What Uproot Colorado does

UpRoot Colorado is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, headquartered in Carbondale, Colorado (EIN 82-1407915), that operates a volunteer-led gleaning and food-redistribution program across at least 10 regions of Colorado, including Mesa County, the North Fork Valley, the Roaring Fork Valley, Garfield, Eagle, Pitkin, Boulder, Larimer counties, Metro Denver, and the Arkansas Valley. Founded in 2016 with two initial gleaning events and awarded its independent IRS Letter of Determination in 2020, UpRoot coordinates its Volunteer Gleaning Corps to harvest surplus, nutrient-dense produce from smallholder and family farms, orchards, and registered backyard fruit trees, then redistributes that produce through hunger-relief agencies (e.g., LIFT-UP, Community Food Share), early childhood learning centers, and neighborhood sites. To date, the organization reports having harvested more than 5 million servings of surplus produce.

The organization's core products are the Gleaning Program, the Volunteer Gleaning Corps, a Fruit Tree Registration service, Experiential Education programming (on-farm seeding, planting, and tour events), and a Research and Advocacy function that has produced policy audits, the Mobile Farm Workforce Pilot reports, on-farm surplus research, and a 2024 Colorado Farmworkers Co-op Feasibility Study. Ancillary branded merchandise (e.g., trucker hats) supports fundraising. The underlying technology stack is minimal: a Squarespace-hosted website (uprootcolorado.org) with volunteer registration and fruit-tree-registration portals — there is no proprietary platform, API, or AI/ML capability. UpRoot's value proposition to farmers includes fully insured gleaning, transport, and tax-deductible donation receipts; its value to hunger-relief agencies is a reliable stream of fresh, local produce; and its value to volunteers is experiential food-systems education.

UpRoot operates on a philanthropic revenue model, funded by tax-deductible individual donations processed via ColoradoGives, foundation grants (e.g., the 2018 World Wildlife Fund grant for surplus agriculture research), corporate and community partnerships (e.g., co-founding the tri-county Safe & Abundant Nutrition Alliance), and ancillary merchandise sales. It is led by Executive Director Rita Mary Hennigan, supported by two Gleaning Program Managers, one Administrative Coordinator, and six regionally assigned Gleaning & Food-systems Coordinators, with governance from a Board of Directors chaired by John Brett, PhD, Professor Emeritus at the University of Colorado Denver. Co-founder Ciara Low transitioned out of the co-director role in 2021.

Name

Uproot Colorado

Legal name

UpRoot Colorado

Website

https://uprootcolorado.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

UpRoot Colorado is a Carbondale-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit that uses a volunteer-led gleaning model to harvest surplus produce from Colorado farms and backyard trees and redistribute it to hunger-relief agencies, early childhood centers, and neighborhood sites across 10+ Colorado regions.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Carbondale

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. Donations and Grants: UpRoot Colorado operates as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that generates revenue through tax-deductible donations from individuals and organizations. The organization also receives grants from foundations and partners such as the World Wildlife Fund (2018 grant for research). EIN: 82-1407915.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

UpRoot Colorado coordinates volunteer-led gleaning of surplus, nutrient-dense produce from Colorado farms, orchards, and backyard fruit trees. Harvested food is transported and redistributed to local hunger-relief agencies and, in some regions, directly to early childhood learning centers and neighborhood sites. The organization also offers experiential on-farm education, fruit tree registration for homeowners, and research-driven legislative advocacy on agricultural surplus and food waste.

Product overview

UpRoot Colorado operates as a gleaning-based nonprofit organization offering a suite of interconnected programs centered on harvesting and redistributing surplus agricultural produce. Its core offerings include the Volunteer Gleaning Corps (coordinating volunteer-led harvesting across multiple Colorado regions), the Fruit Tree Registration program (backyard gleaning coordination), Experiential Education initiatives (on-farm events and food wisdom restoration), and Research and Advocacy work (data-driven policy engagement). All programs feed into the organization's primary mission of increasing nutrition security by diverting surplus produce into the hunger-relief system. Ancillary merchandise (branded hats) supports fundraising efforts.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Gleaning Program Coordinates volunteer-led harvesting of surplus crops from Colorado farms, orchards, and backyard fruit trees, then arranges transport and delivery of the produce to hunger-relief agencies for community-wide distribution. Targets Colorado smallholder and family farms with unharvested surplus and the hunger-relief agencies that serve food-insecure residents.
• Volunteer Gleaning Corps Recruits and organizes community volunteers across Colorado regions (Western Slope, Front Range, Mesa County, Roaring Fork Valley, North Fork Valley, Boulder County, Metro Denver, Garfield County, Larimer County, Arkansas Valley) to participate in gleaning events. Open to community members across a wide range of ages and experience levels through a website-based registration system.
• Fruit Tree Registration Allows Colorado homeowners to register backyard fruit trees; UpRoot then coordinates volunteer groups to harvest the surplus fruit and distributes the yield among tree stewards, volunteers, and local hunger-relief agencies. For individuals with backyard fruit trees whose yield exceeds personal use and for hunger-relief agencies that benefit from additional produce supply.
• Experiential Education Organizes year-round on-farm educational events including seeding, planting, and farm tours to reconnect community members with food sources, restore food wisdom, and address the disconnect between producers and consumers. For Colorado community members, school groups, and volunteers seeking hands-on engagement with food systems.
• Research and Advocacy Conducts empirical research and data collection on surplus agriculture and on-farm labor, including a 2018 World Wildlife Fund-funded study on surplus produce remaining on Colorado farms and a 2017 policy audit of the Colorado Charitable Crop Donation Act. Engages in legislative advocacy and collaborative projects addressing agricultural issues such as on-farm labor shortages. For Colorado policymakers, hunger-relief coalitions, and agricultural stakeholders.
• Branded Merchandise (Hats) Trucker hats featuring UpRoot Colorado branding available for purchase to support organizational fundraising. For supporters of the organization and the broader Colorado community interested in mission-aligned merchandise.

