"I'd encourage anyone looking for a unique gift to consider
giving an Illinois food product," said Agriculture Director Bob Flider. "Illinois is a leading food processing state and offers a
wide assortment of delicious items to choose from. Plus, every
purchase helps not only our agriculture industry, but also our state
economy."
To be eligible, individuals must join the department's Facebook
page or follow the agency on Twitter. Individuals must be 21 years
old to win gifts donated by Illinois wine companies.
Last year, the department launched a similar promotion called the
"12 Days of Christmas." Due to its overwhelming success and the
number of Illinois companies volunteering this year to participate,
the contest was expanded to 25 days.
Prizes for the contest are being provided by the following
Illinois companies:
-
Forsee Vineyards & Winery, Coffeen -- a $20 gift certificate,
enough to enjoy one of the winery's 15 Illinois-grown and produced
wines, plus take home a wine-related gift or souvenir.
-
eSutras Organics, Chicago -- holiday baking and teas gift basket.
-
Sleepy Creek Vineyards, Fairmount -- gift certificate for a
one-night stay at the Sleepy Creek Vineyards Bed & Breakfast.
-
Two Fat Guys Gourmet Sauces, McHenry -- one jar of Spicy BBQ
Sauce, one can koozie, one ceramic coffee mug and one jar opener.
-
Honey Wafer Baking Co., Crestwood -- a 24-count case of Honey
Wafers.
-
Illinois Pork Producers/Raber Packing, Peoria -- Illinois State
Fair pork package: six butterfly chops, eight American chops, 10
pork burgers and one custom barbecue spice from Raber Packing.
-
Vienna Beef, Chicago -- Chicago-style hot dog kit: 16 hot dogs,
16 poppy seed buns, celery salt, Plochman's yellow mustard and
bright green relish.
-
Ying's Kitchen, Gurnee -- four unique sauces from Ying's Kitchen
and a cookbook.
-
One Hot Cookie, Murphysboro -- a $50 gift package that includes a
holiday tin filled with an assortment of homemade cookies, handmade
chocolates, famous Baptist peanut rolls and gourmet brownies, plus
samples of specialty coffee, hot chocolates and spiced cider.
-
The Popcorn Factory, Lake Forest -- Snowy Night sampler: nine
seasonal favorites in one charming gift box. Sampler includes three
flavors of premium popcorn (Drizzled Caramel, Cheese and White
Cheddar), chocolate chip cookies, vanilla snowflake mini pretzels,
honey-roasted peanuts, foil-wrapped chocolates, foil-wrapped hard
candies and pecan-caramel Pixies.
-
Simply Native Nursery, Alexis -- a $35 gift certificate for
plants.
-
Lifeway Kefir, Morton Grove -- an assortment of holiday kefir
flavors and favorites, including gingerbread, cranberry crème brulee
and pumpkin spice.
-
Simply Appetizers, Algonquin -- a three-pack of Simply Appetizers
salsa -- mild, medium and hot.
-
Galena Cellars, Galena -- a $25 gift card to be used in any of
its three tasting rooms.
-
Black Swan Gourmet BBQ Sauce, Dundee -- three bottles of Black
Swan's famous barbecue sauce -- sweet, medium and Kiss of Fire.
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-
Country Lights Soy Candles, Leland -- two 12-ounce soy candles.
The winner may choose the fragrance.
-
Diva Chocolates & Confections Inc., Skokie -- a holiday gift
sampler including handmade artisan caramels made with fresh cream,
natural vanilla and roasted sea salt; handmade artisan caramels with
dark chocolate covertures; handmade French Honey Nougat sweetened
with clover honey and packed with roasted whole almonds; dried
Montmorency cherries and salted pistachios; and one artisan,
limited-edition jam or jelly, chef's choice.
-
Grandpa G's, Hamilton -- two Grandpa G's Trio of Sauces --
jalapeno mustard, catsup and raspberry syrup.
-
Sweet Margy Toffee Confections, Chicago -- gift basket with
handcrafted dark chocolate Bark'n Toffee, which is dark chocolate
embedded with bits of toffee and almonds; and hand-dipped Toffee
Grahams, which are crackers dipped in toffee to stay crunchy and
then dipped in dark chocolate and drizzled with milk chocolate.
-
Julie's Corner Store, Lacon -- 1 pound of homemade fudge in a
Christmas-themed tin.
-
Chicago Bulls Gimme That Hot Sauce Baby, Chicago -- four-pack of
hot sauce.
-
Dutch Farms, Chicago -- a Dutch farms camo cap, six 8-ounce bars
of mild cheddar cheese and six 8-ounce bars of pepper jack cheese.
-
FutureCeuticals, Momence -- Nutrim Holiday Survival Kit. Nutrim
is a USDA-developed, 100 percent natural, oat, beta-glucan
super-food that helps lower cholesterol naturally. The survival kit
includes a 120-serving can of Nutrim, a Holiday Recipe Book and
Nutrim Catalyst, a salt-free seasoning.
-
Majave Sauce, Berwyn -- one case (12 bottles) of Majave Hot
Sauce.
-
Champion Pizza, Hebron -- 12 frozen pizzas shipped directly to
the winner. Champion Pizza produces handmade frozen pizza with 100
percent natural ingredients and no preservatives.
To sign up for the "25 Days of Christmas" contest, visit and
"like" the Illinois Department of Agriculture Facebook page at
http://www.facebook.com/
IllinoisDepartmentofAgriculture or sign up to follow the
department's Twitter account at
https://twitter.com/#!/ILAgMarkets.
For more information about the contest, contact Jennifer Tirey,
bureau chief of marketing, promotion and grants, at 217-782-8146, or
visit the department's home page,
www.agriculture.illinois.gov, for
a
listing of Illinois products.
[Text from
Illinois
Department of Agriculture
file received from the
Illinois Office of
Communication and Information]
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