Industries across the board are flocking to Illinois. In 2022, the state amassed 487 capital investment projects, the second most in the United States. And 2023 is shaping up to be an even bigger year. Companies in aerospace, life sciences, advanced manufacturing, food processing and more are opening operations in the Prairie State, and why wouldn’t they?
Illinois offers the perfect environment to accelerate a business. With a diverse landscape featuring everything from small towns with rich agricultural roots to some of the best cities in America for conducting business, Illinois has it all.
Central Illinois
Central Illinois is about to get a whole lot sweeter. Last March one of the fastest growing ice cream brands in the nation, Tillamook County Creamery Association, announced that it was establishing operations in Decatur, Illinois. This will be the company’s first manufacturing facility outside of Oregon and its only location dedicated to ice cream production.
“Opening this Illinois manufacturing location will enable us to make more of our ice cream closer to the eastern U.S., where demand for our ice cream is growing fast. In the last year, we’ve added 1.6 million households and grown ice cream sales nearly 60% in the eastern U.S.,” said Mike Bever, executive vice president of operations at TCCA. “Ultimately our continued growth is a ‘win’ for who and what matters most to us. It allows us to continue to generate meaningful profits for our farmer-owners, create growth and well-being opportunities for our 900+ employees and to give back to the communities where we live and work. Now we get to welcome Decatur into that valued group.”
Previously, the Decatur plant was owned and operated by Prairie Farms, who also utilized the space for ice cream production until early 2022. Tillamook plans to spend $50 million on upgrades and expects the facility to be operational by October 2024, creating 45 new jobs. A press release from the city of Decatur also revealed that the company plans to acquire property adjacent to this project for future expansions.
“Tillamook is a fantastic company that will fit in perfectly here,” said Economic Development Corporation of Decatur-Macon County President Nicole Bateman. “It’s no surprise they selected Decatur for expansion due to our strong business climate, affordable utilities and excellent location with access to a huge base of new customers in the Midwest.”
Tillamook isn’t the only food manufacturer expanding in Decatur. In 2022, Archer Daniels Midland (ADM) announced a $300 million investment to double production at its Decatur factory. Construction is expected to finish in early 2025. Alongside this project, the company also plans to open a new protein innovation center in Decatur.
North Central
North Central Illinois is manufacturing all of your fall favorites. From candy to pumpkin pie, companies in this region make family traditions taste great.
While all of Illinois is known for its impact on American agribusiness, the village of Morton stands out among the rest. Known as the Pumpkin Capital of the World, 85% of canned pumpkin consumed in the United States is processed at the local Libby’s cannery, which is owned by Nestle.
To celebrate the beginning of canning season, Morton has hosted its annual Pumpkin Festival for 56 years. Activities such as Libby’s Pumpkin Weigh Off, pie eating contests, parades, carnival rides and a 10k race draw in over 75,000 guests each year.
With Ferrero’s latest expansion in Bloomington, some of Halloween’s most popular candies are now produced in North Central Illinois. As one of the largest chocolate and confectionery companies in the world, Ferrero is famous for manufacturing sweet treats like Nutella, Tic Tac, Butterfingers and CRUNCH products.
“Central Illinois sits in the heart of our nation, so it’s only fitting that it serves as the heart of Ferrero’s North American operations: CRUNCH, 100 Grand, Raisinets, and now Kinder Bueno, all made right here,” said JB Pritzker, the Governor of Illinois, when Ferrero broke ground on its new Kinder Bueno production facility in November 2022.
The company has invested $214.4 million into this expansion, which is expected to create 200 new jobs.
“Ferrero’s expansion here shows why Illinois is the hub of America’s food and confections industry. Our incredible workers and world-class infrastructure are fueling innovation and growth,” said U.S. Senator Dick Durbin. “We thank Ferrero for making our state their chocolate manufacturing home in America — these investments are playing an important role in Illinois’ continued economic success.”
