Food Ladder

What Food Ladder does

Food Ladder is an Australian registered not-for-profit organization (ABN 89 132 323 347) that installs climate-controlled, NFT (Nutrient Film Technique) hydroponic greenhouses in K-12 schools and provides a digital education platform to support them. The organization operates across all Australian states and territories, with explicit focus on regional, rural, remote, and disadvantaged (low-ICSEA) communities, addressing food insecurity in areas where 94% of Australian children reportedly do not eat enough fresh produce. As of December 2024, 40 schools were operating Food Ladder greenhouses with 17,000+ students engaged, and the organization has stated an ambition to reach 1,000+ schools and 1 million students by 2030.

The core technology stack combines physical greenhouse infrastructure (NFT systems delivering 5x the productivity and 90% less water than traditional farming) with a digital EdTech platform (edtech.foodladder.org) that includes an AI-powered onboarding tool, the Food Ladder Academy (50+ crop profiles, 40+ recipes, growing guides), a Harvest Tracker, and a Member Hub dashboard. In March 2025, Food Ladder integrated IBM watsonx.ai to generate curriculum-aligned lesson plans tailored to subject, year level, and individual student needs, including students with disabilities. A September 2025 research partnership with CSIRO and the University of Southern Queensland adds a quantum AI research layer for crop optimization and student wellbeing measurement.

The revenue model is a hybrid of three streams: tax-deductible individual donations (processed via Raisely), multi-year corporate foundation grants (e.g., $600,000 from NGM Group's Greater Charitable Foundation for nine Southeast Queensland schools), and school program fees for greenhouse access, curriculum, and AI tools—subsidized by donations for disadvantaged schools. Distribution is sales-led with enterprise field sales components: schools apply via website enquiry forms, with AI generating custom proposals, while corporate foundation deals fund clusters of school installations. The CEO and Co-Founder is Kelly McJannett; Tony Surtees (former Yahoo! US VP, co-founder of Zeetings acquired by Canva) was appointed Chair in April 2025. The organization is ranked #2 nationally in the 2025 AFR BOSS Most Innovative Companies awards.

Name

Food Ladder

Legal name

Food Ladder

Website

https://foodladder.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Food Ladder is an Australian not-for-profit that installs climate-controlled hydroponic greenhouses in K-12 schools nationwide, paired with an AI-powered EdTech platform (IBM watsonx.ai) for curriculum-aligned lesson planning, targeting regional, rural, and disadvantaged communities to address food insecurity.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Educational Agriculture Technology / School Hydroponics Programs

NAICS

Food Crops Grown Under Cover (11141), Educational Support Services (611710)

SIC

Agricultural Services (700)

akta.pro primary industry

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

akta.pro secondary industries

Vending, Kiosk & À La Carte Food Programs (On-Campus Retail) (EDAEAEAI), Food Systems & Value Chain Development for Nutrition (BPADAJAG), Science Camps & Field Programs (Nature, Space, Marine, Geology) (EDAMABAB)

Keywords

• School greenhouse programs
• Hydroponic education technology
• Climate-controlled agriculture
• Food security initiatives
• STEM agricultural learning

Headquarters

HQ city

Sydney

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Donations: Tax-deductible donations from individuals and organizations. Every $2 or more is tax-deductible in Australia. Donations processed via third-party provider Raisely.
2. Partnership Funding: Multi-year grants from corporate foundations and partners. Example: $600,000 from NGM Group's Greater Charitable Foundation to support nine schools in Southeast Queensland over three years.
3. School Program Fees: Schools pay for greenhouse program access including greenhouses, AI tools, curriculum resources, and support. Donations help fund schools that cannot afford the program.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Food Ladder provides climate-controlled hydroponic (NFT) greenhouses paired with an AI-enabled EdTech platform (The Greenhouse) to K-12 schools across Australia. Schools receive greenhouse infrastructure, curriculum-aligned lesson planning powered by IBM watsonx.ai, the Food Ladder Academy learning content library, harvest tracking tools, and ongoing support, enabling students to grow fresh produce year-round while building STEM, nutrition, and food literacy skills.

