Columbia Center for Urban Agriculture

What Columbia Center for Urban Agriculture does

Columbia Center for Urban Agriculture (CCUA) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 2009 and headquartered in Columbia, Missouri (EIN 26-4486257). Its stated mission is to enhance community health by connecting people to agriculture and the land through hands-on learning, from seed to plate. CCUA operates a portfolio of seven interconnected programs: Apprenticeship (hands-on urban farming training at Columbia's Agriculture Park); Columbia's Agriculture Park (the central facility hub at 1769 West Ash Street); Opportunity Gardens (garden resources for low-income families); Planting for the Pantry (produce donation to hunger-relief partners); Summer Camp (youth agricultural education); Veterans Urban Farm (the Mark and Carol Stevenson Veterans Urban Farm, a sub-brand offering therapeutic programs and job training in partnership with the Truman VA Hospital); and Youth Education.

CCUA serves four primary beneficiary segments: local community members seeking hands-on agricultural training, military veterans seeking therapeutic activities and job training, youth and families seeking education programs, and low-income families needing food access and garden support. It does not sell produce; all grown output is donated to hunger-relief organizations including The Food Bank Market and Truman VA Hospital programs. The organization has 11–50 employees across three locations in Columbia, MO: the Agriculture Park, a secondary office at 1207 Smith Street, and a community garden at Kilgore's Pharmacy.

CCUA's business and revenue model is donation-driven. It accepts individual giving through preset amounts ($25, $50, $100, $250, $500) with weekly/monthly/quarterly/semiannual/annual cadence, plus corporate and foundation grants (a KFC Foundation grant was disclosed 2025-09-23), capital campaign contributions (BuildThisTown.org), planned giving, tax-credit donations, stock donations (via every.org), crypto donations, and in-kind contributions. The organization carries a GuideStar transparency seal (profile 8915878) and is governed by a board of directors. No AI/ML capabilities, patents, proprietary technology, or external investment/ownership are present; the underlying "technology" is operational community agriculture and education.

Name

Columbia Center for Urban Agriculture

Legal name

Columbia Center for Urban Agriculture

Website

https://columbiaurbanag.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2009

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Columbia Center for Urban Agriculture is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit in Columbia, Missouri that runs seven interconnected programs, including apprenticeships, youth education, a Veterans Urban Farm, and produce donation via Planting for the Pantry, serving community members, veterans, youth, and low-income families.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Community Agriculture Education

NAICS

Nature Parks and Other Similar Institutions (71219), Community Food Services (624210), Support Activities for Crop Production (1151)

SIC

Agricultural Services (700), Agricultural Production-Crops (100)

akta.pro primary industry

Parks, Gardens & Botanical Attractions (THAJACAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Vegetable & Herb Garden Installation and Maintenance (HSAIAFAM), Garden Bed Installation & Planting (Annuals, Perennials, Shrubs) (HSAIAFAB), Outdoor / Nature-Based Childcare Centers (EDACAAAO)

Keywords

• Urban agriculture education
• Community gardening programs
• Food donation services
• Agricultural apprenticeship training
• Veteran farming programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Columbia

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Pricing tiers

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Columbia Center for Urban Agriculture operates Columbia's Agriculture Park and a suite of community-based programs that teach urban farming, grow fresh produce, and donate it to hunger relief. Its offerings include hands-on apprenticeship training, the Opportunity Gardens program for low-income families, the Planting for the Pantry produce donation program, a Summer Camp, Youth Education, and the Veterans Urban Farm delivered in partnership with Truman VA Hospital.

Product overview

Columbia Center for Urban Agriculture is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization operating a portfolio of community-focused agricultural programs. The organization operates as a single unified offering centered on urban agriculture education and food access, comprising seven interconnected programs: Apprenticeship (hands-on training at Agriculture Park), Columbia's Agriculture Park (central facility hub), Opportunity Gardens (low-income family garden support), Planting for the Pantry (food donation to hunger relief), Summer Camp (youth agricultural education), Veterans Urban Farm (veteran-focused farming programs), and Youth Education (general youth programming). All programs share the common mission of enhancing community health by connecting people to agriculture and the land through hands-on learning opportunities.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Mark and Carol Stevenson Veterans Urban Farm: A program at Columbia's Agriculture Park dedicated to serving veterans, offering volunteering, therapeutic programs, and job training in partnership with the Truman VA Hospital.

Products and services

• Apprenticeship A hands-on training program providing in-depth agricultural education at Columbia's Agriculture Park for individuals seeking to learn urban farming practices.
• Columbia's Agriculture Park The central hub facility offering educational programs, volunteer opportunities, and community access to urban agriculture resources in Columbia, Missouri.
• Opportunity Gardens A program providing garden resources and support for families living with low incomes to grow their own food in the Columbia, Missouri community.
• Planting for the Pantry A food donation program in which produce is grown and donated to hunger relief organizations such as The Food Bank Market and Truman VA Hospital programs.
• Summer Camp An agricultural education program for youth during summer months, teaching farming and food growing skills at Columbia's Agriculture Park.
• Veterans Urban Farm The Mark and Carol Stevenson Veterans Urban Farm provides volunteering, special events, job training, and therapeutic programs for veterans in partnership with the Truman VA Hospital.
• Youth Education Educational programs for young people teaching agriculture, food systems, and environmental stewardship through school field trips and on-site programming.

Named customers2 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

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Truman VA HospitalcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCCUA provides fresh produce to Truman VA Hospital and offers job training and therapeutic programs for veteran patients in partnership with the hospital. Veterans can volunteer at the Mark and Carol Stevenson Veterans Urban Farm or participate in specialized programs.
• The Food Bank MarketcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAll produce grown by CCUA is donated to hunger relief organizations including The Food Bank Market for distribution to community members facing food insecurity.

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Center for Land-Based Learning: California-based nonprofit operating farm-based education programs, apprenticeships, and youth workforce development in agriculture — analogous to CCUA's apprenticeship pipeline and youth education focus.
• Greening of Detroit: Detroit nonprofit operating urban forestry, community gardens, and green workforce training — closely mirrors CCUA's mix of agriculture/food production, education, and community-based programming.
• Poughkeepsie Farm Project: New York-based nonprofit farm that hosts youth education, farm apprenticeships, and donates a portion of produce to local food partners — directly mirrors CCUA's apprenticeship, youth, and food-donation triad.
• The Food Project: Massachusetts-based nonprofit growing produce on urban and suburban farms and donating it to hunger-relief partners while running youth employment and leadership programs — directly comparable to CCUA's Planting for the Pantry and Youth Education model.
• Growing Gardens (Boulder, CO): Boulder-based nonprofit offering community garden plots, youth education, and horticulture programs — directly aligned with CCUA's Opportunity Gardens, Summer Camp, and Youth Education offerings.
• Cultivate Kansas City: Kansas City-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit advancing urban agriculture and community food systems through farm incubation, education, and local food access — nearly identical mission and operating model to CCUA at slightly larger scale.
• Earthworks Urban Farm (Capuchin Soup Kitchen): Detroit-based organic urban farm that grows produce for a soup kitchen while running educational and volunteer programs — a strong structural analog to CCUA's donation-first produce model with embedded community education.
• ALBA (Agriculture and Land-Based Training Association): California nonprofit providing agricultural training, farm-business incubation, and produce grown for sale/donation — directly comparable to CCUA's Apprenticeship and donor-funded production programs.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ColumbiaUrbanAg
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/columbia-center-for-urban-agriculture

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

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 Columbia Center for Urban Agriculture