Midwest States Work to Support Grocers in Rural and Underserved Areas
To boost food access in underserved areas of the state, Illinois leaders recently announced the recipients of $7.8 million in funds for new stores and equipment upgrades. Last week, Governor JB Pritzker, along with representatives of the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO), shared details about the stores and operators who will be able to build or renovate stores and get their business off the ground with assistance in wages, utilities and initial inventories.
Four grocers received monies through the Illinois Grocery Initiative’s New Stores in Food Deserts program, created to support supermarkets in areas defined as food deserts by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The recipients include Harvest Supermarket in Peoria, Rancho Supermarket in Rockford, Our Market At The Plaza Cooperative in Carlinville and Forty Acres Fresh Market, LLC in Chicago; last year, Progressive Grocer talked with the owner of Forty Acres Fresh Market about her plans and hopes for that store.
"Through the Illinois Grocery Initiative, the State of Illinois is changing lives and livelihoods by making it easier to put fresh food on the table," said Kristin Richards, director of the DCEO. "These grantees will make a significant impact on their communities and local economies by opening new stores and upgrading existing stores, and I encourage interested entities to explore opening new stores through the next round of this grant program."
Additionally, the state is providing grants to seven other local grocers so they can upgrade or install energy-efficient equipment. Those stores include Smalls Meat Markets in Marion, Pearl Market, Inc. in Alton, Riverside Foods in Riverside, Common Ground Food Co-op in Urbana, Sinclair Foods in Jerseyville, Bob’s Red Fox, Inc. in Pleasant Hill and Belvidere Fiesta Market, Inc. in Belvidere.
As they bestowed awards to this year’s winners, Illinois officials announced a second round of grants as part of the Illinois Grocery Initiative, this time worth $11 million.
Other state governments are likewise ramping up efforts to help grocers in underserved areas. In Iowa, the Center for Rural Affairs is offering grants up to $25,000 each for rural grocery stores and small food processors in that state; interested stores have until Oct. 25 to apply through the Rural Innovation Grant Program.
“Grocery stores and food processors play a critical role in rural communities by providing access to healthy, nutritious food,” remarked Cynthia Farmer, senior policy associate with the Center for Rural Affairs. “This grant funding is a unique opportunity to contribute to those efforts in our state.”
Iowa’s neighboring state, Nebraska, is also helping grocers serve communities in a challenging, competitive market. On Oct. 3, the Nebraska Grocery Industry Association and the Nebraska Cooperative Development Center hosted a second annual grocery summit to talk about challenges and how they can best serve customers in the area. State Senator Teresa Ibach touted a bill in that state legislature that would provide low interest loans or grants to rural grocery stores.
