Black Urban Growers

What Black Urban Growers does

Black Urban Growers (BUGs), also known as Black Farmers & Urban Gardeners, is a U.S.-based nonprofit organization founded in 2010 in Brooklyn, New York, by co-founders Karen Washington, Regina Ginyard, Suzanne Babb, and Lorrie Clevenger. The organization is dedicated to building community, education, and advocacy networks for Black farmers, urban gardeners, and land stewards operating in both urban and rural settings, with a stated mission to advance food sovereignty and justice for Black communities.

BUGs' core product and primary revenue-generating asset is the annual BUGs National Conference, which the organization describes as "America's largest urban grower's conference." The conference rotates across U.S. cities — recent venues include Detroit (2025, Wayne State University, 800+ attendees), Houston (2024, University of Houston), Philadelphia (2023, Temple University), and Atlanta (2022, Georgia University). Programming includes keynote addresses, more than 40 workshops, networking sessions, and skill-building content aimed at Black growers, educators, organizers, and advocates. Secondary offerings include the "Connecting with the Land is in Our DNA" storytelling and scholarship campaign (launched on Juneteenth) and a blog/news content service.

The organization is not a technology company and operates no proprietary technology platform. Revenue is generated through conference registrations, a tiered corporate and foundation sponsorship program (Heritage, Cultivator, Germinator, Pollinator, Seed Starter levels), individual donations processed via the Donorbox platform, and targeted scholarship fundraising campaigns. BUGs maintains an operating presence primarily through its 1–10 staff and a network of partnerships with organizations including USDA NRCS, Soul Fire Farm, WhyHunger, National Black Food and Justice Alliance, SARE, Trust for Public Land, Farm Aid, and several regional partners.

Name

Black Urban Growers

Legal name

Black Urban Growers

Website

https://blackurbangrowers.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Black Urban Growers (BUGs) is a New York–based nonprofit founded in 2010 that operates America's largest annual conference dedicated to Black urban and rural farmers, providing education, networking, and food sovereignty advocacy.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Conference Registration and Sponsorships: BUGs generates revenue through annual conference registrations, corporate and foundation sponsorships at various tiers (Heritage, Cultivator, Germinator, Pollinator, Seed Starter), and individual donations via Donorbox platform. The organization also raises funds through scholarship campaigns targeting Black students, farmers, and individuals to attend the conference.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Black Urban Growers (BUGs) is a nonprofit organization that operates the annual BUGs National Conference, recognized as America's largest urban grower's conference dedicated to Black agriculture. Its programming includes workshops, keynotes, networking sessions, and scholarship campaigns for Black growers, farmers, educators, and food sovereignty advocates, complemented by storytelling series and educational blog content year-round.

Product overview

Black Urban Growers (BUGs) is a nonprofit organization that operates primarily as a conference and community-building platform rather than a technology product company. Its core offerings include the annual BUGs National Conference, which is America's largest gathering for Black urban and rural farmers; the 'Connecting with the Land is in Our DNA' storytelling and scholarship campaign featuring Q&A interviews with Black growers; and blog/news content providing educational resources about Black agriculture and food sovereignty.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• 800+ attendees, 40+ workshops at 2025 Detroit conference
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered core, key and supporting.

• USDA Natural Resources Conservation ServicecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUSDA NRCS contributes to programming for the annual BUGs National Conference, supporting the organization's mission to empower Black agriculture and food sovereignty.
• National Black Food and Justice AlliancecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNBFJA is a Heritage Sponsor of the BUGs conference and contributes to programming and advocacy for Black food sovereignty.
• Soul Fire FarmcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSoul Fire Farm, led by Leah Penniman, co-founder of BUGs, contributes programming to the conference and is a key partner in the Black food justice movement.
• National Young Farmer CoalitionkeyStrategic or Co-development PartnerNYFC contributes to conference programming supporting young Black farmers and land stewards.
• WhyHungerkeyStrategic or Co-development PartnerWhyHunger, where co-founder Suzanne Babb serves as senior co-director of US Programs, supports BUGs programming and has been involved since the inaugural conference in 2010.
• Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE)keyStrategic or Co-development PartnerSARE is a Cultivator Sponsor providing educational resources and research support to BUGs programming.
• Trust for Public LandkeyStrategic or Co-development PartnerTrust for Public Land supports BUGs as a Cultivator Sponsor, contributing to land access and stewardship initiatives.
• Southeastern African American Farmers Organic Network (SAAFON)keyStrategic or Co-development PartnerSAAFON contributes to programming and supports organic farming education within the BUGs community.
• Hudson Valley Farm HubsupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerHudson Valley Farm Hub supports BUGs programming as an affiliated partner.
• Michigan State University Center for Regional Food SystemskeyStrategic or Co-development PartnerMSU CRFS is a Cultivator Sponsor supporting the 2025 BUGs conference in Detroit.
• Michigan Food and Farming Systems (MIFFS)keyStrategic or Co-development PartnerMIFFS is a Cultivator Sponsor supporting Black farmers in Michigan and the BUGs conference.
• Organic Farmers AssociationsupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerOFA supports BUGs as a Cultivator Sponsor, promoting organic farming practices.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• WhyHunger: WhyHunger is a food justice nonprofit where BUGs co-founder Suzanne Babb serves as senior co-director; WhyHunger supports BIPOC-led food sovereignty organizations and provides programmatic resources that overlap with BUGs' community.
• Black Farmer Fund: Black Farmer Fund is a nonprofit investment vehicle for Black farmers in the Northeast, co-founded by Karen Washington (a BUGs co-founder); it serves the same Black agriculturalist community with complementary capital and capacity-building services.
• Soul Fire Farm: Soul Fire Farm is a Black-led farm and food justice organization co-founded by BUGs co-founder Leah Penniman; it operates education and advocacy programs for Black and Indigenous farmers that directly parallel BUGs' mission of food sovereignty and is a listed strategic partner.
• Farm Aid: Farm Aid is a long-running nonprofit that supports family farmers through advocacy, grants, and the annual Farm Aid festival; it is a listed sponsor of BUGs and pursues overlapping grassroots farmer support and food system advocacy.
• National Black Food and Justice Alliance (NBFJA): NBFJA is a coalition of Black-led organizations advancing food sovereignty and land justice, and serves as a Heritage-level sponsor and strategic partner of BUGs, making it the closest peer in mission, target audience, and convening function.
• National Young Farmers Coalition: National Young Farmers Coalition is a young-farmer advocacy organization and listed BUGs partner; it offers similar convening, advocacy, and education services aimed at a partially overlapping demographic of next-generation farmers.
• Southeastern African American Farmers Organic Network (SAAFON): SAAFON is a network of African American organic farmers in the Southeast and a listed BUGs programming partner; it offers education and certification support with strong demographic and mission overlap to BUGs.

Emerging players

• HEAL Food Alliance: HEAL Food Alliance is a multi-racial coalition addressing food system inequities through policy and member organizing; it pursues overlapping food justice policy goals with a broader demographic tent than BUGs' Black-focused mission.
• Northeast Farmers of Color Land Trust: NEFOC Land Trust is a regional land security organization for BIPOC farmers in the Northeast; it provides overlapping land access, education, and community-building services with a smaller, more geographically focused footprint than BUGs.

Broad incumbents

• Trust for Public Land: Trust for Public Land is a national land conservation nonprofit and a listed Cultivator-level sponsor of BUGs; it works at substantially larger scale on land access and parks, providing adjacent (not directly competing) support for Black land stewardship.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/blackfarmerconf
• Instagraminstagram.com/blackurbangrowers

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

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 Black Urban Growers