Paine Schwartz Partners Announces Investment in Urban Farmer, Manteno’s Plant-based Specialty Dough Producer

Global food and agribusiness PE leader Paine Schwartz Partners invests in our plant-based specialty dough manufacturer Urban Farmer Foods through new “Food Chain Fund V” platform.

Now more than ever, community partners are an integral part of Kankakee County’s resiliance and growth. n 2020, United Way of Kankakee & Iroquois Counties – with our Community Foundation of Kankakee River Valley – generated and distributed more than $600,000 for emergency Covid-19 relief. While this work continues, our United Way is mission driven to serve our residential and business community each and every day by investing in the strategic areas of: youth success; economic mobility; and access to health services.

The Community Foundation of Kankakee River Valley has announced the acceptance of applications for grants from the Robert K. Dunn Perpetual Charitable Trust Fund. The donor-advised fund was established by the trustees of Mr. Dunn’s estate in 2016. The trustees will advise the Community Foundation Board of Directors to grant up to $33,000 to one or multiple organizations that provide direct services to youth in the Greater Kankakee River Valley Area.

Governor JB Pritzker today released industry-specific guidelines that allow for the safe re-opening of businesses as the state progresses into the next phase of the Restore Illinois plan. All four regions of the state are on track to advance to Phase 3 of the plan in the coming days, allowing thousands of residents to return to work, and the reopening of businesses in the following industries: retail, offices, manufacturing, barbershops and salons, summer programs, various outdoor recreation activities and bars and restaurants for outdoor dining.

If you and your employer have already experimented with a distributed team, you know that many of the major concerns around remote work — compromised productivity, camaraderie and accountability — were grossly overstated and easily checked. But the question of how to maintain a happy remote team — that takes a lot of care and intentionality.

In a flash poll of Kankakee County lenders on Monday, the Economic Alliance learned that in the federal Paycheck Protection Program’s initial $350 billion round of emergency funding, more than 1,500 regional businesses were served, with approved loans totaling more than $260 million. According to those polled, the majority of businesses had already received a disbursement. In this initial round, businesses served employ more than 30,000 individuals.