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Frontera Farmer Foundation Extends Two-Decade Legacy with New Cohort
- Bob Benenson
- 20 hours ago
- 4 min read
Non-Profit Has Granted a Total of More Than $3 Million to Help Farmers
Beginning in 1987, Chef Rick Bayless established himself as an advocate for the Chicago region's small farmers through his ingredient sourcing practices at his flagship Frontera Grill and Topolobampo restaurants, and as a founding Board member of Chicago's impactful Green City Market.
He took his local food advocacy a big step forward in 2003 when he launched the non-profit Frontera Farmer Foundation. In the more than two decades since, the Foundation has helped hundreds of regional farmers who sell into the Chicago market with focused grants that enable recipients to make equipment purchases and infrastructure improvements that help them grow and thrive.
Over the past 22 years, the Foundation has aided hundreds of farmers with grants that total more than $3 million.
I have been a long-time admirer of Chef Rick's work, and in 2017 helped produce a Frontera Grill 30th anniversary celebration at the Art Institute of Chicago that raised money for the Frontera Farmer Foundation and the FamilyFarmed non-profit (my then-employer).
So I am pleased to share the Foundation's announcement of its 2025 cohort of farm grant recipients, with special shoutouts to my friends at Broadview Farm and Gardens (Marengo, Illinois), Earthlore Farm (Beaverville, Illinois) and Wild Trillium Farm (Richmond, Illinois).
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Frontera Farmer Foundation Press Release
The Frontera Farmer Foundation Announces
2025 Grant Recipients
Grant Funds Support Small, Midwestern Farmers
The Frontera Farmer Foundation, a 501 (c)(3) nonprofit organization, is proud to announce the selection of 15 recipients for this year’s grants.
Founded in 2003, the Frontera Farmer Foundation has awarded more than $3 million in grant funds to small, sustainable farms serving the Chicago area. By providing them with capital development grants, the Foundation envisions a year-round interchange between sustainable farmers and consumers, including farmers’ market patrons and chefs, in which seasonal local agriculture provides the foundation for sustainable regional cuisine.
"This year’s grant recipients are extraordinary examples of what it means to farm with purpose, resilience, and care for community," says Rick Bayless, chef and founder, Frontera Farmer Foundation. "We’re honored to support their work, which nourishes both the land and the people it feeds."
"We are so grateful to receive this grant and should be able to double or triple our yearly produce quotas and provide better quality produce to all of our customers," says Matt Oertel of Oertel’s Roots Family Farm.
“Our gratitude is immeasurable. This partnership offers us, and other grantees, the incredible gift of much needed financial support,” says Caitlin Flannery of Earthlore Farm. “This practical help is a lifeline. Also important to note and appreciate are the less tangible but equally powerful gifts of moral support, a sense of being seen, appreciated, and elevated amidst the grueling work that it takes to make a small farm grow and thrive.”
"The Frontera Farmer Grant continues to be one of the most impactful grant opportunities for farms in the Chicago region. This grant will help us immensely by boosting our early season offerings, and adding plant starts to our product list," says Tim Brown of Broadview Farm and Gardens.
The grant-giving committee selected 15 on-farm projects for capital development grants of up $15,000 with the goal of supporting those who produce local food. These recipients represent a broad array of projects, ranging from upgrading existing infrastructure and constructing new greenhouses to purchasing vehicles to help improve farm logistics and transportation.
The 2025 Frontera Farmer Foundation grant recipients and their projects include:
• Abundant Pastures, Claremont, IL; purchase a portable hoop house to increase the production of pastured poultry
• Adam's Acres, Libertyville, IL; construction of a heated greenhouse
• Banford Road Farm, Woodstock, IL; upgrades to the climate and irrigation systems in the greenhouse nursery
· Broadview Farm and Gardens LLC, Marengo, IL; installation of a new greenhouse nursery to increase transplant production and add plant sales to the early season offerings
• Dimples Farm, Pembroke Township, IL; improvements to the refrigeration and freezers, farm store, and wash station, and the purchase of a compact utility tractor
• Down River Farm, Benson, IL; purchasing a delivery vehicle to improve the transportation capacity
• Earthlore Farm, Beaverville, IL; constructing a large hoop house, and building a deer fence to prevent severe crop losses
• Garlic Breath Farm, Elburn, IL; build a greens cooler and wash station
• Gray Farms, Watseka, IL; purchase and install and additional high tunnel greenhouse
• Mighty Greens Farm, LLC, Elburn, IL; expand cold storage space to allow for year-round sales at farmers markets
• Multiple Harvest, Beecher, IL; purchase a golf cart with loader to improve farm transportation, orchard maintenance, and water access
• Oertel's Roots Family Farm, Blackstone, IL; dig and connect a new well to the current irrigation system
• Smiling M Farms, Pembroke Township, IL; provide portable irrigation for growing melon varieties
• Three Brothers Farm, Oconomowoc, WI; purchase a mobile chicken coop and new nest boxes to increase production of certified organic, pasture-raised eggs
• Wild Trillium Farm, LLC, Richmond, IL; update and expand current wash-pack shed and processing capacity
The Frontera Farmer Foundation will open the grant applications for 2026 season in January. Farmers and producers interested in applying are advised to visit https://www.rickbayless.com/foundation/.
About Frontera Farmer Foundation
The Frontera Farmer Foundation was established in 2003 to attract support for small Midwestern farms. Rick and Deann Bayless, founders of Frontera Grill and Topolobampo, along with the restaurants’ staff, created the Foundation out of their concern for struggling farmers and the importance of local produce to the vitality of Chicago’s culinary culture. Small local farms promote biodiversity by planting a wide range of produce, are more likely to operate using organic practices, and add immeasurably to the fabric of their communities. By their artisanal approach to agriculture, these farmers ensure the highest quality of food. For more information, please visit https://www.rickbayless.com/foundation/.