Northern Stateline
The Northern Stateline is a hotbed for healthcare. Many of the region’s largest employers, such as Bond Drug Company of Illinois, Mercy Health System and Freeport Regional Health Care Foundation, are affiliated with the life sciences industry.
Many of the universities scattered across the region supply this industry with a pipeline of skilled workers. The University of Illinois College of Medicine in Rockford boasts several renowned educational programs including its Doctor of Medicine, Master of Science in Medical Biotechnology and Rural Health Professions programs. Northern Illinois University in DeKalb also offers a variety of in-demand life sciences undergraduate and graduate programs including Biomedical Engineering, Nursing and Medical Laboratory Sciences.
Following PCI Pharma’s latest expansion in Rockford, 250 new jobs will be introduced within the next two years. The company, which operates as a biopharma contract manufacturing partner, revealed in March that it was investing $50 million to expand its existing plant in Rockford, increasing its capacity for injectable drug-device combination products.
According to the press release, an additional 200,000 sq. ft. facility will be constructed on the property. The new build will feature more than 20 customer suites that will include multiformat machines capable of assembling and packaging vials, prefilled syringes, auto-injectors, and pen-cartridge combinations.
“The need for injectable drug-delivery device combination product capacity and expertise is critical, and we are responding with a world-class facility to address the future demands of our global clients so they can focus on developing therapies to improve the lives of patients with serious chronic conditions,” said Salim Haffar, CEO of PCI Pharma Services.
Thermo Fisher Scientifical, another well-known pharmaceutical company, also boasts a location in Rockford. This branch of Thermo Fisher’s operations specializes in bulk manufacturing capabilities and is ISO 9001 certified, which is acceptable for many bulk manufacturing projects. At this location the chemicals and biologicals producer manufactures and packages over 2,000 Thermo Scientific Pierce products.
Northwest
If you’ve ever visited the Quad Cities, then you know what Northwest Illinois is all about: tremendous quality of life, made possible by hardworking people who keep the wheels of commerce turning in the heart and soul of Middle America.
Anchored by the communities of Moline, East Moline, Rock Island and Silvis on the Illinois side, the Quad Cities are to Illinois what the Twin Cities are to Minnesota — the quintessential nature of the state. One reason this area is booming is because it offers the best tax-free financing option in Illinois.
The Quad Cities Regional Economic Development Authority was established by an act of the Illinois General Assembly. The bill set up the QCREDA as a general development agency for Henry, Knox, Mercer, Rock Island, Carroll, Lee, Whiteside, Jo Daviess and Stephenson counties.
The agency has been around for 30 years and during that time has produced record-breaking success. Augustana College, Isotech of Illinois Inc., Steel Warehouse Inc. and Whitey’s Ice Cream Manufacturing are just a handful of the many entities that have expanded over the years due to the financial assistance of QCREDA.
But that’s not all that’s occurring in Northwest Illinois. Other regional hubs include Ottawa, Sterling, Dixon and Galena. Each is a vibrant community boasting abundant resources for families and employers alike. It’s no wonder that John Deere, Kone, Arconic, Bunge, Cargill and Exelon call this region home. With a population of half a million and a workforce of 250,000, plus higher-ed institutions like Augustana, Western Illinois University and Trinity College of Nursing, employers can readily find the talent and skills they need to thrive.
It also helps that Northwest Illinois facilitates commerce with a superior transportation network. Interstates 39, 74, 80 and 88 connect the region to surrounding states and form the crossroads at the heart of the country. Three Class I railroads and one Class II railroad serve the community; the Quad Cities International Airport connects daily to many other regional air hubs; and the Mississippi River offers the area two competitive ports — one on each side of America’s most important inland waterway.
These are just a few of the reasons why so many companies in agriculture and farm equipment, defense manufacturing, advanced materials, and logistics and warehousing call this region home. In fact, 150 Fortune 1000 companies do business in Northwest Illinois.
The resources and tax assistance of QCREDA work daily to increase that tally.
