What Fountain Heights Farms Cooperative does

Fountain Heights Farms Cooperative (FHFC) is a Birmingham, Alabama-based urban agriculture cooperative founded in 2018 that operates a multi-program food access and land reclamation model in the Fountain Heights neighborhood. The cooperative currently operates 11 farm plots across the neighborhood, with a stated goal of expanding to 119 plots by 2030, producing fresh mixed vegetables for community distribution. Core programs include the We All Eat CSA — the first CSA in Alabama to accept EBT/SNAP and participate in the Double Bucks program — a no-application, no-proof Free Farm Stand, the Freedom Harvest Apprenticeship (a 9-month paid farmer training program offering $18/hour plus a $250 monthly stipend for 20 hours/week), and Mondays for the Culture, a biannual BIPOC-focused workshop series covering seed starting, canning, composting, and African heritage crops. The cooperative is also constructing the Heart of the Farm Neighborhood Market and Community Kitchen at 1201 16th St N, designed to serve 3,000+ residents, produce 25,000 lbs of fresh food annually, and create 9 quality jobs.

The cooperative earns revenue through a mix of CSA subscriptions, plant sales, event/workshop fees, donations, and capital grants. The largest disclosed capital inflows are a City of Birmingham investment and a $100,000 matching grant, with a remaining $300,000 funding gap to complete the Heart of the Facility. Partnerships — including the City of Birmingham, District 9 Councilor LaTonya Tate, REV Birmingham, and the National Black Food and Justice Alliance — are central to both funding and distribution. CSA subscriptions are delivered directly to consumers on Saturdays, with flexible options for gifting and donating shares, while the Free Farm Stand operates with no documentation requirement. The cooperative is founder-led by co-founders Dominique Villanueva and Chris Gooden and operates with approximately 5 employees plus apprentices, with a mission rooted in addressing food insecurity in a USDA-defined food desert where the neighborhood has lacked a grocery store for nearly 70 years.

Distinct from venture-backed agtech, FHFC operates as a community-rooted cooperative whose primary value proposition is the combination of food access, agricultural education, economic opportunity, and land reclamation for an underserved Birmingham neighborhood. Distribution is entirely direct-to-consumer; technology is limited to a Squarespace website, email newsletter, and YouTube channel, with no app, no API, and no AI/ML components identified.

Name

Fountain Heights Farms Cooperative

Legal name

Fountain Heights Farms Cooperative

Website

https://fountainheightsfarms.com

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Fountain Heights Farms Cooperative is a Birmingham, Alabama urban farm cooperative operating 11 farm plots that delivers fresh produce to food-insecure residents through a CSA, free farm stand, and apprenticeship program in a USDA-defined food desert.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Birmingham

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. CSA Subscriptions: Community Supported Agriculture subscriptions through We All Eat CSA model, providing fresh produce to subscribers with flexible options including gifting and donating shares.
2. Donations and Fundraising: Community donations and campaign fundraising to support Heart of the Farm construction and ongoing operations. Currently seeking to close a $300,000 funding gap.
3. City Partnership: Funding partnership with City of Birmingham for infrastructure development including the Heart of the Farm project.
4. Plant Sales and Events: Revenue from plant sales, seed swaps, workshops, and community events.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Fountain Heights Farms Cooperative operates urban farm plots in Birmingham's Fountain Heights neighborhood, producing fresh, culturally relevant produce distributed through its We All Eat CSA subscription program and a no-application Free Farm Stand. It runs community education and workforce programs including the Freedom Harvest Farmer Apprenticeship and Mondays for the Culture workshops, and is developing the Heart of the Farm Neighborhood Market and Community Kitchen to expand food access and food-business incubation.

Product overview

Fountain Heights Farms Cooperative operates a multi-component food access and urban agriculture ecosystem. The core offerings include We All Eat CSA (a collaborative CSA accepting EBT/SNAP), a Free Farm Stand requiring no documentation, and the developing Heart of the Farm Neighborhood Market and Community Kitchen. Educational programs include the Freedom Harvest Farmer Apprenticeship (9-month paid training) and Mondays for the Culture workshops. The cooperative also runs seasonal events including Movies on the Farm screenings and Plant Sale/Seed Swap events.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• We All Eat CSA: Collaborative CSA model partnering with farmers across Alabama to provide fresh, culturally relevant produce. First CSA in Alabama to accept EBT/SNAP and Double Bucks.
• Heart of the Farm
• Freedom Harvest Apprenticeship
• Mondays for the Culture

