What Vergers Urbains does

Vergers Urbains is a Paris-based French nonprofit association (association loi 1901), founded in 2012 in the La Chapelle neighborhood of the 18th arrondissement, whose mission is to 'rendre la ville comestible' — to render the city edible — by involving urban residents in greening streets, sidewalks, building foundations, rooftops, vacant lots, and balconies into productive, collectively-managed edible landscapes. The association's core methodology is participatory: every project begins with citizen mobilization, co-design, and on-site animation, and the fruit tree functions as the association's signature instrument — a low-footprint element that addresses urban heat islands, biodiversity, carbon capture, local healthy food production, and social bonding simultaneously. Vergers Urbains has built a portfolio of more than 70 completed projects and 40+ in progress, ranging from 1.5 m² tree pits to 8,000 m² urban farms, across Paris, Île-de-France, Roubaix, and Lyon.

The technical and product surface is service-based rather than software-based. Core offerings include Qualiopi-certified training programs (urban agriculture, fruit-tree pruning, grafting, permaculture), participatory animations and workshops, corporate solidarity days (team-building greening engagements), mobile garden infrastructure (Jardin Mobile, Forêt Fruitière Mobile built from pallets and containers), and flagship infrastructure projects such as Verger Fleury (a public-square orchard) and Le Cube (a mobile urban-agriculture third place co-developed with the Babylone collective and Emmaüs Solidarité at the former Lycée Jean Quarré). The 2023 book 'Cultiver la ville' (Éditions Ulmer) codifies the proprietary 'ville comestible' framework. There is no proprietary AI/ML, software platform, or technology stack beyond the association's branded website and event calendar.

Revenue is generated across four streams: (i) Qualiopi-certified training fees from individuals and organizations, (ii) corporate-paid solidarity days for team-building, (iii) membership adhesion and donations, and (iv) project-based funding from public bodies such as Région Île-de-France (La Fonderie) and Paris Region Lab. The go-to-market motion is community-led, combining direct resident engagement, partnerships with Paris district town halls and social housing operators (Paris Habitat, RIVP), and collaborative networks with peer associations (Babylone, Graine de Troc, Quartiers en Transition). Marketing is primarily event-, partnership-, and earned-media driven (e.g., France Inter, Le Courrier de l'Architecte, Festival des Utopies Concrètes). With roughly 10 employees and a volunteer base, the association operates as a lean mission-driven delivery organization rather than a venture-scaled business.

Name

Vergers Urbains

Legal name

Vergers Urbains

Website

https://vergersurbains.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2012

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Vergers Urbains is a Paris-based nonprofit association, founded in 2012, that transforms urban public and common spaces into edible landscapes through participatory greening projects, training programs, and corporate team-building days across Île-de-France and select French cities.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Urban Agriculture and Community Greening Services

NAICS

Forest Nurseries and Gathering of Forest Products (113210), Greenhouse, Nursery, and Floriculture Production (1114), Landscaping Services (56173)

akta.pro primary industry

Urban & Community Reforestation / Street Tree Planting (AFAMACAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

Circular Economy & Sustainable Products (Reuse, Repair, Upcycling) (BPAGALAF), Vineyard Establishment & Development (Site Prep, Trellising, Planting) (AFAGAJAA)

Keywords

• Urban agriculture services
• Community gardening projects
• Permaculture training programs
• Edible city planning
• Urban greening consulting

Headquarters

HQ city

Paris

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices7 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Training and workshops: The association offers certified training programs (Qualiopi certified) in urban agriculture, fruit tree maintenance, grafting, and permaculture. Revenue is generated through training fees for these educational programs.
2. Corporate solidarity days: Companies engage Vergers Urbains for team-building solidarity days involving urban greening projects. These paid engagements provide revenue while advancing the association's mission.
3. Membership and donations: As an association, Vergers Urbains relies on membership fees and donations from supporters to fund its activities.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Vergers Urbains is a French nonprofit association that designs and implements participatory urban greening projects, transforming underutilized urban surfaces (streets, sidewalks, building bases, rooftops, vacant lots, balconies) into productive edible landscapes centered on fruit trees. The association delivers Qualiopi-certified training programs in urban agriculture, fruit tree maintenance, grafting, and permaculture; runs corporate team-building solidarity days; and develops mobile garden installations and neighborhood-wide edible-city programs under its proprietary 'ville comestible' framework.

Product overview

Vergers Urbains is a nonprofit association that develops urban edible spaces by involving citizens in transforming various urban areas (streets, sidewalks, building bases, rooftops, vacant lots, balconies) into productive edible landscapes. The organization operates as a service-oriented nonprofit with multiple interconnected programs: training sessions (Formations), community workshops (Animations), corporate team-building activities (Journées solidaires d'entreprises), mobile garden installations (Jardin Mobile and Forêt Fruitière Mobile), and collaborative third-place hubs (Le Cube). Key projects include the Verger Fleury public orchard and the Quartier Comestible neighborhood transformation approach. The association partners with collectives like Babylone to create hybrid spaces combining recreational urban gardening with bio-intensive market gardening, advancing their 'edible city' concept developed over more than five years.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Formations (Urban Agriculture Training)
• Formations (Urban Agriculture Training)

