ValleyVerde
Valley Verde is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit delivering food access, composting, and organic gardening education to low-income families across Santa Clara County through community workshops, school programs, and a culturally focused nursery and seedling subscription.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2012
- HeadquartersSan José Casas Caídas, Mexico
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What ValleyVerde does
Valley Verde is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 2012 and headquartered in San Jose, California, operating in Santa Clara County across San Jose, Morgan Hill, and Gilroy. The organization addresses food insecurity and limited access to healthy, culturally appropriate food among low-income families by delivering a stack of interconnected programs: Home Compost and Community Compost HUB (composting education and infrastructure), Shared Garden for Individuals (organic gardening basics with materials provided to income-eligible families), Shared Garden for Schools (garden-based nutrition education), Super Sprouts (youth gardening), and Deep Roots (advanced gardening for program graduates). The Homeland Nursery functions as both a community greenhouse and a retail outlet selling organically grown seedlings, including culturally specific heritage varieties such as bitter melon, okra, sweet thai basil, bottle gourd, aji amarillo chili, Chinese eggplant, lemongrass, and luffa. A Seedling Subscription service provides recurring deliveries of seasonal seedlings.
The organization's business model is hybrid and nonprofit-native. The dominant revenue stream is donations and fundraising, collected via PayPal, QR codes, and community events, supplemented by food drive collections that redistribute fresh produce and non-perishable items to families in need. Earned income is generated through nursery/seedling retail sales and the subscription service. Programs are offered free of charge to income-qualifying families; nursery products are sold at the Homeland Nursery, though specific pricing is not publicly disclosed. The go-to-market motion is community-led: workshops, volunteer activities, Sow + Grow Community Days, and grassroots events drive participation, amplified by organic social media (Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, Mailchimp newsletter, Nextdoor, WhatsApp).
Key institutional partners include El Camino Health (strategic-tier partner supporting food access), Garden to Table Silicon Valley (microgreens workshops), Guadalupe River Park Conservancy (vermicomposting), CORE (food preservation and disaster preparedness), Chopsticks Alley Art (art-gardening collaborations), and San Jose Giants (community fundraising events). Valley Verde received the 2025 Nextdoor Neighborhood Fave award. Founder and Executive Director Raul Lozano leads the organization, which operates with 1-10 employees from a single physical site at 691 W San Carlos St., San Jose. No funding rounds, revenue figures, or financial disclosures are available in the source data.
ValleyVerde firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- ValleyVerde
- Legal name
- Valley Verde
- Website
- https://WWW.VALLEYVERDE.ORG
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2012
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Valley Verde is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit delivering food access, composting, and organic gardening education to low-income families across Santa Clara County through community workshops, school programs, and a culturally focused nursery and seedling subscription.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
ValleyVerde industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Community Food Services
- NAICS
- Nursery, Garden Center, and Farm Supply Retailers (44424), Greenhouse, Nursery, and Floriculture Production (1114)
- SIC
- Retail-Building Materials, Hardware, Garden Supply (5200)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Plants, Seeds & Nursery Retail (Garden Centers) (CRAIAIAB)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Greenhouse Herb & Microgreens Production (Culinary Herbs, Microgreens) (AFAGAHAC), Compost Product Distribution, Retail & Landscape Supply (Bulk/Bagged) (BPALAEAI), Garden Bed Installation & Planting (Annuals, Perennials, Shrubs) (HSAIAFAB)
Keywords
Where ValleyVerde is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- San José Casas Caídas
- HQ country
- Mexico
- HQ region
- Latin America
Offices1 record
Markets served
ValleyVerde business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Donations and Fundraising: The organization accepts monetary donations through PayPal and QR codes, with donations used to purchase organic, seasonal, and culturally relevant produce for community members.
- Nursery Sales: Sales of organically grown seedlings, plants, and related products through the Homeland Nursery retail location and seedling subscription service.
- Food Drive Collections: Collection and redistribution of fresh produce and non-perishable food items to families in need.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels8 records
ValleyVerde product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Valley Verde operates a community-based food access and micro-entrepreneurship program serving low-income families in Santa Clara County. The organization delivers gardening education through the Shared Garden, Super Sprouts, and Deep Roots programs, runs Home Compost and Community Compost HUB composting initiatives, and operates Homeland Nursery — an organic nursery selling culturally specific seedlings including chayote, papaya, microgreens, culinary herbs, and medicinal herbs.
Product overview
ValleyVerde is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization operating as a community-based food system with multiple interconnected programs and retail offerings. The core consists of educational gardening programs (Shared Garden for Individuals and Schools, Super Sprouts, Deep Roots) that teach organic gardening and provide materials to low-income families. The Homestead Nursery serves as both a program and retail outlet, selling organically grown seedlings including culturally specific vegetables. The Community Compost HUB and Home Compost programs provide composting education and bins. Additional offerings include a Seedling Subscription service, Food Services Locator resource, and Recipes database. These programs work together to promote food justice, healthy eating, and micro-entrepreneurship training for San José and Gilroy families.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Quantifiable outcome
- Free composting workshops and bins provided to community members in San Jose and Gilroy
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use ValleyVerde
Customer profileNamed customers2 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
ValleyVerde technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature1 record
ValleyVerde partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- El Camino HealthcoreEl Camino Health provides support to help Valley Verde make fresh, nutritious foods more accessible to families. This partnership focuses on growing healthier and stronger communities through improved food access in Santa Clara County.
