Real Food Systems
Real Food Systems is a non-profit founded in 2019 that empowers youth globally to advocate for plant-based, sustainable food systems. It runs a Youth Ambassador Program across 20+ countries and partners with the FAO World Food Forum on the Agrifood Leadership Education Programme.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2019
- Headquarters—
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Real Food Systems does
Real Food Systems (RFS) is a non-profit advocacy organization founded in 2019 and fiscally sponsored under Climate-Sustainability.org. Its stated mission is to transform global food systems toward plant-based, whole-food diets for human and planetary health. The organization operates without a fixed headquarters and is functionally a distributed global network, with a named core team and 20+ youth ambassadors across countries including Uganda, Tanzania, Ghana, Lebanon, Nepal, the UK, Zimbabwe, Indonesia, Namibia, the Dominican Republic, Kenya, Malawi, Nicaragua, Brazil and the USA. Funding comes from grants and donations rather than commercial revenue; the principal documented funding mechanism is the Regen Fund, which provides 100% direct grants to youth ambassador projects without allocating any funds to salaries or overhead.
RFS delivers its mission through five interconnected programmatic products: the Real Food Campaign (a public endorsement initiative), the Youth Ambassador Program, downloadable RFS Toolkits, a Blogs & Recipes content platform hosted on a Squarespace-built website (realfoodsystems.org), and the Agrifood Leadership Education Programme (ALEP) developed in partnership with the FAO World Food Forum. Its go-to-market is community-led and digital-first, relying on Instagram, blog content, YouTube videos, and high-visibility participation in international forums such as UNFCCC COP events (COP27, COP28, COP29) and SB58 Bonn, plus coalition advocacy through the Food & Climate Action Group (FCAG). The Youth Negotiators Academy (YNA), co-founded by RFS youth ambassadors, has trained 60 negotiators (2022) and 170+ (2023) across 54 countries, with 123 negotiators present at COP28.
The business model is best characterized as grant-funded movement-building with a hybrid segmentation across youth leaders (the primary beneficiary segment), civil society organizations (coalition partners within FCAG's 25+ NGO membership), and downstream communities reached through grassroots projects. RFS has no commercial pricing model, no paying customers, no disclosed headcount, and no technology product beyond its website and social channels. Strategic priorities in 2024-2025 have focused on formalizing the ALEP program with FAO, broadening YNA into a Land Youth Negotiator Programme for UNCCD, and managing a leadership transition in which Stephen Bright Sakwa stepped down as Co-Director after a 2022-2024 term.
Real Food Systems firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Real Food Systems
- Legal name
- Real Food Systems
- Website
- https://realfoodsystems.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2019
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Real Food Systems is a non-profit founded in 2019 that empowers youth globally to advocate for plant-based, sustainable food systems. It runs a Youth Ambassador Program across 20+ countries and partners with the FAO World Food Forum on the Agrifood Leadership Education Programme.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Real Food Systems industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Non-profit Food Systems Advocacy
- akta.pro primary industry
- Sustainable Agriculture & Food Systems (BPAGAGAI)
Keywords
Real Food Systems business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others
Revenue model
- Grant Funding: Real Food Systems operates as a non-profit, receiving financial support through grants and donations. The organization is fiscally sponsored under Climate-Sustainability.org as its legal and financial umbrella organization. Some projects receive dedicated funding such as the Regen Fund grants program supporting youth action projects.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels6 records
Real Food Systems product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Real Food Systems is a non-profit advocacy organization that mobilizes a global youth ambassador network to drive food systems transformation through education, on-ground community projects, and international policy advocacy. It offers free programs including the Real Food Campaign endorsement initiative, downloadable toolkits, blogs and recipes, and the Agrifood Leadership Education Programme (ALEP) developed with the FAO World Food Forum. The organization does not sell products or services; it disseminates educational content, mentorship, and grants through youth ambassador projects to advance plant-based, whole-food food systems.
Product overview
Real Food Systems is a non-profit advocacy organization (not a technology product company) focused on transforming global food systems toward plant-based, whole-food diets. The organization operates a web-based platform offering the Real Food Campaign (an endorsement initiative), a Youth Ambassador Program (featuring 20+ youth-led projects globally), educational toolkits (downloadable PDFs), a content platform with blogs and recipes, and the Agrifood Leadership Education Programme (ALEP) developed in partnership with the FAO World Food Forum. These offerings are interconnected components of a broader mission to empower youth, raise public awareness, and advocate for policy changes supporting sustainable and healthy food systems.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Real Food Campaign A campaign inviting individuals to endorse the organization's mission for transforming food systems toward plant-based, whole-food diets for human and planetary health.