Products and services

• We All Eat CSA Collaborative Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) subscription model partnering with farmers across Alabama to deliver fresh, culturally relevant produce via Saturday deliveries. First CSA in Alabama to accept EBT/SNAP and Double Bucks, with flexible options for gifting and donating shares. Designed for Birmingham-area residents seeking regular access to fresh, local produce.
• Free Farm Stand No-application, no-proof-of-need farm stand providing free fresh, local produce to anyone in the Fountain Heights community who needs it. Operated as a direct distribution channel for surplus and dedicated production.
• Heart of the Farm Neighborhood Market & Community Kitchen Neighborhood market and community kitchen facility under construction at 1201 16th St N, Birmingham, designed to serve over 3,000 residents in Fountain Heights with fresh, affordable produce and to provide affordable commercial kitchen access for local food entrepreneurs and small farmers to store, prepare, and sell goods. Projected to produce 25,000 lbs of fresh food annually and create 9 quality jobs.
• Freedom Harvest Farmer Apprenticeship 9-month paid hands-on farmer apprenticeship (March through November) training farmers and land stewards to lead production on urban farms in Birmingham. Compensation is $18/hour plus a $250 monthly living stipend for 20 hours per week of work on mixed-vegetable urban farms. Designed for aspiring farmers seeking structured, paid entry into urban agriculture.
• Mondays for the Culture Workshop Series Twice-monthly educational workshop series for BIPOC community members featuring hands-on learning on topics including seed starting, canning (water bath and pressure methods), composting, weed identification, and African heritage crops. Operates as a recurring community-based educational offering tied to the cooperative's food sovereignty mission.
• Plant Sale and Seed Swap Seasonal plant sale and seed swap event offering perennials, annuals, herbs, vegetables, hanging baskets, and indoor plants to community members. Proceeds benefit the Heart of the Farm Neighborhood Market and Community Kitchen capital campaign.

Quantifiable outcome

• 25,000 lbs of fresh food produced annually (projected)
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core and minor.

• City of BirminghamflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 July 2025City of Birmingham investment enabling the Heart of the Farm neighborhood market and community kitchen project. Sherry-Lea Bloodworth Botop, Chief Resilience and Sustainability Officer, serves as guest speaker at groundbreaking ceremony.
• District 9 Councilor LaTonya TatecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Partnership providing 50 families in District 9 with free access to fresh, local food through We All Eat CSA subscription coverage.
• REV BirminghamcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRobert Emerick, Director of Business Growth at REV Birmingham, participated as guest speaker at Heart of the Farm groundbreaking ceremony.
• Fountain Heights Neighborhood AssociationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDarlene Battle, President of Fountain Heights Neighborhood Association, served as guest speaker at groundbreaking ceremony representing neighborhood stakeholders.
• National Black Food and Justice AlliancecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCicely Garrett, Co-Executive Director, served as guest speaker at Heart of the Farm groundbreaking, indicating strategic alignment on food justice issues.
• CCR ArchitectureminorOthersListed as sponsor for Heart of the Farm project, providing architectural services.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Soul Fire Farm: BIPOC-led farm cooperative in upstate New York focused on food sovereignty, land reclamation, and training farmers of color — directly comparable mission, cooperative structure, and farmer apprenticeship pipeline to Fountain Heights Farms.
• D-Town Farm: Detroit Black community-led urban farm operating in a USDA food desert and selling produce through a CSA and farm stand — directly comparable urban farm cooperative serving an underserved neighborhood.
• Keep Growing Detroit: Detroit-based urban agriculture network supporting hundreds of family and community gardens with training and resource distribution — comparable urban farm network model and grower-training programs.
• Mandela Foods Cooperative: Worker- and community-owned grocery cooperative in West Oakland's food desert providing fresh produce and incubation space for local food entrepreneurs — closely analogous cooperative retail + community kitchen model to Heart of the Farm.

Broad incumbents

• Big Green: National nonprofit building learning gardens in low-income school communities and food deserts across the U.S. — broader-scale incumbent pursuing the same food-access and garden-based education mission.

Regional players

• Georgia Organics: Southeast-focused nonprofit accelerating organic and community agriculture across Georgia — regional comparable providing farmer training, food access, and community garden support in a similar geography.

Others

• The Food Trust: Philadelphia-based nonprofit working on healthy food access, farmers markets, and SNAP incentives nationwide — comparable food-access mission and policy/payer ecosystem.

Emerging players

• Square Roots: Tech-enabled urban farming company operating indoor farms and farmer training programs in Brooklyn — adjacent emerging player in urban agriculture with a comparable grower-apprenticeship component.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/watch?v=uevnT22pHTA
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/fountainheightsfarms

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 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 Fountain Heights Farms Cooperative