What Marktschwärmer does

Marktschwärmer operates as the German brand of CrowdFarming, a direct-to-consumer e-commerce platform that connects consumers with 3,515 organic and regenerative farmers across 8 European and Latin American countries. The platform enables consumers to adopt specific agricultural assets — trees, plants, or animals — paying upfront to reserve future harvests delivered directly from the farmer, alongside seasonal produce boxes, recurring subscriptions, and community-hosted Neighbourhood Market pickups. To date, the platform has facilitated 554,280 adoptions and 4,754,937 boxes shipped, with the adoption model designed to pre-sell harvests, reducing farmer food waste while ensuring transparent pricing for sustainable producers.

The business operates on a multi-product architecture comprising Adoptions (one-time upfront payment for future harvest), Seasonal Boxes (curated produce assortments), Subscription Box (recurring delivery), Neighbourhood Market (community pickup points), Gift Cards, and native mobile applications on iOS and Android. Pricing is unit-based with examples including extra virgin olive oil (3L from €56.72), mangoes (2.5kg at €30.29), avocados (2.5kg at €34.39), and specialty items like saffron (1g at €51.79). The platform distinguishes itself through a 1% for the Soil initiative currently funding 84 regenerative agriculture transition projects, a B2C marketplace eliminating wholesale intermediaries, and content-driven marketing emphasizing farmer transparency and environmental impact.

CrowdFarming's go-to-market combines product-led growth (consumers self-serve through the e-commerce platform), community-led growth (Neighbourhood Markets with volunteer hosts), and direct-to-consumer distribution with consolidated logistics across 8 countries. The company's operations span Germany, France, Spain, Italy, Portugal, Costa Rica, and additional markets, with no disclosed revenue, funding, headcount, or leadership data in the source material. Contact is handled through a UK phone number (+44 20 3318 4317) and a Help Centre, while distribution leverages mobile app stores and organic content marketing focused on regenerative agriculture education.

Name

Marktschwärmer

Website

https://marktschwaermer.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Marktschwärmer (CrowdFarming) is a direct-to-consumer e-commerce platform connecting 3,515 organic farmers in 8 countries with consumers via tree/plant adoptions, seasonal produce boxes, subscriptions, and community-hosted Neighbourhood Market pickups, with 554,280 adoptions and 4.75M boxes shipped to date.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Online Agricultural Marketplace

NAICS

Postharvest Crop Activities (except Cotton Ginning) (115114)

SIC

Agricultural Services (700)

akta.pro primary industry

Farm-to-Consumer Produce Boxes / CSA Delivery (AFAIANAC)

akta.pro secondary industry

Bulk Food Buying Clubs & Cooperative Bulk Programs (CRAHAMAM)

Keywords

• Direct farm e-commerce
• Organic produce delivery
• Agricultural marketplace
• Tree adoption platform
• Regenerative agriculture

Headquarters

HQ city

Berlin

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Supply Chain, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Personnel, Operations

Revenue model

1. Product Sales (Adoption Model): Consumers adopt trees or farm plots and pay upfront for harvests. Products include olive oil (3L starting at €56.72), mangos (2.5kg at €30.29), almonds, cheeses, and other organic products. Payment is made at adoption with delivery when harvest is ready.
2. Seasonal Boxes: Pre-curated boxes of seasonal produce available for one-time purchase or subscription. Mixed boxes, fruit boxes, and specialty boxes delivered on recurring schedule.
3. Subscription Box: Recurring delivery subscriptions for regular consumers with home delivery of seasonal produce from chosen farmers.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Marktschwärmer operates as CrowdFarming, a direct-to-consumer e-commerce platform connecting consumers with 3,515 organic and regenerative farmers across 8 countries. The platform enables consumers to adopt agricultural assets such as trees, plants, or animals for upfront payment and receive harvests directly from the farmer, purchase curated seasonal produce boxes on a one-time or recurring basis, or collect orders via community-hosted neighbourhood pickup points.

Product overview

Marktschwärmer (operating as CrowdFarming) is an agricultural e-commerce platform enabling direct-to-consumer sales from farmers. The platform operates on a multi-product architecture comprising: Adoptions (tree/plant/animal adoption with harvest delivery), Seasonal Boxes (pre-curated produce boxes), Subscription Box (recurring deliveries), Neighbourhood Market (local farm-to-consumer), and Gift Cards. All products connect consumers with organic, regeneratively-grown produce sourced from 3,515 farmers across 8 countries, with 554,280 adopted trees and 4,754,937 boxes shipped to date.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Adoptions (Tree/Plant/Animal)

Quantifiable outcome

• 554,280 trees adopted by consumers
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and flagship.

• App Store (Apple)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorCrowdFarming app distributed through Apple's App Store for iOS users to browse and purchase products.
• Google Play StorecoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorAndroid app available on Google Play for mobile commerce and order management.
• 1% for the Soil CommunityflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerEnvironmental initiative where CrowdFarming contributes 1% of sales to support regenerative agriculture projects and soil health.
• Neighbourhood Market HostscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorLocal community members who volunteer to host pickup points for distributing orders to nearby consumers.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Regional players

• Bio Company: German organic supermarket chain focused on natural and organic products. Overlaps with CrowdFarming/Marktschwärmer in the German organic food market, though operates physical retail rather than D2C marketplace model.
• Alnatura: German organic supermarket chain offering certified organic and biodynamic products. Comparable to Marktschwärmer's German market positioning on organic credentials, though competing via brick-and-mortar retail rather than farmer marketplace.

Direct peers

• Abel & Cole: UK organic produce box delivery service offering seasonal fruit/vegetable boxes with subscription recurring delivery. Closely matches CrowdFarming's seasonal box and subscription offerings with similar organic positioning.
• Misfits Market: US direct-to-consumer produce delivery service focused on "imperfect" and surplus organic produce. Comparable in D2C farm-direct model, organic positioning, and subscription box mechanics, though focused on surplus rather than adoption.
• Hungry Harvest: US produce rescue subscription service delivering surplus and imperfect produce with mission-driven branding. Comparable subscription produce delivery mechanic and sustainability positioning to CrowdFarming's regenerative agriculture narrative.
• Imperfect Foods: US online grocer delivering "ugly" and surplus produce plus pantry items on a subscription basis. Overlaps with CrowdFarming on D2C subscription produce boxes and reducing food waste, though operates a different sourcing model.
• Riverford Organic Farmers: UK-based organic farm box scheme delivering seasonal produce directly from a network of farms to subscribers. Strong comparable on subscription farm-to-consumer model and organic sourcing, with established brand recognition in the UK market.
• La Ruche Qui Dit Oui: French farm-to-consumer marketplace connecting local producers with nearby consumers via community pickup points. Directly comparable to CrowdFarming's Neighbourhood Market model and overall D2C farmer marketplace architecture.

Broad incumbents

• Whole Foods Market: Major US organic and natural foods retailer (Amazon-owned) offering wide assortment of organic produce and specialty items. Comparable on organic premium positioning and customer demographic, though competes via broad supermarket model rather than direct farmer relationships.

Others

• Local Harvest: US-based CSA directory and local food marketplace connecting consumers with nearby farms. Comparable in supporting farm-direct consumer connections and CSA-style relationships, though operates as an enabling platform rather than a direct e-commerce operator.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/marktschwaermer
• YouTubeyoutube.com/watch?v=zo98eOVdNJI
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/crowdfarming
• Facebookfacebook.com/marktschwaermer

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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 Marktschwärmer