From cheese to beer: Illinois Products Expo this weekend in Springfield
From Illinois Business Journal news services
SPRINGFIELD – More than 70 Illinois food companies, wineries, and agriculture associations that will take part this weekend in the 17th annual Illinois Products Expo. From ice cream and cheese for kids, to beer and wine for adults, attendees will be able to sample all of what Illinois has to offer at the Expo.
“This weekend’s Illinois Products Expo will showcase the state’s number one industry, agriculture,” said Acting Director Philip Nelson. “The expo is a one stop shop for consumers looking to support the state of Illinois and its hard working producers.”
Illinois ranks second among all states in food processing sales ($102 billion), and food processing is the state’s number one manufacturing activity. Currently, the state’s 2,200 food processing companies employ more than 150,000 workers.
The Expo’s food offerings, which can be sampled for free as well as purchased, will include fresh meat products, gourmet seasonings and sauces, and homemade jams and jellies. There will also be non-food items, such as soy candles and agriculture-based soaps and lotions, on display and available for purchase.
This year visitors will get the opportunity to learn from a local chef. John Kidd from Lincoln Land Community College, Hospitality and Culinary Arts Program, will give cooking demonstrations for attendees on Saturday from 1-3pm.
Another favorite among visitors is the wine and beer companies that call Illinois home. This year there will be 20 wineries in attendance, including four businesses brand new to the Expo.
“People are used to drinking California and French wines, but I think there’s a real curiosity about Illinois wines and the local wine experience,” said Jennifer Montgomery of the Illinois Grape Growers and Vintners Association. There are currently 108 wineries operating in Illinois, and 450 growers statewide. The economic impact of the industry continues to grow, with $692 million recorded in 2012.
The Illinois Products Expo will be open on Saturday, March 7, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday, March 8, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the Orr Building at the Illinois State Fairgrounds. Admission is $5. Children 10 and younger will be admitted free of charge. While food sampling will be free, the beverage tastings are offered at a small cost. Five dollars will get you five tastings and your own wine glass to take home.
List of participating vendors scheduled to attend the 2015 Illinois Products Expo:
Ahruns Famous
American Egg Board
Bloodshot Bloody Mary Mix
Butch’s Pizza
Chocolate Enrapture
Coming Home Candles
Consolidated Brands
Country Lights Soy Candles
Crowridge Farm Ice Cream
Eagle Bridges Soy Candles
Engrained Brewing Company
Flat Branch Farm
Four Score and 7 Ribs Ago
Freedom Halal Farm
Galena Garlic Company
Golden Prairie Popcorn
Gramps Gourmet Foods, Inc
Grand River Spirits
Happy Baked Goods
Hickory Grove Products
Homestead Bakery
IL Association FFA
IL Pork Producers/Bloomington Meats
IL Specialty Growers Assn
Irish Indulgences
J.D. Mullen Co
Java & Co.
Jerk Bros, Inc
Jimmy B’s Super Salsa
Jones Boys Market
Kelly’s Gourmet
La Mexicana Inc.
Linda’s Salsa
Ludwig Farmstead Creamery
M & G Foods
Meatsmack
Oakland Noodle Co
Onofrio’s Classic Sauces
Papa’s Midwest Kettle Corn
Pasta Alley
Perfect Pasta
Reinneck Ranch, Inc
ReMARKable Caramels
Rolling Meadows Brewery
Ropp Jersey Cheese
Sasse’s Apiary
Scrumptious Pantry
SenTEAmental Moods
Smo Diddley’s Inc
Spice of Life
SS Backwards Longhorn Meats
Sweet Betty Jane’s
The Cousins Dog Biscuit Co
Toohill Beef
Turasky Meats
Two Fat Guys Gourmet Sauces
Uncle Joes
V Walker Enterprises (Anthony’s Southern Sauces)
Voss Pecans
Wind Ridge Herb Farm
Nut Hatch Hill BBQ
Dave’s Coffe Cake
Pilot Knob Comforts
Raised Right LLC (Sullivan Pheasant Farm)
