Urban farming

What Urban farming does

Urban Farming is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 2005 in Detroit, Michigan by recording artist and author Taja Sevelle. The organization was launched with $5,000 in initial capital, three community gardens, and a printed pamphlet, in response to urban food insecurity and large amounts of unused land in the post-industrial city. Its core offering is the Urban Farming Global Food Chain, a self-reported network of more than 66,000 organic community gardens spanning North America, South America, Europe, Africa, Asia, and Australia/New Zealand, tracked through the Urban Farming Global Map platform. The organization operates its flagship Urban Farming Free Plant Giveaway program, distributing organic vegetable plants and seeds directly to families at community events in cities including Detroit, Los Angeles, and other locations.

Programmatically, Urban Farming combines on-the-ground community garden installations (standard 20'x20' plots, with some Detroit sites spanning entire city blocks), recurring plant giveaway events, and the Urban Farming Healthy Principles educational curriculum covering seven dimensions of wellness. The business model relies on three revenue streams: tax-deductible donations from individuals, corporate sponsorships (Whole Foods Market, Lowe's, Campbell Soup Company, Coca-Cola, Home Depot, Starbucks, Trader Joe's), and in-kind contributions of plants, equipment, and volunteer labor from strategic partners including Bonnie Plants, Telly's Greenhouse, Team Depot, and Greenworks Commercial. As a non-partisan, non-denominational nonprofit, all services are provided free of charge to beneficiaries. The organization has generated more than 30,000 media stories across major U.S. outlets and operates primarily through community-led initiatives distributed via local partner organizations and corporate volunteer channels.

Name

Urban farming

Legal name

Urban Farming

Website

https://urbanfarming.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2005

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Urban Farming is a Detroit-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 2005 that operates the Urban Farming Global Food Chain, a network of 66,000+ organic community gardens, and runs Free Plant Giveaway events serving food-insecure urban families across multiple continents.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Community Urban Agriculture Services

NAICS

Soil Preparation, Planting, and Cultivating (115112), Other Vegetable (except Potato) and Melon Farming (111219)

SIC

Agricultural Services (700)

akta.pro primary industry

Sustainable Cities, Urban Development & Green Infrastructure (BPADALAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

Urban & Community Reforestation / Street Tree Planting (AFAMACAL), Organic Vegetable & Melon Farming (Open-Field) (AFAGAKAC)

Keywords

• Organic community gardens
• Free plant giveaways
• Urban agriculture education
• Community garden installation
• Healthy living workshops

Headquarters

HQ city

Detroit

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Donations and Charitable Contributions: As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, Urban Farming relies on tax-deductible donations from individuals and organizations. Donations support plant giveaways, garden installations, and educational programs.
2. Corporate Sponsorships: Corporate sponsors including Whole Foods Market, Lowe's, Home Depot, Campbell Soup Company, Coca-Cola, and others provide funding, products, and in-kind support for Urban Farming initiatives.
3. Partnership Donations: Corporate partners such as Greenworks Commercial provide equipment donations ($10,000 value) and Bonnie Plants provides organic vegetable plant donations for giveaway events.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Urban Farming is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that promotes organic community gardens, free plant giveaways, and healthy living education. The organization operates the Urban Farming Global Food Chain, a network of over 66,000 organic gardens worldwide, and distributes free organic vegetable plants to families through community events while teaching organic gardening and holistic wellness principles.