Northeast
Chicago, an epicenter of economic activity, culture and community, has set the precedent for success in this region. From finance and technology to life sciences to food manufacturing, industries across the board thrive throughout Northeastern Illinois.
Chicago’s booming business climate has certainly influenced the cities and small towns in the surrounding area. Each year, numerous expansion projects are announced throughout the region. In 2022, 448 corporate facility investment projects were announced in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro, earning the area its ranking as the No. 1 Metro in the United States by Site Selection magazine. This July, Site Selection magazine also ranked two counties in Northwest Illinois among the Top 10 in the nation. Cook County, with 231 investment projects, tied with Harris County, Texas, for No. 2 and DuPage County, with 91 investment projects, was listed at No. 9.
Lake County, the northern neighbor of Chicago’s Cook County, is home to 80% of Illinois’ life sciences jobs and headquarters. Approximately 147 life sciences companies, including Abbott, Walgreens, Pfizer, AbbVie, Takeda, and Horizon Therapeutics, employ more than 33,000 people in Northeast Illinois, generating $85 billion in worldwide sales.
Food manufacturing is also a major industry in Lake County. According to Lake County Partners, five food-related companies in Lake County have received over $33 million in growth capital investment since 2019, including Cool Beans in Lake Forest, McClary Innovation in Barrington, Produce Alliance in Buffalo Grove, Riceworks in Long Grove and Winestyr in Gurnee.
Over the last year, Lake County’s footprint in this industry has continued to expand. In July, NorthStar Pickle Company announced that it was building a new 60,000- to 80,000-sq.-ft. processing and distribution facility in Lake Zurich. Currently, NorthStar Pickle Company processes and ships approximately 300,000 pounds of pickle products each week, but that isn’t enough to meet customer demand. Through this $15.2 million project, the company’s set to scale production and increase capacity.
Henry Broch Foods, a U.S.-based international food ingredient, processing and co-packing company, also expanded its Lake County footprint this summer. The nearly $40 million project added 160,000 sq. ft. to the company’s Waukegan headquarters. The newly constructed space will be dedicated to production, robotic warehouse (ASRS) and distribution. Henry Broch Foods already employs 400 workers in the Lake County area and plans to add 150 more to its workforce following this expansion.
West Central
In April, United Alloy, a Wisconsin-based contract metal fabricator, began production at their new facility in Quincy. Initially, this location will function as a small, weld-only site, though the company does have plans to construct a larger facility within the next few years.
When the expansion was announced, United Alloy stated that it chose to expand in Quincy due to the “great workforce” located in the region. With an expansive network of local colleges and universities, Western Illinois is known to provide companies in its communities with an overflowing pool of skilled workers.
In September 2022, John Wood Community College broke ground on the expansion of its Workforce Development Center in Quincy. The $6 million project is partially funded by a $3 million EDA Economic Adjustment Assistance Program Grant.
“The College is expanding our career education programs, and these training programs all require physical space to conduct hands-on training,” said Andy Sprague, JWCC Board of Trustees secretary, in a press release. “Leveraging federal grant dollars is an excellent opportunity to provide in-demand programs and state-of-the-art facilities for this region to support the workforce needs of the Tri-State area.”
With this expansion, JWCC aims to meet the increase demand by local businesses for employees trained in trucking, welding and manufacturing.
“I know a lot of local businesses are in need of more workers, and we’re hoping this expansion will deliver on that for our local community and the region.” said Bill LaTour, JWCC dean of operations, to WGEM.
JWCC’s Workforce Development Center now spans 30,000 sq. ft. This project expanded the facility’s east side by 14,170 sq. ft. and added a new building entrance, a Truck Driver Training wing, and additional classrooms and lab space for HVAV and other business and industry training programs. The existing facility also received upgrades including a new virtual reality lab and expanded spaces for programs such as robotics and automation, welding, and industrial maintenance and manufacturing.
East Central
Some of the biggest entrepreneurs in America found their footing in East Central Illinois. With the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign pumping out the next generation of innovators, it’s no wonder this metro was listed as one of the Top 5 startup cities in Silicon Prairie.
