Fresh, nutritious, easy access: Mini food centers installed to address food insecurity in four-county area

OREGON – In an effort to provide free, fresh and nutritious food on a 24/7 basis, mini food centers now grace four counties in the Sauk Valley.

The centers, located in Ogle, Lee, Whiteside and Carroll counties, have been made possible through an initiative by the Ogle County Health Department and funded by a $500,000 grant from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion.

Ogle County grant coordinator Joyce Lewis said the Oregon community has embraced the project.

“The community has been great and wanting to help us out,” Lewis said. “The response has been more than we could have imagined. We are hoping they are helping those in need. The outpouring of support has been astronomical.”

She hopes the mini food centers will help educate residents about food insecurities and help everyone achieve healthier eating options.

“Yes, food insecurity is here,” she said. “This is a new concept for rural areas.”

The mini food centers are designed to help increase food nutrition security with funding from the CDC. That means providing easy access to fresh, nutritional foods in an effort to improve overall nutrition and health to those living in underserved areas.

“Food pantries are great, but they are only open limited hours,” Lewis said. “The mini food centers are open 24/7. You can come and take what you need and leave what you can.”

The grant will provide $500,000 for the next three years, Lewis said.

Sauk Valley Food Bank is supplying the centers with produce through September, but donations also are accepted. Donated produce must be washed before being placed in the mini food centers.

“We don’t want anything put in the fridge with debris,” Lewis said. “We stop frequently to clean and sanitize and our hosting centers are checking daily.”

Nonperishable food items also are accepted but must be unopened. All donated food must be labeled with all ingredients to avoid any allergens. Homemade prepared foods and leftovers are not accepted.

In addition to produce, the mini food centers contain the usual food staples: milk, bread and butter.

“Hopefully people will only take what they need if they are truly in need,” Lewis said.

Signs are posted at the mini food centers to remind users of all the rules.

The grant was written for the four-county area because of similar needs in each county.

“This isn’t just for Ogle County. There may be a grocery store in the area, but prices are higher and there are all kinds of other issues. We are trying to bridge that gap,” Lewis said.

“In 2022, the Ogle County Health Department was awarded a grant through the CDC to address social determinants of health, specifically food and nutrition security throughout Lee, Ogle, Carroll and Whiteside counties,” according to the health department’s website. “The health department has teamed up with many other local organizations and conducted many assessments and collected data to create a cohesive plan.”

Ogle County’s mini food center is located on the south side of the Nash Recreational Center, 304 S. Fifth St. in Oregon. Lee County’s is located in Amboy at Teen Turf, 235 W. Main St. Whiteside County’s is at the YWCA of the Sauk Valley, 412 First Ave., Sterling. Carroll County’s is at the Davis Community Center, 631 S. East St., Mount Carroll.

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Candi Garcia, marketing coordinator for the YWCA of the Sauk Valley, displays the mini food center Tuesday, June 25, 2024, located in the porch of the Sterling facility. The mart, one of four in the area, is open 24 hours and stocked once a week with dry goods and frozen and fresh foods. (Alex T. Paschal)

Lewis said the mini food centers are one step to increase nutrition education and teach community members about how nutrition affects chronic disease rates.

The Ogle County Health Department partnered with other local health departments, community hospitals and educators to engage with the community and create the plan, she said.

“We have a great group of people,” Lewis said.

So far, the mini food centers have been well-received.

“Overall, everyone has been extremely respectful and [has] really been embracing the project,” Lewis said.

The mini food centers are lighted but not under any type of camera surveillance.

“We want people to feel comfortable,” Lewis said.

The health department asked students from the Oregon High School ag construction class to build the mini food centers.

Ag teacher Seth McMillan said 19 students constructed the centers in two to three months.

“We went through all the framing, roofing and siding and then how to construct them,” McMillan said. “And then we delivered them. I think the kids learned a lot and they understood how important it was to be involved with the project.”

More information about the plan can be found on Ogle County’s website under Ogle County Health Department CDC Accelerator Plan Success Story.

Information also is available by calling 815-562-6976 or visiting the Ogle County Health Department Facebook page.

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The Amboy rural mini food center is the third to be built in the Ogle-Lee-Whiteside-Carroll County area. Joyce Lewis of the Ogle County Health Department wrote for the ACTion grant from the CDC that allowed the centers to be built. Ogle was the only rural county that received the grant. (Alex T. Paschal)

Additional Information

A “Funding in Action” sheet offers additional information about the Tri-County Multisectoral Partnership.

Challenge

Levels of nutrition and physical activity are risk factors of becoming obese, yet these rural communities have very limited access to grocery stores and recreational fitness facilities when compared with the rates for Illinois and the U.S.

About 25% of Ogle and Lee county residents and 26% of Whiteside County residents have obesity. Fresh produce and a place to be physically active are hard to come by throughout rural northwestern Illinois.

Studies have been done by the CDC’s Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity and Obesity that state an increase in nutritional foods and regular physical activity will reduce the chances of becoming obese as well as developing other chronic conditions such as heart disease and diabetes.

Approach

Nutrition and physical activity can be perceived differently by everyone. In partnership with two local universities, a rural active living assessment was completed to identify the areas within the counties that were in the most need. A nutritional environment measures survey was conducted to evaluate the quality, availability and price of items that were offered to the community.

To engage with the community and gain knowledge on its perception of availability, a Google Forms survey was distributed via social media. Community hospitals, health departments and educators worked together to create the surveys and collect data from community members on their perception of nutrition and the availability of nutritious foods.

Results

The rural active living assessment was conducted in 12 towns and found there was a need to increase the knowledge about what fitness opportunities are available to community members.

The nutritional environment measures survey showed there was a low availability in reduced sodium options in the stores in the catchment area.

The Google Forms survey had 364 responses with 28.2% reporting that they “disagree” when asked if they have the ability to support the costs associated with purchasing nutritious foods. Because of these results, plans have been put in place to bring additional access to nutritious foods by increasing food pantries and mini food centers.