Quantifiable outcome

• Nearly 100 sites transformed into edible landscapes
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

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

• Collectif BabylonecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerVergers Urbains collaborates extensively with the Babylone collective (including Toits Vivants, Zone AH!, atelier Artel, Miel de Quartier, Bocoloco, P2P foodLab) on third places (tiers lieux) combining recreational urban gardening with bio-intensive market gardening, developing 'agriculture of a third type.' This collaboration has created hybrid spaces and the Le Cube mobile urban agriculture third place project.
• Le Cube - Tiers lieu mobile dédié à l'agriculture urbaineflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerLe Cube is a flagship mobile urban agriculture third place developed with the Babylone collective. Vergers Urbains, as part of Toits Vivants within Babylone, provides technical expertise. The project includes a permaculture urban farm, associative kitchen, coworking spaces, and a collectery, located at the former Lycée Hôtelier Jean Quarré.
• Le Sens de l'HumuscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Le Sens de l'Humus (Thierry Regnier, arborist) for annual fruit tree pruning and grafting training sessions. Collaborates on fruit tree nurseries and orchard maintenance education.
• Graine de TrocminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborates on 'Drôles de jardiniers' (Funny Gardeners) workshops and seed/seedling exchange activities, promoting urban gardening and seed preservation.
• Bôco LôcominorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborates on Disco Bôco Lôco events - open-air collaborative and festive cooking activities in the 18th arrondissement, combining urban gardening with culinary experiences.
• Quartiers en TransitionminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborates with Quartiers en Transition on urban agriculture initiatives and the Paris de l'Agriculture Urbaine petition (2014) alongside Babylone, Graine de Jardins, and La Générale.
• Emmaüs SolidaritécoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for the Le Cube project, with the Human Energy company involved in pre-fitting maritime containers. Emmaüs Solidarité manages the temporary shelter at the former Lycée Jean Quarré, and migrants are co-producers of the neighborhood transformation.
• Volumes (espace de coworking)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCoworking space partner for the Le Cube urban agriculture third place project, involved in collaborative urbanism.
• Collectif d'artistes 'Le jardin d'Alice'minorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerTechnical assistance partner for the shared garden project at 6 rue Louis Blanc, with Vergers Urbains providing horticultural expertise.
• Les Amis de la Place des FêtesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollective of local residents partnered for the Le Cube project at Place des Fêtes in Paris.
• AMAP HSBCminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for Disco Bôco Lôco cooking events, providing local produce for collaborative cooking activities.
• Association locale (Perreux-sur-Marne)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocal association managing the collective orchard at Perreux-sur-Marne, with Vergers Urbains providing technical support for pruning and maintenance.
• Urban IntersticesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborated on the Roubaix ville nourricière (nourishing city) strategy development alongside Auxilia Conseils, ISA Lille, and Gembloux Agro-BioTech.
• Auxilia ConseilsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in the Roubaix ville nourricière strategy development project.
• NatureparifminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in Summer Workshops on Urban Agriculture and Biodiversity, organized for the second edition focusing on links between urban agriculture and biodiversity.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• AeroFarms: Large-scale US-based indoor vertical farming company focused on commercial urban food production; comparable broader 'urban agriculture' category but operates at industrial scale with venture backing rather than nonprofit community model.
• Plenty: US vertical farming company building large indoor farms in urban-adjacent areas; comparable urban-agriculture category but operates at venture-scale commercial production, contrasting with Vergers Urbains' nonprofit community model.

Direct peers

• Le Paysan Urbain: French urban agriculture social enterprise operating micro-farms on rooftops and vacant lots in Paris, offering training and team-building workshops; closely mirrors Vergers Urbains' product mix of training, corporate engagement, and participatory urban greening.
• Topager: Paris-based urban farming company that designs, installs, and maintains edible green spaces for companies, municipalities, and housing; the most direct commercial counterpart to Vergers Urbains' greening and edible-landscape services in the same metro.
• Peas & Love: French company operating connected urban micro-farms with subscription models, training, and team-building activities; comparable offering to Vergers Urbains' corporate solidarity days and training streams, though more commercially oriented.
• La Sauge: French urban agriculture association operating in the Paris/Île-de-France region, focused on participatory gardening, training, and transforming vacant urban spaces into productive landscapes — directly comparable nonprofit model and citizen-engagement approach to Vergers Urbains.
• Veni Verdi: Paris-based association developing urban agriculture projects (shared gardens, rooftop farms, training) with citizens and municipalities; highly comparable mission, methodology, and customer segments to Vergers Urbains.
• Mosa Verde: French urban agriculture association focused on greening neighborhoods through participatory gardens and biodiversity programs; comparable in mission, scale, and nonprofit structure to Vergers Urbains.

Emerging players

• Agricool: French agritech startup growing fruits and vegetables in recycled shipping containers in urban areas; adjacent urban-agriculture theme with some overlapping technology (containerized growing), but operates as a venture-backed for-profit rather than community nonprofit.

Others

• Babylone Collective: Strategic partner collective that co-developed the Le Cube project and Toits Vivants strand with Vergers Urbains; an adjacent ecosystem peer operating hybrid urban-agriculture third places in Paris.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/vergers-urbains-agriculture-urbaine

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 Vergers Urbains