Product overview

Food Ladder offers a unified program combining physical climate-controlled hydroponic greenhouses with an EdTech platform. The core offering includes AI-enabled greenhouses installed in schools (NFT-based, 5x more productive than traditional farming) paired with The Greenhouse EdTech platform for digital management. The EdTech platform consists of the Member Hub dashboard (harvest tracking, team management, forecasting), Food Ladder Academy (educational content including Crop Library with 50+ plants, Recipe Book with 40+ recipes, and operational guides), and AI Lesson Planning powered by IBM watsonx.ai. The AI lesson planning creates curriculum-aligned content saving teachers up to 2 periods daily. Schools can also access AI-powered onboarding to build custom greenhouse proposals. The program is designed for scalability from 40 schools to 1,000+ by 2030.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Climate-Controlled Hydroponic Greenhouses Physical climate-controlled NFT (Nutrient Film Technique) hydroponic greenhouse infrastructure installed at Australian K-12 schools. 5x more productive than traditional ground-based farming, uses 90% less water, produces year-round, and is built for harsh Australian environments including remote and regional communities. Schools receive the greenhouse, ongoing support, seeds, and curriculum resources.
• The Greenhouse (EdTech Platform) Food Ladder's EdTech platform providing AI-powered greenhouse management tools for schools. Includes a member dashboard for harvest tracking, team management, forecast tracking, and AI-powered lesson planning. Serves as the central hub for the Food Ladder school network.
• Food Ladder Academy Educational resource hub providing curriculum-aligned learning content for running the Food Ladder greenhouse program. Includes Crop Library (50+ plant profiles), Recipe Book (40+ recipes), Growing Systems guides, Ecosystem Optimisers documentation, Maintenance protocols, Harvest Hygiene standards, and Food Preservation techniques.
• AI Lesson Planning (powered by IBM watsonx.ai) IBM watsonx.ai-powered lesson plan generation integrated into the Food Ladder EdTech platform. Creates custom educational content aligned with local curriculum requirements, tailored by subject, year level, and individual class requirements including students with disabilities or learning support needs. Saves teachers up to 2 periods each day.
• Southeast Queensland Greenhouse Program A funded regional rollout of Food Ladder's AI-enabled, climate-controlled hydroponic greenhouses to nine low-ICSEA schools across Southeast Queensland over three years, backed by a $600,000 Greater Charitable Foundation grant. Includes tailored teaching resources, professional development, and access to a peer educator network, reaching more than 3,150 students.

Quantifiable outcome

• Student attendance increased from 30% to above 90% at participating schools
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

AI capability5 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• CSIRO (Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 30 September 2025Four-year research project through CSIRO Industry PhD program applying quantum AI to improve food security and student wellbeing. Partnership uses quantum machine learning to optimize crop growth and food security, and measure therapeutic benefits of greenhouse interaction through wearable devices tracking stress indicators. First instance in Australia where a non-quantum industry is applying quantum-reinforced AI algorithms.
• University of Southern Queensland (UniSQ)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 30 September 2025Partner in quantum AI research project with CSIRO. Leads research into therapeutic benefits of student interaction with plants. Supports PhD student exploring quantum AI applications for resource-efficient hydroponics and evidence-based frameworks for integrating green space exposure into student wellbeing.
• IBMcoreTechnology or Integration · 18 March 2025IBM integrated its watsonx AI portfolio including watsonx.ai into Food Ladder's educational program. AI streamlines lesson plan design, creating custom content aligned with local curriculum requirements, tailored by subject, year level, and individual class requirements including students with disabilities or learning support needs. Partnership aims to scale to 1,000 schools by 2030, engaging over 1 million students and supplementing 25 million meals annually.
• Sundrop FarmsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership supporting Stirling North Primary School greenhouse through Sundrop Farms involvement. Students learn practical science and sustainability through the partnership.

Scale indicators17 records

Recent moves13 records

Expansion highlights7 records

Market position

Competitive moat6 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/FoodLadder
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@foodladder5743
• Facebookfacebook.com/foodladder
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/food-ladder
• Instagraminstagram.com/foodladder

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 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 Food Ladder