There’s a new initiative to strengthen food access on the West and South Sides of Chicago — where, respectively, 45% and 51% of homes are food insecure, according to a 2026 report by the Greater Chicago Food Depository.
A new executive order signed by Mayor Brandon Johnson on Oct. 22 at Austin Town Hall creates a steering committee to implement Chicago Market City. It’s an effort to increase food access by supporting and connecting food entrepreneurs across the city, starting on the West and South Sides.
The action plan aims to create an administrative infrastructure, support food entrepreneurs, strengthen existing markets and build a network of year-round markets. The Market City steering committee will connect existing market vendors, food producers and retailers, so that they can share resources and have a say in city investments and policies.
“Our Market City strategy is about building a food system that responds to what communities need while creating more opportunities for local entrepreneurs to grow and succeed,” Johnson said in a statement. “This executive order moves that vision into action so we can deliver lasting solutions shaped by the needs of our neighborhoods.”
“Access to healthy, affordable food should never depend on your income or your ZIP code,” Johnson added. “For too many families, putting fresh and nutritious food on the table still means paying higher prices or traveling outside their neighborhoods because the options simply are not there.”
Johnson’s office will release a public Request For Information next month, which will collect potential sites, operators and partnerships for development of a year-round public market on the West or South Side of Chicago.
The Market City action plan was developed with help from over 100 food entrepreneurs, market operators, farmers, food access organizations and Chicago residents, and through four community listening sessions.
“Intentional planning for community-based food systems is how we turn grassroots momentum into lasting equity,” Erika Allen, founder and CEO of Urban Growers Collective and co-chair of the Food Equity Council Steering Committee, said in a statement.
“Through the Food Equity Council, we’ve seen that residents, growers, institutional buyers and chefs aren’t waiting for change, they’re already creating it,” Allen added. “The Market City Action Plan provides the roadmap to scale our collective impact, backing these community-led efforts with the targeted city infrastructure investments and aligned policies needed to promote local businesses and to make food access for all a reality.”