- Garden to Table Silicon ValleyminorCollaboration for microgreens workshop teaching community members how to grow nutrient-dense microgreens at home. The workshop was part of a Sow + Grow Community Day event.
- Chopsticks Alley ArtminorMulti-event collaboration series called 'Water Cycle' featuring art activities including Whispering Wind Chimes, Lanterns of Hope, and Rock Painting combined with garden maintenance activities.
- Guadalupe River Park ConservancyminorPartnership for vermicomposting workshop collaboration. Joint event included garden preparation activities and hands-on worm composting education where participants built mini worm kits to take home.
- CORE (Community Organization Resource Entity)minorCollaboration for Sow + Grow Community Day featuring a Food Preservation Workshop teaching participants to preserve napa cabbage, carrots, and radishes. Also focuses on disaster preparedness resources.
- San Jose GiantsminorCommunity partnership for a baseball night event at San Jose Excite Ballpark. Valley Verde received discounted tickets to sell to the community with promo code VV26 as a fundraising and community engagement activity.
Scale indicators2 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights3 records
ValleyVerde competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Planting Justice: Oakland-based nonprofit combining urban gardening, food justice education, and nursery/plant sales with a social enterprise model. Highly comparable in combining nursery production with food-access community programming.
- Garden to Table Silicon Valley: Direct programmatic partner of Valley Verde delivering nutrition and gardening education in Silicon Valley. Operates adjacent food-access and gardening workshops for the same Santa Clara County community.
- Veggielution: San José-based urban farm nonprofit that runs a working farm, youth education, food access programs, and a community farm stand — closely comparable to Valley Verde's integrated food-system model in the same geography.
- Pie Ranch: Bay Area nonprofit farm that uses food-based education, farm-to-table programming, and youth engagement to build a more just food system — closely aligned with Valley Verde's educational farming mission.
- Guadalupe River Park Conservancy: San José-based conservancy that runs garden and composting education programs. Active Valley Verde partner (joint vermicomposting workshop) operating educational horticulture programs in the same region.
Others
- SAGE (Sustainable Agriculture Education): Bay Area nonprofit focused on sustainable agriculture education, urban-rural linkages, and food system planning. Thematically aligned with Valley Verde's food-system mission and serves as a regional ecosystem peer.
Broad incumbents
- Second Harvest of Silicon Valley: Large regional food bank serving Santa Clara and San Mateo counties. Operates at much greater scale than Valley Verde but addresses overlapping food-insecurity needs, including culturally appropriate food distribution.
- Armstrong Garden Centers: California retail nursery chain offering a wide assortment of plants, seedlings, and garden supplies. Represents the mainstream commercial retail nursery competition against Valley Verde's Homeland Nursery.
Emerging players
- CORE (Community Organization Resource Entity): Santa Clara County community organization that partners with Valley Verde on food preservation and disaster preparedness. Operates complementary food-distribution and resource-navigation services in the same region.
Regional players
- San Diego Roots Sustainable Food Project: Southern California sustainable food and gardening nonprofit running community gardens and education. Comparable mission and program structure to Valley Verde but serves a different geography.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
ValleyVerde social profiles
Digital presenceValleyVerde financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
ValleyVerde leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
ValleyVerde funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
ValleyVerde M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about ValleyVerde
What does ValleyVerde do?
Valley Verde operates a community-based food access and micro-entrepreneurship program serving low-income families in Santa Clara County. The organization delivers gardening education through the Shared Garden, Super Sprouts, and Deep Roots programs, runs Home Compost and Community Compost HUB composting initiatives, and operates Homeland Nursery — an organic nursery selling culturally specific seedlings including chayote, papaya, microgreens, culinary herbs, and medicinal herbs.
Is ValleyVerde a public or private company?
ValleyVerde is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was ValleyVerde founded?
ValleyVerde was founded in 2012. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is ValleyVerde based?
ValleyVerde is headquartered in San José Casas Caídas, Mexico, in the Latin America region.
How does ValleyVerde make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Donations and Fundraising is the primary driver. The others are nursery Sales and food Drive Collections.
Who are ValleyVerde's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Planting Justice, Garden to Table Silicon Valley, Veggielution, Pie Ranch and Guadalupe River Park Conservancy. SAGE (Sustainable Agriculture Education) is listed as an others. Broad incumbents are Second Harvest of Silicon Valley and Armstrong Garden Centers. CORE (Community Organization Resource Entity) is listed as an emerging player. San Diego Roots Sustainable Food Project is listed as a regional player.
Does ValleyVerde have an API?
No public API is recorded for ValleyVerde.
What industry is ValleyVerde in?
ValleyVerde's product category is Community Food Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is CRAIAIAB, Plants, Seeds & Nursery Retail (Garden Centers), with a secondary code of AFAGAHAC, Greenhouse Herb & Microgreens Production (Culinary Herbs, Microgreens). Its NAICS code is 44424 and its SIC code is 5200.