Companies such as Tesla, PayPal, YouTube, Oracle and Yelp were all co-founded by UIUC alums. With assets such as the Research Park at UIUC, the university aims to continue to spur cutting-edge innovation, industry partnership and support students’ entrepreneurial and academic pursuits.
The Research Park is currently home to over 120 companies, including Fortune 500 corporations and more than 70 startups.
In September 2022, ADM opened the ADM Science and Technology Center at the research park.
“University of Illinois students and visiting scientists have helped ADM tackle big challenges and have developed business cases for important research projects. For the university and its students, the new facility will provide hands-on experiences working on real projects that are making an impact not just on ADM, but also on the world,” said ADM Senior Vice President and Chief Science Officer Todd Werpy, Ph.D.
The center is focused on creating opportunities for students in human nutrition research and development, wet chemistry, sensory science, data science, computational fluid dynamics, and customer interface and applications.
Other universities in the region have also benefited from strategic industry partnerships. Last March, AGCO Corporation, a global leader in the design, manufacture and distribution of agricultural machinery and precision ag technology, announced the expansion of its technician training program with Parkland College in Champaign. AGCO has donated $5 million to construct the 25,000-sq.-ft. state-of-the-art training center, which will house the college’s new AGCO Agriculture Service Technician Associate in Applied Science (A.A.S) degree program. Through this educational pathway, students will gain specific knowledge on AGCO-branded equipment and cutting-edge precision ag technologies, as well as general ag concepts.
“Parkland College’s longstanding reputation for excellence in agriculture education and diesel technology makes it a perfect location to train AGCO’s future technicians,” said Seth Crawford, AGCO SVP and GM, Precision Ag and Digital, in a press release. “The AGCO Agriculture Service Technician A.A.S. degree program at Parkland is an exciting commitment that will help educate the technicians of tomorrow that our dealers and farmers need to keep feeding the world.”
Southeast
Time and time again, John Deere turns to Illinois for its latest expansion projects. With five facilities, including its world headquarters, located in the state, John Deere knows that it can rely on Illinois to provide the perfect location.
This sentiment continues to ring true with the company’s latest project, a new distribution center in Mattoon. The facility, which was previously occupied by LSC Communications until 2020, is well equipped to expand the company’s warehousing, packaging and logistics operations. Following John Deere’s record-breaking net sales in 2022, which totaled more than $52 billion, a 19% increase from 2021, the company embarked on this expansion to accommodate its rapid growth.
As a community deeply rooted in agriculture and manufacturing, the Southeast region is home to a workforce and training programs tailored to John Deere’s needs. At this facility, the company expects to hire 200 new employees from Coles County.
John Deere celebrated the plant’s opening in March, two months before another major project in Mattoon, the Emerald Acres Sports Connection, broke ground. Both of these developments are going to be a major economic boost for Coles County.
More than $70 million has been invested into the Emerald Acres Sports Connection, a state-of-the-art sports complex that will span 150 acres. This funding will create eight baseball diamonds, 16 multi-purpose fields, a family entertainment center and an indoor facility with eight basketball courts that can be converted into 16 volleyball courts.
This project is expected to benefit the Coles County community in many ways.
“Number one, it gives our teams the opportunity to recruit young athletes in the fields we already have athletic programs in such as volleyball, softball, men’s and women’s baseball. But more importantly, it also gives us venues to play,” Josh Bullock, president of Lake Land College, said to local news station, WTWO.
Local sports teams, specifically on the collegiate level, will be able to access these facilities for regional games and competitions. The indoor courts will feature court overlay and seating for up to 3,000 spectators.
Varying sectors of the complex will also be utilized for concerts, rodeos, and other sporting and entertainment events. Construction is also underway for “The Shops at Emerald Acres Sports Connection,” a retail, hotel and restaurant space adjacent to the complex.
