CU-CitizenAccess.org
Kitchens at the assisted living facility Bickford of Champaign have reopened about seven weeks after receiving a red placard and failing its health inspection…
Last year, as of late November, 10 restaurants in Champaign County were closed and received a red placard because of failed health inspections. But…
A moldy bell pepper. Bare hands touching ready-to-eat food. Food that expired over a week ago sitting in the fridge. These are just a…
With grocery costs notably greater in the heart of campus, two University of Illinois programs are dedicated to providing food assistance to students in…
Over the last five years, the poverty rate in Champaign County has fallen, but the number of people seeking food assistance has steadily risen,…
After a routine inspection, only 10 restaurants were closed due to non-compliance with safety regulations and 116 restaurants received food safety alerts for less…
Since 2019, at least 63 Champaign-Urbana restaurants have failed and 19 have been temporarily closed down by public health officials under a new restaurant inspection system launched that year.
Eastern Illinois Foodbank
The nonprofit organization Feeding America has projected Champaign County’s food insecurity rate to increase by 31% by the end of 2020 in comparison to data collected in 2018. Feeding America is a nationwide network of more than 200 food banks that feed more than 46 million people through food pantries, soup kitchens, shelters, and other community-based agencies.
Naomi Diaz
Pre-pandemic, Eastern Illinois Foodbank provided food and grocery products to 100,000 people in 18 different Eastern counties in Illinois. Today, they project the number of those in need to increase by 63,000. The foodbank expects the second wave of COVID-19 will continue to increase the need for “emergency food,” and they are preparing for just that.
Darrell Hoemann/CU-CitizenAccess
Overall, public health officials failed or closed 19 restaurants, grocery stores or eateries for health code violations between October 1 and March 31, according to a review of inspection records from the Champaign-Urbana Public Health District.