Quantifiable outcome

• Harvested more than 5 million servings of nutrient-dense surplus produce
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Safe & Abundant Nutrition Alliance (SANA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUpRoot Colorado is a founding member of SANA, a tri-county alliance encompassing Garfield, Pitkin, and Eagle counties focused on food access and nutrition security.
• Feeding the 5000 Front RangeminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerUpRoot's founding originated from gleaning events organized for Feeding the 5000 Front Range, a food-waste-awareness event held in downtown Denver in October 2016.
• Colorado Charitable Crop Donation Act CoalitionminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerUpRoot engaged in research in 2017 to help determine the effectiveness of the Colorado Charitable Crop Donation Act (introduced into law in 2014) that incentivizes farmers to donate surplus agriculture to food banks and hunger-relief organizations.
• KDNK Community RadiominorGTM or Marketing PartnerKDNK Community Radio has covered UpRoot Colorado extensively, featuring stories about gleaning events, tree maintenance education, and organizational updates since 2017.
• KGNU Community RadiominorGTM or Marketing PartnerKGNU Community Radio has featured stories about UpRoot Colorado's gleaning initiatives and food waste reduction efforts since 2019.
• Rocky Mountain Farmers Union (RMFU)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerRMFU has featured UpRoot team members as Fellows (Rita Hennigan 2023, Emily Larson 2024, Jensen Miller 2026), providing recognition and networking opportunities.
• University of Colorado DenverminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBoard Chair John Brett, PhD is a nutritional anthropologist and Professor Emeritus at University of Colorado Denver, bringing academic research expertise to the organization.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Community Food Share: Boulder and Broomfield County food bank that is explicitly named as a hunger-relief partner receiving UpRoot's gleaned produce — directly comparable mission and complementary downstream distribution function.
• Food Rescue US: National nonprofit that directly transfers surplus food from businesses to hunger-relief agencies using volunteer drivers and a digital routing platform. Closest operational analogue to UpRoot's volunteer-led gleaning and redistribution model, with broader geographic reach.
• Society of St. Andrew: National gleaning network that mobilizes volunteers to harvest surplus crops from farms for donation to hunger-relief agencies — a direct operational peer to UpRoot's gleaning program, with a longer-established brand.
• Lovin' Spoonfuls: Massachusetts-based food rescue nonprofit that transfers surplus food from businesses and farms to hunger-relief organizations using volunteer couriers — operates a similar volunteer-driven food recovery model in a different geography.
• Village Harvest: California-based gleaning nonprofit that recruits volunteers to harvest backyard fruit trees and small-farm surplus, redistributing to food-insecure communities — closely aligned with UpRoot's Fruit Tree Registration and volunteer gleaning products.
• Boulder Food Rescue: Colorado-based nonprofit that redistributes surplus produce via bicycle-based, volunteer-led logistics — operating in the same state and overlapping geographies (Boulder County) where UpRoot runs programs.
• Food Shift: California-based food recovery nonprofit focused on redirecting edible surplus food to people in need while addressing root causes of food waste — shares UpRoot's combined food rescue and education/advocacy orientation.

Others

• ReFED: National nonprofit that produces the data and policy research on U.S. food waste that UpRoot directly cites (34 billion pounds of farm-level surplus); functions as an enabling research/ecosystem organization rather than a direct operator.

Broad incumbents

• Feeding America: National network of 200+ food banks and the largest U.S. hunger-relief organization — provides macro context for the scale of community food services in which UpRoot's gleaning program operates.
• Food Bank of the Rockies: Regional food bank serving Colorado and Wyoming — a much larger, incumbent hunger-relief organization that operates in the same geographies where UpRoot distributes produce and represents a broader-scale institutional counterpart.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/NothingLeftOver
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/uproot-colorado

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 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 Uproot Colorado