Illinois Horseradish Farmer Jeff Heepke, Edwardsville, IL

Southwest Illinois: Horseradish Capital of America

Nationwide, roughly 24 million pounds of horseradish roots are ground and processed each year to produce some 6 million gallons of prepared horseradish. Illinois grows the lion’s share.

AgrAbility Unlimited participant Randy Miller

Agrability Program Helps Farmers Return to Work

AgrAbility Unlimited is a program that helps Illinois farmers overcome disabilities and return to work.

Feeding Food Deserts

Feeding Food Deserts: New Initiative Works to Identify Communities Without Access to Healthy Food

A new initiative has mapped low-income communities without ready access to healthy and affordable food across the state. Find out if you’re near one of these food deserts with a locator tool by the USDA.

Youngsoo Lee with ultra-high-temperature processing unit. Quaker Oats donated the machine to University of Illinois ACES.

Quaker Oats Donates to Science Class

Quaker Oats donated a high-temp pasteurization unit to the University of Illinois College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences’ Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition.

Illinois Farm Families Field Moms at Lindale Farms

Suburban Moms Tour Illinois Farms with Illinois Farm Families

Illinois Farm Families takes suburban moms onto Illinois farms to help them learn about the realities of farming.

Posters Show Where Thanksgiving Dinner Comes From

In celebration of Geography Awareness Week, November 13-19, Linda Zellmer has created a way to connect consumers to where their Thanksgiving dinner originates.


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Illinois Farmers Send Soy to Afghanistan

A Yorkville, Illinois, soybean farmer was part of a team that helped send soy flour to families in Afghanistan.

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MarketMaker Grows Farmers Market Resource

MarketMaker, a University of Illinois Extension online marketing program, is growing and adding new features to better serve both farmers and consumers.

Winecrisp Apples are a new Illinois variety

WineCrisp Apples Are a New Illinois Variety

WineCrisp, a newly developed variety of dessert apple, has been in the making for more than 20 years by plant breeders from three universities, Rutgers, Purdue and the University of Illinois.

Animal science

20 Ag Careers That May Surprise You

Not everyone involved in agriculture works on a farm. In fact, biochemists, biophysicists, veterinarians and environmental engineers are in high demand.

Get an Education in Local Food at Illinois Community Colleges

Six community colleges across Illinois offer courses and training programs to prepare students for careers working in the local food sector.

How Farmers are Feeding the World

Facts about the struggles farmers face trying to feed the world’s growing population.

‘My American Farm’ Website Teaches Agriculture Through Games

My American Farm is a website developed by the American Farm Bureau that aims to engage kids in agriculture, through fun activities and educational experiences.

Illinois Farm Families

Win Free Groceries for a Year!

“Farmers Feed Us” is a sweepstakes contest that runs through Oct. 2, giving away two grand prizes of free groceries for a year ($5,000).

Wholesome Wave Prescribes New Fresh Produce Health-Care Program

The Wholesome Wave Foundation, a non-profit organization that aims to increase production of and access to fresh, locally grown food, is heading to the doctor’s office with the program “Rx for Vegetables.”

How to Apply for RIMSAP

The Illinois State Medical Society and Illinois Farm Bureau’s Rural Illinois Medical Student Assistance Program (RIMSAP) have helped 800-plus would-be doctors gain admittance to the University of Illinois College of Medicine and/or educational loans. Learn more about RIMSAP here. Participants must specialize in a primary health field and practice in an approved rural Illinois community…

RIMSAP student Dr. Nicole Kennedy

Rural Illinois Medical Assistance Program Fosters Caregivers

RIMSAP, founded in 1948, provides recommendations and low-interest loans for prospective rural Illinois doctors.

Celebrate Food Check-Out Week Feb. 20-26

The American Farm Bureau is celebrating Food Check-Out Week February 20-26, 2011 to benefit Ronald McDonald House charities.

Green Roofs at the Illinois Department of Agriculture

Department of Agriculture Gets Green Roof

The Illinois Department of Agriculture put a new spin on Springfield’s green scene by adding Illinois’ first “green” roof to its building.

Debbie Jimenez leads her students through a lesson on nutrition at St. Albert the Great School in Burbank, IL. The kids work at identifying the different foods groups. They also make bookmarks and bracelets that serve as a visual reminder of the six food groups and how many servings of each they need daily. The class also has pictures from various pen pals throughout the country and their farms.

Illinois Teachers Use Agriculture to Teach Core Subjects

Half million students in Illinois benefit from Agriculture in the Classroom (AITC) annually.

Old Newspapers Go Digital at University of Illinois

The University of Illinois library is making history more accessible by digitizing its collection of farm newspapers from the late 19th through the early 20th centuries.

Lisa Buzzard, age 47, of Beecher City, Illinois, feeds the beef cattle on the farm where she works side by side with her husband Stan tending their 600-acre farm raising corn, beans, wheat, and hay for feed the beef cattle.

4 Women of the Illinois Ag World

Farm women are among the busiest – on and off the farm – as they have found a niche that ties in with Illinois agriculture.

The expansive grass at Wrigley Filed as seen from upper deck. The groundskeepers at Wrigley Field, in Chicago, home of the Cubs, are among the best qualified to give lawn care tips because they have to deal with keeping grass healthy every day.

Cubs Groundskeeper Plays Key Position

Roger Baird, the groundskeeper for the Chicago Cubs, takes his lawn care seriously. He knows he has a team depending on lush, green grass not to trip them up on the way to making a tough catch.

Warsaw, Illinois, farmer and chairman of the local drainage district, Sam Zumwalt, age 64, with the flood gage at the Hunt Drainage District pumping station. He has long been a champion of better flood control for the 16,000 acres of lowlands that make up the district. Water from the nearby Mississippi River reached 25-feet above flood stage in both 1993 and 2008. In the background is the outlet from the pumping station that can pump 200,000 gallons of water per minute off of the nearby farmland through a series of ditches and canals.

Illinois Flood Control Plans Are Flowing

It’s a system that sustains fish and wildlife, communities and commerce. It’s an integrated system where navigation, environmental stewardship, recreation and flood control all play a crucial role in its continued health and welfare.

Children’s Book: Our Generous Garden

Children’s book teaches kids where their food really comes from.

In prairie grasses, Indian grass and big blue stem

Ahead of the Curve of Conservation

Illinois farmers lead the nation in no-till farming.

Agriculture in Action

America’s Heartland TV show celebrates U.S. farmers.

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What a Shortage of Rural Veterinarians Means for Farms

A national shortage of rural veterinarians may lead to a health-care crisis for our animals.

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Beware of Wildlife When Driving

Autumn presents wildlife collision dangers for Illinois residents.

Showing Animals at Illinois State Fair

Champions of Animal Care

Stop by your local fair to learn more about Illinois livestock producers.

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Illinois Farms Are Tuned in to Technology

Today’s Illinois farmers are armed with crop-yield monitors and biotech hybrids.

From windmills to biofuels, Illinois has power to spare.

The Power of Illinois: Wind Energy, Ethanol and Other Biofuels

From windmills to biofuels, Illinois has power to spare.