family Foods: Additional Cold Chain Components for Central Illinois Farmers and Families | To acquire a refrigerated van, walk-in cooler, and an up-right freezer. This equipment is supporting the grocery store and online food hub by expanding farmers’ abilities to reach customers | $54,206.64 |
| DeMange Farms | DeMange Farms Expansion Project 2024 - The Next 150 Years | To purchase a new high-efficiency cooler with pallet-size doors, an electric forklift, and a cargo van to increase its storage volume of fresh produce, reduce physical labor, and build more efficient workflows. | $88,000.00 |
| Ryder Family Farms | Extreme southern Illinois regional wash/pack & cold storage aggregation at Ryder Family Farm | To purchase a refrigerated delivery vehicle, walk-in cooler, and produce washing equipment. With this equipment, Ryder Family Farm and other growers in Southeastern Illinois will be able to more efficiently aggregate and process locally grown, fresh produce, prepare it for sale, and distribute products to larger metropolitan areas such as Carbondale, IL. | $96,341.13 |
| Flamm Orchards | Flamm Orchards’ Kitchen Expansion for Enhanced Value-Added Food Production and Community Support | To make essential kitchen equipment upgrades, including for processing and cold storage and enabling Flamm Orchards to process 37,500 pounds of strawberries, peaches, apples, and blackberries annually. | $100,000.00 |
| THINK REGENERATION NFP | Expanding Cold Storage at Down at the Farms LLC | To acquire an upright freezer and refrigerated delivery vehicle. In working with its partner food hub, Down at the Farms, at least 115 local farmers of vegetables, dairy, and grains will have better access to critical supply chain equipment. | $91,255.93 |
| The Motherland Gardens | Establishing a Produce Hub and Promoting Urban Agriculture Among Undeserved Communities and Youth in Springfield, Illinois. | To purchase equipment including commercial chest freezers, a batch vegetable washer, a commercial salad spinner, honey extractor, produce dehydrator, a refrigerated trailer and a refrigerated minivan to support local and regional farmers increase production to meet the growing demand | $99,753.08 |
| Central Illinois Farm Fresh Enterprise Development Cooperative | FarmFED Cooperative Local Food Hub | To outfit its new commercial kitchen to help establish a long-term sales channel for at least six small- to medium-sized producers within a 100-mile radius of FarmFED's processing facility. | $100,000.00 |
| Fuller Park Community Development Corp. DBA Eden Place | Eden Place Farms Food Aggregation and Processing Center | To purchase a new delivery van, walk-in cooler, and commercial processing equipment to will help create new jobs, ensure compliance with food safety regulations, and expand market opportunities for at least 15 farmers in the Chicago Southside Farmers Association. | $69,968.00 |
| Jo Daviess Local Foods | Jo Daviess Local Foods: Electric Van for Food Distribution | To acquire a refrigerated electric delivery van to help increase the amount and types of local dairy, eggs, and perishable fruits and vegetables that JDLF can safely transport in a more efficient and economical way. | $99,850.00 |
| Deerland Dairy | Deerland Dairy improving operations to produce dairy products more efficiently and expand co-packing opportunities. | To purchase a pasteurizer and a cream separator. This new equipment will enable the continuation of value-added processing services on a larger and more efficient scale. | $97,455.00 |
| Glaciers End, LLC | Glaciers End enhanced production and distribution of value-added, locally made and sourced products. | To purchase cold storage equipment for storing fresh produce for future production, and a plate filter system to expedite processing. | $11,876.93 |
| Goebbert Family Farms, LLC | Enhancing Cooling and Processing Techniques for Herbs and Greens Production at Goebbert Family Farms LLC in Northern, IL | To enhance its post-harvest cooling infrastructure for herbs and leafy greens. By upgrading its hydro-cooling system, the farm will be able to maintain product quality, extend shelf life, and reduce waste. | $100,000.00 |
| Hilltop Butcher Shoppe LLC | Fresh fruit, herb & vegetable enterprise addition to Hilltop Butcher Shoppe LLC for community enrichment. | To expand its ability to aggregate and transport fresh fruit, vegetables, and herbs with refrigerated trailer and two walk-in cooler units. This equipment will help maintain quality and freshness between harvest and market, | $94,044.00 |
| Main Street Pastures | Local Food Matters: Diversifying Farm-to-Market Offerings from Main Street Pastures throughout Southern Illinois. | To purchase a new cooler, label and scale system, and delivery trailer. These will support establishment of a new food hub distribution location, with increased cold storage, packaging efficiency, and transportation capacity for local eggs, milk, and dry goods such as oats | $64,526.00 |
| DeGroot's Vegetable Farms | Building Resiliency in Illinois' Local Potato Industry Through On-Farm Packing and Storage | To expand its potato packing capacity with an upgraded pack line, conveyors, and cold storage. This will enable retail-sized packaging as well as increased capacity to pack and ship year-round. | $788,423.00 |
| Dearing Country Farms | Agri-Learning, Aggregation & Processing Facilities at Dearing Country Farms | To complete construction of a multi-use facility for the aggregation, processing, and value-added production of agricultural products grown in Central Illinois. With a dedicated space this facility will support local and regional farmers with selling more fresh produce as well as value-added products such as jams, salsa, dehydrated and freeze-dried vegetables, and fermented items, | $217,810.00 |
| Kakadoodle | Innovation in Aggregation: A Food Hub for the Kakadoodle Marketplace serving south Metro Chicago | To renovate an existing pole barn into a regional aggregation and storage facility. This facility will handle eggs, greens, dairy, produce, grains, and other agricultural products sourced from more than 20 local producers committed to regenerative practices | $213,503.00 |
| McHenry County College | McHenry County College: Enhancing Food System Capacity through Shared Kitchen Space and Storage | To develop a shared kitchen space that will increase the capacity of small-scale farmers and food entrepreneurs to process and store local products. | $593,975.00 |
| College of Lake County | Urban Farm Center: Training, Aggregation, and Market Channel Creation for Current and Future Farmers | To create The Urban Farm Center (UCF), a 24,0000-square-foot food hub and commercial kitchen. CLC will purchase equipment such as walk-in coolers, a refrigerated van, dehydrator, and a vacuum packing machine – to support the safe handling of locally grown produce for local farms and food producers. | $1,255,143.29 |
| Adelante Center for Entrepreneurship | ¡Adelante Chicago!: Scaling Regional Small-Scale Producer Aggregation & Processing | To purchase a walk-in cooler and freezer, conveyor dishwasher, and low-profile floor scale to expand its cold storage and processing capacities for locally grown produce. | $64,104.21 |
| Fox at the Fork | Fox at the Fork: Four-season Food Hub | To enhance its food aggregation hub by outfitting an existing structure with new insulation, heating, and cooling; constructing a shared wash/pack facility compliant with food safety regulations; and purchasing refrigeration units to expand storage capabilities. | $125,582.46 |
Projects funded by the United States Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Marketing Service.