Illinois Expands Grocery Initiative With $26 Million to Address Food Deserts and Protect Food Access (Chicago, IL) — Illinois is making an additional $26 million available through three programs designed to expand access to fresh food, help reopen grocery stores in underserved communities and assist existing stores with equipment improvements, State Sen. Willie Preston announced.
The funding is being distributed through the Illinois Grocery Initiative’s New Stores in Food Deserts, Grocery Rescue and Equipment Upgrades programs. The initiative is intended to address food deserts and help communities maintain reliable access to grocery stores and fresh, healthy food.
Preston, a Democrat from Chicago, said the investment is aimed at helping communities improve residents’ quality of life while making it easier for people to obtain nutritious food close to home.
“The Illinois Grocery Initiative is a crucial program for helping our communities invest in improving residents’ lives,” Preston said. “Increasing access to fresh, healthy food saves residents time and money.”
The latest funding round includes separate grant opportunities targeting both new and existing grocery stores. It also introduces the Grocery Rescue Program, which is focused on communities that have recently lost grocery stores and could otherwise face a longer-term loss of food access.
Under the Grocery Rescue Program, funding can be used to help reopen stores that have closed within the previous year. The program is intended to prevent communities with limited access to food from losing grocery service for an extended period and to reduce the likelihood that new food deserts will develop.
Eligible uses of Grocery Rescue funding include acquiring or repairing a grocery store, refurbishing property or equipment and covering certain first-year operating expenses. The program therefore takes a different approach from grants focused exclusively on establishing new grocery locations, allowing recently closed stores to potentially return to operation.
The state’s New Stores in Food Deserts Program is focused on communities that already lack sufficient access to grocery stores. The program will support the development of new grocery stores in those areas, with grants available for construction, renovation and initial operating expenses.
Funding under the new-stores program can cover the first two years of operations, including employee wages, utility expenses and initial food inventory. The latest funding round also includes a pharmacy component, expanding the potential services available through participating stores.
The pharmacy component is intended to address gaps in access to prescription medications and other health-related services, including flu vaccinations. By incorporating pharmacy services into the grocery-store development program, the initiative seeks to address more than food access in communities where residents may have limited access to both groceries and certain basic health services.
The third component of the funding package, the Equipment Upgrades Program, is aimed at grocery stores that are already operating.
The program provides funding for existing grocery stores to purchase or upgrade energy-efficient equipment, with priority given to stores located in food-insecure communities. The goal is to help existing stores remain viable while maintaining residents’ access to fresh food.
Keeping existing grocery stores operating can also be important in preventing additional food deserts from emerging. When a community loses its only or one of its few grocery stores, residents may have to travel farther to purchase fresh food and other necessities. The Equipment Upgrades Program is designed to support stores before such closures occur.
The latest $26 million investment builds on earlier funding distributed through the Illinois Grocery Initiative. Since 2024, the initiative has provided $19 million, including approximately $17 million for the construction of eight new grocery stores across Illinois and another $2 million to help 14 stores make equipment upgrades.
The new funding expands that effort by adding resources specifically intended to address recently closed grocery stores while continuing investments in new grocery development and improvements to existing stores.
The state’s approach combines several strategies rather than relying on a single solution to food-access problems. New-store grants are intended to bring grocery businesses into areas identified as food deserts, while Grocery Rescue funding is designed to help communities recover when existing stores close. Equipment grants, meanwhile, focus on keeping current grocery stores operating and improving their facilities.
The three programs also differ in their application deadlines.
Applications for the New Stores in Food Deserts Program will be accepted until 5 p.m. Dec. 9. Applications for the Grocery Rescue Program and Equipment Upgrades Program will be accepted on a rolling basis.
The funding opportunities are available to eligible applicants through the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity. The state has provided separate application information for each program, allowing prospective applicants to review the requirements and funding opportunities applicable to their projects.
The announcement comes as food access remains a concern for communities where residents may have limited options for purchasing fresh and healthy food. Grocery stores can serve as important neighborhood anchors, providing residents with access to food while also supporting local employment and economic activity.
For communities that have already lost a grocery store, reopening an existing location may provide a faster path to restoring food access than developing an entirely new store. The Grocery Rescue Program specifically targets stores that have closed within the past year, creating a funding mechanism intended to address those losses before they contribute to longer-term gaps in grocery access.
At the same time, the New Stores in Food Deserts Program recognizes that some communities require new grocery locations rather than the reopening of closed stores. By supporting construction, renovation and early operating costs, the program is designed to help make new grocery development possible in areas where traditional market conditions may make such investments more difficult.
The Equipment Upgrades Program takes a preventive approach by helping existing stores make improvements that could support continued operations. Its emphasis on energy-efficient equipment also gives participating stores an opportunity to modernize their facilities while reducing the risk of losing grocery access in food-insecure communities.
Preston said the broader Illinois Grocery Initiative represents an investment in communities and in residents’ ability to obtain healthy food without having to spend additional time and money traveling to distant stores.
The $26 million in newly available funding will now give communities, grocery operators and other eligible applicants additional resources to pursue projects ranging from reopening recently closed stores to building new grocery locations and upgrading existing facilities.
Applications for the New Stores in Food Deserts Program are due by 5 p.m. Dec. 9. Applications for the Grocery Rescue and Equipment Upgrades programs will be accepted on a rolling basis.
Illinois Expands Grocery Initiative With $26 Million to Address Food Deserts and Protect Food Access
