Changing the Game Grant

The Cook County Department of Environment and Sustainability’s (DES) free Businesses Reducing Impact on the Environment (BRITE) program helps businesses reduce their environmental impact while creating a healthier environment for their employees, customers and community by offering on-site assessments to reduce pollution. Once an assessment has been completed, eligible businesses will have the opportunity to apply for grant funding. This funding will go towards solutions that save money, reduce impact on the environment and modernize operations.

The Restaurants Care Resilience Fund provides California independent restaurants and commercial caterers with $5,000 grants to build operational resilience and weather the financial pressures facing small restaurant operators. Administered by Restaurants Care, a program of the California Restaurant Foundation (a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that has been supporting California's restaurant community since 1981), the Resilience Fund was launched in 2021 and has since awarded over $11 million in grants to more than 2,000 independent restaurants across the state, supporting burger joints, taquerias, bakeries, and other independently owned operators that serve as the heart of their communities. The fund is supported by corporate partners including PG&E, SoCalGas, Sysco, FreshPoint, J. Lohr Vineyards, EcoLab, Employers, and others. Applications are offered once per year, with multiple grant recipients selected annually (in 2026, the program awarded $5,000 grants to 256 independent restaurants and commercial caterers). Separately, Restaurants Care also operates a parallel emergency assistance program that provides up to $2,500 directly to individual food and beverage workers facing illness, injury, natural disaster, or death in the immediate family.

The Nightlife Business Enhancement (NBE) Grant provides Cambridge, Massachusetts nightlife businesses with reimbursement grants of up to $10,000 to buy equipment and marketing materials, with a particular focus on sound equipment and sound mitigation measures. Administered by the City of Cambridge’s Community Development Department, the one-time program is designed to help nightlife venues build a stronger customer base, boost sales, and offset the cost of high-value equipment. Eligible businesses include clubs, music halls, live theaters, and bars and restaurants that already offer live entertainment programming. Nonprofit performance organizations with existing performance spaces may also be eligible, but are subject to additional requirements. The city created the program in response to what it has heard from the local nightlife community: attendance is down, expendable income is declining, and Cambridge has lost twelve businesses offering live entertainment since 2019. Funds are intended to help venues stay competitive and resilient. Because the NBE program is financed with federal Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds from HUD, applicants must meet CDBG eligibility requirements, which for Cambridge small business programs generally means being located in (or owned by a resident of) a designated low-to-moderate income neighborhood, or being a small business with five or fewer full-time employees whose owners have qualifying family incomes. To start the process, businesses submit an online eligibility form with a copy of their Cambridge Business Certificate and, where applicable, their commercial lease. Applications are reviewed on a first-come, first-served basis.

The Chicago Neighborhood Market Grant Program provides Chicago small food and beverage business owners and farmers market operators with one-time grants of $10,000 to strengthen local food systems and expand access to fresh, healthy food across the city. Administered by the Chicago Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection (BACP) in partnership with Allies for Community Business (A4CB), the program is funded by the Chicago Road to Recovery Plan through the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), with A4CB providing $450,000 in total grant funding to eligible applicants. To qualify, applicants must be a small retail food and beverage business owner or a farmers market operator, operating a storefront or market that is physically located within one of Chicago's designated priority geographies. The program specifically focuses on businesses that serve as both economic anchors and food access points in neighborhoods historically impacted by disinvestment, with the broader goal of ensuring that access to fresh, healthy food does not depend on the neighborhood a resident lives in. Grant funds may be used for a range of purposes, including equipment purchases, market operations, marketing and outreach efforts, and improvements that help farmers markets operate year-round rather than only during traditional market seasons.

The Choose Iowa Butchery Innovation Equipment Only Grant provides Iowa small-scale meat processing businesses, licensed custom lockers, and mobile slaughter units with grants of up to $20,000 to purchase equipment that expands processing capacity. Administered by the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship (IDALS) through the Choose Iowa program and established under Iowa Code 2025, Section 15E.370, the current round of funding has $105,000 in total available funding. The program is a subset of the broader Choose Iowa Butchery Innovation and Revitalization Grant, with this current round focused exclusively on equipment purchases rather than facility construction or expansion. Applicants must provide a minimum 1:1 financial match from private sources (such as cash, financing, or other non-federal or non-state grant funds). In-kind contributions are not accepted, and grants are paid out as reimbursements after the project is completed. To qualify, applicants must be a state-inspected or federally inspected small-scale meat processing business, a licensed custom locker, or a mobile slaughter unit (operating in compliance with the USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service’s mobile slaughter unit compliance guide) that is incorporated or authorized to do business in Iowa. Applicants must be in good standing with the State of Iowa, not currently in bankruptcy, employ fewer than 75 full-time nonseasonal individuals, employ only individuals legally authorized to work in Iowa, and either hold a current license from IDALS or be actively working with IDALS to obtain one. Businesses must not have been subject to any regulatory enforcement action related to federal, state, or local environmental, worker safety, food processing, or food safety laws within the last five years. IDALS employees and their immediate family members are not eligible to apply. Membership in the Choose Iowa Brand Program is not required but encouraged (and provides bonus scoring points on the application). Projects must create or expand meat processing opportunities, or provide greater flexibility or convenience in processing for local small-scale meat processing facilities. Projects must be conducted in Iowa, cannot be in progress before an application is submitted, and must be completed within the project period defined for the grant round. Eligible expenses include refrigerators or freezers, meat processing equipment, packaging equipment, and shipping and sales tax on those purchases. Ineligible expenses include installation costs (construction, site prep, electrical, plumbing), administrative or overhead costs, cost of doing business (inventory, license fees, working capital), advertising, public relations, entertainment, employee wages and benefits, general-use equipment not related to the project, fines, penalties or settlements, real estate purchases, rent or contract payments extending beyond the grant contract term, union organizing-related costs, and lobbying or political activity. Applications are submitted through the Choose Iowa online application portal and are competitively scored on a 100-point scale across six criteria: alignment with the program’s goals of creating jobs and expanding processing opportunities (20 points), impact on Iowa agriculture (20 points), measurable project objectives (20 points), business readiness and financial sustainability (15 points), detailed budget and match (15 points), and work plan and timeline (10 points). Choose Iowa Brand Program members can earn up to three bonus points on top of the 100-point base score. Awardees must sign a grant agreement with IDALS within 30 days of receipt and are required to submit a project summary with photos and detailed outcomes when requesting final reimbursement.