- Youth Ambassador Program A global network of youth ambassadors driving food systems transformation through local projects, education initiatives, and international policy advocacy.
- RFS Tool Kits Downloadable PDF toolkits and flyers providing guidance on sustainable food practices, climate action, and real food consumption.
- Blogs & Recipes Platform A web-based content platform featuring educational blogs on food systems, climate action, and agricultural sustainability, alongside plant-based recipes.
- Agrifood Leadership Education Programme (ALEP) A job-readiness program developed in partnership with the FAO World Food Forum, training youth in agrifood education and policy through three phases: Explore, Encourage, and Experience.
Quantifiable outcome
- 23,200 trees planted through youth ambassador Dixoni Emmanuel's environmental education program in Tanzania
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Real Food Systems
Customer profileSegments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Real Food Systems technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Real Food Systems partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
13 partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core and minor.
- FAO World Food Forum (WFF)flagshipFormal partnership with FAO's World Food Forum for the Agrifood Leadership Education Programme (ALEP). RFS co-curates the Soft Skills curriculum including Communications, Self Care/Resilience, Ethics, Policy/Advocacy Negotiating, and Understanding Financial Strategies. First cohort of 10 youth from 8 countries began in January 2025, with presentations planned for October 2025 WFF flagship event in Rome.
- Youth Negotiators Academy (YNA)coreRFS youth ambassadors co-founded YNA, which delivers the Climate Youth Negotiator Programme (CYNP). Two RFS youth ambassadors are among the four co-founders. The program has trained 60 negotiators (2022), 170 (2023), with 123 present at COP28. YNA is developing the Land Youth Negotiator Programme (LYNP) for UNCCD.
- Food & Climate Action Group (FCAG)coreRFS is an active member of FCAG, an independent coalition of 25+ international NGOs advocating for food systems transformation within the UNFCCC. The coalition promotes systemic change in food consumption and production to reduce reliance on animal-centric food systems as a pathway to meeting Paris Agreement targets. RFS has co-authored submissions on the Mitigation Work Programme, Sharm El-Sheikh joint work on agriculture, and Global Stocktake.
- Climate-Sustainability.orgcoreClimate-Sustainability.org serves as RFS's legal and financial umbrella organization, providing fiscal sponsorship and institutional support.
- ProVeg InternationalminorAffiliated organization working on plant-based food advocacy. RFS Youth Ambassador Lana Weidgenant is also associated with ProVeg International. Collaboration on COP28 climate-friendly food initiatives.
- Plant Based TreatyminorAffiliated initiative advocating for plant-based food systems. RFS Co-director Stephen Bright Sakwa met with Plant Based Treaty at SB58 Bonn to strengthen collaborations on food systems transformation.
- Act4Food Act4ChangeminorInternational youth pledge and actions campaign for food systems change. RFS Youth Ambassador Lana Weidgenant is an organizer of Act4Food Act4Change campaign.
- Stop Financing Factory Farming (S3F)minorCoalition advocating for development banks to divest from industrial animal agriculture. RFS joined S3F in urging multilateral development banks to align agricultural investments with Paris Agreement and support agroecological approaches.
- Green Africa Youth Organization (GAYO)minorRFS Youth Ambassador Joshua Amponsem founded GAYO, which runs the Trees4Biodiversity project and won the African climate innovation challenge at African Youth Climate Assembly. GAYO is an organizer of the African Youth Climate Innovation Challenge.
- University of Gastronomic Sciences (UNISG) - Pollenzo, ItalyminorFounded by the Slow Food Movement, UNISG hosts RFS 2024 interns in the Masters in Applied Gastronomy: Culinary Arts program. Students learn food systems through culinary lens, including cooking science, sustainable agriculture, and fermentation.
- SHE Changes ClimateminorCoalition advocating for gender equality in climate action and food systems. Listed as an RFS affiliate.
- Food@COPminorGlobal youth-led campaign for healthy sustainable food at COP events. RFS collaborates with Food@COP and Youth in Agroecology and Restoration Network.
