FARMERS MARKETS l A Natural Awakenings Chicago essay by Local Food Forum outlines best reasons to shop at farmer markets. And check out a blueberry crumble recipe...

FARMERS MARKETS l Many local food lovers have a favorite for which they wait in anticipation of peak season. In Chicago, this was a good week for tomato & melon fans

FOOD CO-OPS l There are just a handful of food co-ops in the Chicago area and most opened recently. So the 10th anniversary of Sugar Beet Co-op is worth celebrating

LOCAL FOOD l The first home delivery of Three Sisters Garden's renowned sweet corn is a local food event of the year. Local Food Forum celebrates the occasion...

FARMERS MARKETS l Local food fans cherish this time of the year; for many, sweet corn is the king. You'll be having some royal corn feasts, because the ears are here

FARMERS MARKETS l There's a new online publication, Farmers Market Forum, with a laser focus on local food. And the publisher is a Local Food Forum subscriber!...

CHEF PHILANTHROPY l Frontera Farmer Foundation, founded in 2003 by Chef Rick Bayless, has helped hundreds of farmers with a total of more than $3 million in grants...

FARMERS MARKETS l Every visit to a Chicago region farmers markets in July checks off more boxes for favorite first-in-season crops. Check out some big produce news..

FOOD CO-OPS l It was a long hard road for suburban Chicago's Prairie Food Co-op, which opened on July 9. But it was easy to draw a crowd to their grand opening...

ADVANCING LOCAL FOOD l After three months of information-gathering meetings, the Illinois Food Systems Roadmap project has released a report on its Phase 1 findings