CARTERVILLE, Ill. — The University of Illinois Extension Community and Economic Development team hosted the first Southern Illinois Food Access Annual Independent Grocer Summit on Wednesday, Oct. 15, 2025, at John A. Logan College. The summit welcomed 30 participants, including 12 grocers representing nine stores, along with 18 speakers, sponsors, and exhibitors. The event brought grocery store owners and managers together to explore a variety of resources to help them thrive in a challenging marketplace. Sponsored by Ameren Illinois Energy Efficiency Program, Winkler Wholesale Grocers, Prairie Farms, and Group 4 Retail Equipment, the event earned a 100% recommendation rate in post-summit surveys and sparked new collaborations on energy efficiency, local food sourcing, and workforce needs such as meat cutter recruitment and training. Presenters discussed a variety of topics throughout the half-day event, including grant and loan programs, digital marketing and artificial intelligence, energy efficiency opportunities, planning for transition, cooperating with local farmers, and new refrigerant regulations. The summit also featured a panel discussion on adaptability and resiliency led by three store owners with more than 100 years of combined experience. Southern Illinois Food Access is a program offered by Illinois Extension in the lower 22 counties of Illinois to address food insecurity and combat food desert proliferation. The program works with local grocers and food system partners to strengthen retail food access in rural areas. The Illinois Extension team collaborates with more than 40 independent grocery stores and a dozen other food system partners to keep healthy, nutrient-dense foods on shelves in areas at risk of becoming food deserts.
For more information or follow-up questions, contact John Shadowens.
SOURCE/WRITER: John Shadowens, community and economic development educator, johnms@illinois.edu, 217-333-4110
PHOTO CREDIT: Destenie Sullivan
University of Illinois Extension develops educational programs, extends knowledge, and builds partnerships to support people, communities, and their environments as part of the state's land-grant institution. Extension serves as the leading public outreach effort for University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences in all 102 Illinois counties through a network of 27 multi-county units and over 700 staff statewide. Extension’s mission is responsive to eight strategic priorities — community, economy, environment, food and agriculture, health, partnerships, technology and discovery, and workforce excellence — that are served through six program areas — 4-H youth development, agriculture and agribusiness, community and economic development, family and consumer science, integrated health disparities, and natural resources, environment, and energy.