- Mission BlueminorMarine conservation organization co-founded by Dr. Sylvia Earle. RFS team member participated in Antarctic expedition with Mission Blue to raise awareness about ocean health and food systems connections.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Real Food Systems competitors and assessment
Company assessmentEmerging players
- Food Tank: Food Tank is a global nonprofit focused on building community around sustainable food systems through research, reporting, and events. Like RFS, it operates a content-and-community-driven model aimed at shifting food-system narratives, though with a broader editorial footprint.
- Compassion in World Farming: Compassion in World Farming is an international NGO campaigning to end factory farming and promote sustainable food systems. It overlaps with RFS's focus on reducing industrial animal agriculture, including shared engagement with the Stop Financing Factory Farming coalition.
Broad incumbents
- Slow Food: Slow Food is the established global movement advocating for good, clean, and fair food, founded in response to fast-food culture. RFS's affiliation with the University of Gastronomic Sciences (UNISG), founded by Slow Food, places the two organizations in overlapping ecosystems around sustainable food advocacy and education.
- EAT Foundation: EAT is a global nonprofit connecting science, policy, and business to transform food systems, including co-authoring the EAT-Lancet report. It operates in the same food-systems-and-climate advocacy space as RFS but with significantly larger institutional reach and scientific platform.
- Food and Land Use Coalition (FOLU): FOLU is a global initiative of organizations working to transform food and land-use systems to deliver sustainable, healthy diets. It targets the same UNFCCC and policy-shaping processes that RFS engages through FCAG, with a more institutional, multi-stakeholder structure.
- Global Alliance for the Future of Food: Global Alliance for the Future of Food is a coalition of philanthropic foundations working on sustainable food systems transformation. It operates in the same advocacy and policy-influence space as RFS and FCAG but at the philanthropic-funder tier rather than grassroots-youth tier.
Direct peers
- ProVeg International: ProVeg is a global food-awareness organization that advocates for a shift toward plant-based diets to address climate, health, and sustainability. It is directly comparable to Real Food Systems in mission, target audience (youth and policymakers), and COP-level advocacy engagement; RFS is explicitly affiliated with ProVeg.
- Food@COP: Food@COP is a global youth-led campaign advocating for healthy, sustainable food at UNFCCC COP events. It directly parallels RFS's COP-side-event strategy and youth-led advocacy at COP27/COP28/COP29, with RFS listed as an active collaborator.
- Act4Food Act4Change: Act4Food Act4Change is a global youth pledge and action campaign mobilizing young people around food-systems change. RFS youth ambassador Lana Weidgenant is a listed organizer, evidencing direct overlap in mission, audience, and youth mobilization model.
- Plant Based Treaty: Plant Based Treaty is a global advocacy campaign modeled on the climate emergency framework, pushing for a transition to plant-based food systems. RFS co-director Stephen Bright Sakwa met with Plant Based Treaty at SB58 Bonn to coordinate food-systems advocacy, evidencing close mission alignment.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights5 records
Customer concentration
Real Food Systems social profiles
Digital presenceReal Food Systems financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Real Food Systems leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Real Food Systems funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
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Real Food Systems 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 Real Food Systems
What does Real Food Systems do?
Real Food Systems is a non-profit advocacy organization that mobilizes a global youth ambassador network to drive food systems transformation through education, on-ground community projects, and international policy advocacy. It offers free programs including the Real Food Campaign endorsement initiative, downloadable toolkits, blogs and recipes, and the Agrifood Leadership Education Programme (ALEP) developed with the FAO World Food Forum. The organization does not sell products or services; it disseminates educational content, mentorship, and grants through youth ambassador projects to advance plant-based, whole-food food systems.
Is Real Food Systems a public or private company?
Real Food Systems is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Real Food Systems founded?
Real Food Systems was founded in 2019. It employs 11 to 50 people.
How does Real Food Systems make money?
One revenue line is on record: grant Funding.
Who are Real Food Systems's main competitors?
Emerging players on record are Food Tank and Compassion in World Farming. Broad incumbents are Slow Food, EAT Foundation, Food and Land Use Coalition (FOLU) and Global Alliance for the Future of Food. Direct peers are ProVeg International, Food@COP, Act4Food Act4Change and Plant Based Treaty.
Does Real Food Systems have an API?
No public API is recorded for Real Food Systems.
What industry is Real Food Systems in?
Real Food Systems's product category is Non-profit Food Systems Advocacy. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAGAGAI, Sustainable Agriculture & Food Systems.