Planting Justice

What Planting Justice does

Planting Justice is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 2009 and headquartered in East Oakland, California, that operates one of the most biodiverse organic urban nurseries in North America alongside a portfolio of food-justice and re-entry programs. The core commercial operation is the Sobrante Park Nursery in El Sobrante, which houses over 1,500 varieties of organic edible trees, complemented by the East Oakland Nursery (headquarters), a Sacramento Nursery, a Mother Farm, and an Aquaponics Farm, plus a presence at the El Sobrante Farmers Market. Through a Shopify storefront and physical retail, the organization sells a catalog of 2,100+ products spanning fruit trees, berries, fruiting vines, perennial vegetables, California natives, herbs, figs (113 varieties), pomegranates (111 varieties), nut trees, pawpaws, cacti/succulents, roses, and branded merchandise.

The organization couples its nursery operations with a holistic re-entry program that has created 140 full-time jobs for formerly incarcerated people since 2009 and reports a 2% recidivism rate among staff compared with California's 39% rate. Adjacent community programs include food distribution (10,000 lbs annually to low-access areas), youth internships, a free SPARK Seeds library, and a matching-giving Tinone Association program that funds tree planting in Madagascar. Revenue is generated through one-time plant and merchandise sales, tax-deductible donations (including stock and legacy planned gifts), and grant funding from institutional partners such as Kaiser Permanente, the East Bay Community Foundation, the San Francisco Foundation, the Kresge Foundation, the California Regional Initiative for Social Enterprise, and the Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco. The organization is USDA Organic certified and has received media coverage from the New York Times, ABC News, TIME, and The Guardian.

Name

Planting Justice

Legal name

Planting Justice

Website

https://plantingjustice.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2009

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Planting Justice is a California-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit that operates organic nurseries and urban farms to deliver a holistic re-entry employment program for formerly incarcerated people, selling 2,100+ plant products online and through three nursery locations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Urban Agriculture & Social Enterprise

NAICS

Noncitrus Fruit and Tree Nut Farming (11133), Forest Nurseries and Gathering of Forest Products (113210), Soil Preparation, Planting, and Cultivating (115112)

SIC

Retail-Building Materials, Hardware, Garden Supply (5200), Agricultural Production-Crops (100)

akta.pro primary industry

Sustainable Agriculture & Food Systems (Fair Trade, Food Access, Regenerative) (BPAGALAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Organic Fruit & Tree Nut Farming (Orchards) (AFAGAKAB), Fruit & Nut Planting Stock (Rootstocks, Nursery Trees, Vines) (AFABAFAF), Garden Bed Installation & Planting (Annuals, Perennials, Shrubs) (HSAIAFAB)

Keywords

• Organic nursery plants
• Urban agriculture
• Reentry employment
• Food justice programs
• Edible plant sales

Headquarters

HQ city

California

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices6 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Plant and Tree Sales: E-commerce sales of organic fruit trees, berries, shrubs, and edible plants through Shopify storefront. 2,100+ products across multiple categories including fruit trees, berries, California natives, and merchandise.
2. Merchandise Sales: Sales of branded merchandise including t-shirts, hoodies, and gift cards to support the organization and spread awareness.
3. Donations and Charitable Contributions: Tax-deductible donations as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. EIN 27-0334905. Accepts mail donations, stock donations, and legacy planned gifts.
4. Stock Donations: Accepts donations of stocks through Ameritrade DTC#: 0188, Account #: 488498580

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Planting Justice is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit social enterprise that operates organic nurseries and urban farms selling fruit trees, berries, edible perennials, California native plants, and related merchandise through e-commerce and physical locations. It reinvests revenues into programs that provide living-wage jobs, reentry support, and food justice education to formerly incarcerated community members in California.