Southwest
The St. Louis Downtown Airport in Cahokia Heights is one of the many transportation hubs to benefit from the bipartisan Rebuild Illinois capital program. In April, the airport received $5.4 million to boost business and global competitiveness. This funding has been funneled into several airfield improvements including a ground run-up and compass calibration pad, which accommodates 500 yearly aircraft maintenance tests.
“Aviation is a vital part of our state’s economy and the multimodal system that makes us the transportation hub of North America. St. Louis Downtown Airport is a key part of that system, one we’re proud to invest in,” said Illinois Transportation Secretary Omer Osman. “Through Rebuild Illinois, we’re delivering transformational projects just like this one across all modes of transportation in every region of our state, improving local quality of life and creating economic opportunity.”
Outside of the Chicago area, the St. Louis Downtown Airport is one of the busiest general aviation airports in Illinois. Each year, it makes significant contributions to the region’s economy, amassing more than $422 million annually. This number is set to scale, as major expansion projects have already been announced in the wake of Rebuild Illinois investment.
In June, Gulfstream Aerospace revealed that it was expanding its existing operations at the airport. The company is investing $28.5 million to modernize its facility and equipment, and increase capacity for operations including avionics integration, exterior aircraft painting and furniture installations. Following this expansion’s completion, the company will create 200 new jobs and retain 500 existing positions.
“They could have gone anywhere in the country, but they are here because Illinois has the workforce and infrastructure.” said State Rep. Kevin Schmidt (R-Millstadt), in July.
Alongside Rebuild Illinois’ investment, incentives unique to the state also played a role in securing this deal. Gulfstream received an Economic Development for a Growing Economy (EDGE) tax credit, which stipulates the company’s multi-million-dollar investment and job creation goal.
Only 27 miles north, at the St. Louis Regional Airport in Madison County, West Star Aviation is also expanding their operations. In July, the company broke ground for the 75,700-sq.-ft. expansion of its Maintenance Repair and Overhaul (MRO) facility. This project will increase the location’s hangar capacity, back shop and storage space.
With these projects underway, companies are quite literally taking off in Southwest Illinois. Whether by air, rail, road or river, this region knows what it takes to make and move products.
Southern
Imagine, for a moment, that all this industry transpired in your backyard: Continental Tires announces a $129 million expansion; Italy-based Prysmian Group breaks ground on a $64 million expansion; and Manner Polymers of Texas opts to build a $54 million plant.
Not a bad haul, you say. Well, this is exactly what Southern Illinois has attracted in less than a year, and the region is far from done. Two of these projects landed in Mount Vernon, a small town in the heart of Jefferson County. But Mount Vernon has plenty of competition from other cities in the region for the title of kingmaker.
Carbondale, Marion, Harrisburg and West Frankfort serve as the other anchor communities in this 19-county region that borders the Mississippi River, the Ohio River, Kentucky and Missouri. Transportation, distribution and automotive manufacturing are the core industries in the region, and all are supported by a network of colleges and universities that are world-class.
They are led by Southern Illinois University, which is ranked in the top 5% of U.S. higher education institutions for research. John Logan College, Shawnee Community College, Rend Lake College, Southeastern Illinois College and Illinois Eastern Community College are the other schools that annually produce talented graduates highly coveted by employers. These graduates continually replenish a regional workforce of 142,000-plus.
Located between the nation’s two most important inland waterways — the Mississippi and the Ohio — river transport is vital to trade in the region. Four of Illinois’ 13 port districts are located in Southern Illinois, as are three Class I railroads and three Interstate highways. That transportation network is being further bolstered by a $13.9 million grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation for Better Utilizing Investment to Leverage Development.
It is no wonder, then, that major employers in the region include heavyweights Aisin Manufacturing, Continental Tire, Champion Laboratories, Pepsi and Walgreens.
They are not alone. Some 400,000 residents make their beds here. Every year, they are visited by millions of tourists flocking to hike, sightsee, camp, bike and otherwise enjoy the beauty of Shawnee Bluffs and the many other natural wonders of the region.