Coming January 2023!  Mill River Eatery, our new Pop-Up Dining Hall       LEARN MORE
  • Collage image of a commercial kitchen space, cookies on production line, and jars of food on a shelf in a cold storage warehouse

    ALL WE DO IS FOOD!

Take your food business to the next level by joining
The Business of Food

The Business of Food is a business incubator specifically designed to help you launch, grow, and expand your business. We can help you no matter what stage your business is in, from writing your business plan to expanding across town, and everything in between.

Calling all Chicago area food entrepreneurs and growers!

Food Manufacturers

It’s an exciting time to be launching a new food product! Our shared kitchen is available if you need production space. In addition, we can help you learn about product development, packaging options, branding, working with a co-manufacturer, understanding the sales process, and how to manage your business for success.

Food Service Operators

Restaurant owners, caterers, and food truck operators this is for you! Preparing food is easy in our state of the art commercial kitchen space. We can also teach you the skills to manage your operations, understand your profitability, ensure food safety, hire a team, market your business, and even how to grow it!

Food Growers

If you’re exploring ways to build your business outside of the growing season you’ve come to the right place! Our food industry professionals can help you identify value-add opportunities. We can also help you improve the profitability of your business through budgeting, crop costing, and pricing.

The Business of Food

A unique business incubator conveniently located in
Chicago’s western suburbs

Our programs and facilities are specifically designed for food entrepreneurs and growers. Whether you’re a start-up still working on your business plan or an established business that’s ready to expand, you’ll feel at home here. Plus, to join, our only requirement is that you’re committed to developing your business. 

  • Your business can be about any type of food or beverage
  • It doesn’t matter what your current revenue is (we welcome early stage businesses!)
  • And this isn’t about revenue sharing or equity offers (but we can help you explore funding options, if you’re interested.)

A complete business incubator designed to nourish the talents of entrepreneurs and create opportunities for them to flourish


The Business of Food offers food entrepreneurs and growers everything from educational programs, production resources, to marketplace. There are even programs to test the sales potential of your business concept.

Mill River Cookery
Save on start-up costs and set up shop in our shared kitchen space.
Mill River School
A comprehensive curriculum specifically tailored to food businesses.
Mill River Eatery
Introduce the local market to your food by participating in our pop-up events in our facility
Mill River Harvest
Extend your season with value-added programs to grow your revenue.
Mill River Marketplace
Offering locally grown and produced products year-round to our community.

We have a unique perspective on what it takes to be a successful food entrepreneur. Our team has decades of experience in the food industry and we’ve learned a lot from launching our own businesses. Our hope is to be able to share our knowledge and experience with you, then watch you grow!

Contact us to become a part of our expanding network.
We look forward to meeting you!

      Contact Us          Call Us: 815.991.5053

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The Business of Food, LLC
1330 E. State Street, Unit A
Sycamore, IL 60178
815.991.5505