Product overview

Planting Justice operates as North America's most biodiverse urban farm and organic nursery, offering a comprehensive portfolio of 2,100+ plant products through its e-commerce platform. The core offerings center on organic edible plants including Fruit Trees (806 products), Berries & Fruiting Bushes (205 products), Fruiting Vines (47 products), and Perennial Vegetables (147 products). The product line spans specialty categories including Figs (113 varieties), Pomegranates (111 varieties), Herbs & Spices, California Natives, Nut Trees, Cacti/Succulents, and Pawpaws. The company sells individual plants, plant bundles (e.g., pomegranate bundles, dogwood collections), merchandise (t-shirts, hoodies), and Mother Farm cuttings. Additional programs include the Tinone Association collection that matches purchases with tree plantings in Madagascar. Products are distributed through the Sobrante Park Nursery, which houses over 1,500 varieties, and the East Oakland Nursery. The organization is certified organic and focuses on providing rare, heirloom, and cold-hardy varieties.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Organic Fruit Trees & Edible Plants Online and in-store collection of fruit trees, berries, fruiting vines, nut trees, fig and pomegranate varieties, herbs, spices, and tea plants sold to home gardeners.
• California Native Plants Collection Collection of California native and drought-tolerant plants including cacti, succulents, and roses sold to home gardeners and restoration buyers.
• Perennial Vegetables Collection Edible perennial vegetable plants offered as a curated collection for home food production.
• Mother Farm Cuttings & Scionwood Cuttings and scionwood sourced from the Mother Farm propagated and sold for grafting and propagation by home growers.
• Tinone Association Reforestation Plants Reforestation seedlings produced in partnership with the Tinone Association for habitat restoration plantings.
• Planting Justice Merchandise Branded apparel, art prints, gift cards, and accessories sold online through the Shopify storefront.
• Holistic Reentry Program Wraparound reentry support program for formerly incarcerated individuals providing case management, advocacy, and wraparound services.
• Living-Wage Employment Program Paid nursery and farm jobs offered to formerly incarcerated individuals at living wages as the organization's flagship employment pathway.
• Youth Education & Internship Programs Educational programming and paid internships for local youth covering urban agriculture, food justice, and environmental stewardship.
• SPARK Seeds Library Community seed library offering free seeds and seed-saving education to local community members.

Named customers3 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Kaiser PermanentecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHealthcare partner supporting the organization. Kaiser Permanente logo appears on About Us page alongside other major foundation partners.
• Food FirstminorGTM or Marketing PartnerFood First organization spotlighted Planting Justice on their website, providing media exposure and credibility.
• Tinone AssociationminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGrassroots community organization in the Androy Region of Southern Madagascar. PJ matches plant purchases to fund tree planting in Madagascar to fight desertification and build food forests.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• One Green World: Oregon-based specialty mail-order nursery selling organic fruit trees, berries, and unusual/edible varieties direct-to-consumer. Highly comparable in assortment (rare heirloom + organic edible trees) and DTC e-commerce model, though without Planting Justice's re-entry/food-justice mission overlay.
• Raintree Nursery: Specialty mail-order nursery focused on fruit trees, berries, and edible landscaping plants. Comparable on DTC organic/edible plant assortment and customer profile (home orchardists and permaculture gardeners).
• Burnt Ridge Nursery & Orchards: Washington-based family nursery specializing in fruit and nut trees, berries, and unusual edible plants. Comparable assortment, USDA-organic focus, and small-batch specialty fulfillment model.
• Bay Laurel Nursery: California-based specialty fruit tree nursery with strong bare-root and heirloom assortment targeted at West Coast home orchardists. Comparable geographic focus, organic tendency, and DTC fulfillment model.
• City Slicker Farms: Oakland-based nonprofit urban farm and food justice organization, similar mission around food access and community healing. Direct peer on the social enterprise and community agriculture side rather than the retail nursery side.

Broad incumbents

• Stark Bro's Nurseries: One of the largest and oldest fruit tree nurseries in the United States. Broad incumbent in the same product category with deeper catalog, national distribution, and significant brand recognition among home orchardists.
• Dave Wilson Nursery: Largest wholesale grower of fruit, nut, and shade trees in the Western US, supplying retail nurseries. Direct peer in production of bare-root and containerized fruit trees, though it sells wholesale rather than direct to consumer.

Regional players

• The Growing Experience: California urban farm program focused on food access in underserved communities. Comparable on community-agriculture mission and regional California footprint, though more focused on farm production than plant retail.

Emerging players

• Fedco Seeds: Maine-based employee/consumer cooperative supplying organic seeds, trees, bulbs, and nursery stock with strong mission orientation. Partial overlap via organic nursery stock and DTC catalog model with a values-aligned customer base.

Others

• Common Vision Coalition: California nonprofit focused on urban agriculture education and youth empowerment programs. Adjacent mission peer in food justice and youth/education programs; weakly comparable on commercial nursery operations.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/plantingjustice/videos
• Facebookfacebook.com/plantingjustice
• Instagraminstagram.com/planting.justice
• TikToktiktok.com/@plantingjustice
• Xx.com/plantingjustice
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/planting-justice

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

Investors2 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Planting Justice