Illinois Stewardship Alliance

10/17/2026

Connecting Farmers and Policymakers to Strengthen Illinois’ Local Food System!

It was a pleasure joining Senate President Don Harmon for a legislative farm tour at this week! Farm tours provide an important opportunity for policymakers to hear directly from farmers, better understand the challenges and opportunities facing local agriculture, and see firsthand how investments in local food systems strengthen our communities and economies.

Thank you to Sowed Up Farms for hosting and to Senator Harmon for engaging in conversations about the policies and resources farmers need to thrive. When we invest in farmers, we invest in the future of Illinois agriculture.

10/16/2026

We will be there! Will you join us and our friends at Illinois Farmers Union for this important discussion in the Rock Island area?

Family farmers are caught between rampant corporate consolidation and a failing farm safety net. The farm economy needs to be fixed--how do we move forward?

Join Illinois Farmers Union and @ Will Westmoreland for a discussion with fellow family farmers on how to get the farm economy back on track at the Rock Island Downtown Library at 4 p.m. on Wednesday, October 21. RSVP now: https://www.eventcreate.com/e/ilfufarmeconomy

10/13/2026

💵 $1.8 MILLION is coming for Illinois’ local food infrastructure!

Are you a farmer, food business, food hub, or organization looking to expand your ability to process, store, or distribute locally grown food? The 2027 Local Food Infrastructure Grant (LFIG) could help make your next project possible!

💰 Collaborative grants: up to $250,000
🚜 Individual grants: up to $75,000
📅 Applications open November 2, with a deadline of January 6, 2027.

But don’t wait to get started! Required registrations can take 2–4 weeks, so now is the time to prepare.

We’ve put together a new blog with key dates, eligibility details, examples of eligible projects, and steps to get ready to apply.

👇 Comment LFIG below, and we’ll send you the link to read the full guide!

Know a farmer or food business that could benefit? Tag them or share this post. 🌾

10/12/2026

☀️ Today, we recognize Indigenous Peoples’ Day.

Indigenous peoples have stewarded the lands we now call Illinois since long before the state existed, with deep knowledge of agriculture, foodways, water, and the relationships between people and the land.

As an organization working toward a more just, local, and regenerative food system, we know that building a better food system also means learning from the people and communities whose relationships with land and food stretch back generations.

Today, we honor Indigenous peoples, their continued presence and leadership, and the knowledge and traditions they continue to carry forward.

May we listen, learn, and practice greater care for the land we all depend on. 🌾

10/07/2026

Illinois farmers, here’s some good news for your bottom line: if you planted cover crops this fall, you may qualify for a $5/acre discount on your 2027 crop insurance premium!

You can start your application in early December so you can press ‘submit’ when the application period opens on Monday, December 15th at 8 AM!

🌱 Get more details by commenting COVER below.

10/05/2026

🌱 Last call for Farm-ily!

The Northern Illinois Young Farmers’ 5th Annual Midwestern Farm-ily Reunion is happening October 9–11 at Hazzard Free Farm in Pecatonica, and there’s still time to RSVP. It’s a weekend for farmers and friends to connect, share stories, learn from one another, and celebrate community.

ISA will be there too, and we’d love to see you! 🌾

👉 RSVP for Farm-ily here:
https://www.northernillinoisyoungfarmers.org/farmily

10/03/2026

🌾 Farm Bill update: After a long wait, there’s finally movement in the Senate.

Last month, the Senate Agriculture Committee voted 12–11 to advance the Farm Bill, sending it toward consideration by the full Senate.

But there’s still a long way to go.

As we shared earlier this year, the Senate proposal includes some important investments in areas like conservation, specialty crops, local food infrastructure, and rural development. These are priorities that matter to Illinois farmers and to the kind of food system we’re working to build.

At the same time, the proposal largely leaves many of the underlying challenges facing farmers and our food system unchanged. The National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition’s latest analysis notes that significant work remains to build a Farm Bill that better supports family farmers, conservation, and local and regional food systems.

So what happens next? The bill still needs to make it through the full Senate and ultimately be reconciled with the House version before it can become law.

📖 Want to understand what’s actually in the Senate proposal? Check out the latest analysis from our friends at the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition: https://sustainableagriculture.net/blog/senates-farm-bill-draft-analysis/

We’ll keep tracking what happens next and keep our members informed about opportunities to weigh in.

Because even though the Farm Bill is being debated in Washington, its decisions shape the resources farmers can access and the investments that build Illinois’ food and farm system. 🌱

10/02/2026

Last week, ISA Executive Director Liz Moran Stelk took the stage in Virginia Beach to tell a sold-out crowd of farmers and farm advocates the story of Illinois-EATS.

At Farm Aid's Organizing Works! Storytelling Tour, Liz shared how Illinois farmers and food system leaders had built something remarkable together, and their relentless effort to save it when USDA froze the funding last spring.

The story is a powerful example of what ISA builds that can't be cancelled by a funding decision-- relationships, trust, and an alliance of farmers and eaters who can count on each other and act together when it matters.

Farm Aid has supported ISA since Willie Nelson launched the annual benefit 41 years ago. During the farm crisis of the 1980s, Farm Aid supported ISA’s work to recruit attorneys and counselors to support farmers and coordinate a farm crisis hotline. Farm Aid's recent grants to ISA support training farmers in organizing and building collective power, and mobilizing eaters on issues important to farmers.

We’re so grateful Farm Aid gave Liz the chance to tell this story, and especially grateful to the farmers who lived it.

Stay tuned for the full story and recording of the evening’s performances.

09/30/2026

In my "farm neighborhood", there are two very important river and stream gauges within minutes of our fields. We have Lusk Creek to our west and the Ohio River to our east and both are vital waterways to monitor and protect. With high nitrate levels contaminating drinking water in some parts of our state, it's hard to believe that these monitors could be shut off with no data being collected.

Watch more from our friends at Prairie Rivers Network on what these gauges monitor and what can be done to save them by watching their short video below 👇

09/30/2026

🏙️ What if a rooftop in the heart of Chicago could help grow the next generation of farmers?

A new story from WBBM Newsradio highlights the McCormick Place rooftop farm, where urban agriculture is creating hands-on training and career opportunities for young farmers.

The 30,000-square-foot farm, operated by Windy City Harvest, grows vegetables, herbs, fruits, and edible flowers while providing a training site and employment opportunity for urban agriculture apprentices.

🌿 It’s a great example of how investing in urban agriculture can do more than grow food. It can grow skills, careers, and new pathways into farming. In a previous role, I had the pleasure of referring potential apprentices into the Windy City Program and can attest that it is truly life changing.

Read the story from WBBM:

| WBBM Newsradio 780 AM & 105.9 FM