Product overview

Urban Farming is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization offering a suite of food security and community gardening programs rather than a commercial product portfolio. Its core offerings center on the Urban Farming Global Food Chain—a network of over 66,000 organic gardens—and the Urban Farming Free Plant Giveaways that distribute organic vegetable plants to communities. The organization also provides the Urban Farming Global Map platform for tracking garden locations globally, and conducts Urban Farming Healthy Principles Workshops covering holistic wellness. These services work together to support food security, economic empowerment, and community revitalization through organic gardening.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Urban Farming Global Food Chain: The network of over 66,000 gardens operated by Urban Farming worldwide

Products and services

• Urban Farming Global Food Chain A global network of over 66,000 organic community gardens spanning multiple continents, connecting urban, suburban, and rural gardeners to create an abundance of free food and combat food insecurity.
• Urban Farming Free Plant Giveaways Community events that distribute free organic vegetable plants and seeds directly to families, providing resources for people to grow their own food at home. Events have distributed thousands of organic vegetable plants to community members in cities including Detroit, Los Angeles, and other locations.
• Urban Farming Healthy Principles Workshops Educational workshops covering seven principles: Healthy Thinking, Healthy Communication, Healthy Eating, Healthy Fitness, Healthy Finances, Healthy Education, and Healthy Families, teaching holistic wellness through organic gardening.
• Urban Farming Global Map An interactive global mapping platform displaying garden locations across North America, South America, Europe, Africa, Asia, and Australia/New Zealand, allowing individuals to add their gardens to the network.

Quantifiable outcome

• 66,000+ gardens established globally
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• Greenworks CommercialcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 10 April 2026Greenworks Commercial partnered with Urban Farming Education, donating $10,000 of battery-powered equipment and tools to support community cleanup initiatives and sustainability education at Grand Canyon University and Arizona State University. The partnership includes hands-on demonstrations and campus activations to showcase battery-powered landscaping technology.
• Bonnie PlantscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBonnie Plants provides organic vegetable plants for Urban Farming Free Plant Giveaway events. Plants are distributed to families at events including A Place Called Home (1,200 plants), Fountain Community Garden (4,080 plants), and other locations.
• Telly's GreenhousecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTelly's Greenhouse provides partial donations of organic plants for Urban Farming Free Plant Giveaway events. Hosted Mother's Day 2025 giveaway with 600 plants distributed to 100 customers.
• Team DepotmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerTeam Depot volunteers helped construct a new greenhouse at the Fountain Community Garden in Hollywood, California in April 2025.
• DTE EnergyminorGTM or Marketing PartnerDTE supported the Hope Village Farmer's Market event in Detroit with information tables about male mentoring and DTE energy efficiency programs.
• A Place Called HomemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAfter-school facility in South Central Los Angeles with 3 community gardens. Urban Farming provides organic vegetable plants serving 100 families, and the organization teaches youth and adults about planting organic food and healthy recipes.
• Fountain Community GardenmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity garden in Los Angeles that received 4,080 organic vegetable plants for Earth Day 2026, serving 80+ families. Urban Farming helped facilitate greenhouse construction with Team Depot.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• GrowNYC: New York-based nonprofit operating community gardens, greenmarkets, and urban agriculture education. Comparable as an established urban agriculture nonprofit combining garden installation, education, and food access.
• FoodCorps: National nonprofit connecting AmeriCorps members to schools for food education and garden programs. Comparable on the food-education + community-garden model, though larger and federally supported.
• Growing Home: Chicago-based nonprofit running urban farms as workforce development and food access programs. Comparable mission combining urban agriculture, education, and food-insecure community impact.
• Edible Schoolyard Project: Alice Waters-founded nonprofit building organic school gardens and food education curricula. Comparable as an organic-garden + educational-program nonprofit with similar grassroots roots.
• The Food Project: Northeast U.S. nonprofit that builds community gardens and uses urban agriculture for youth leadership and food access. Directly comparable on youth-education + community-garden model.
• Keep Growing Detroit: Detroit-based nonprofit focused on urban agriculture, community gardens, and food sovereignty. Highly comparable given the same city, similar community-garden installation model, and food-insecurity mission.

Emerging players

• Green City Force: NYC-based nonprofit training young adults in urban agriculture and sustainability. Comparable on urban agriculture + youth-development model, with a stronger workforce-development angle.

Broad incumbents

• Plant With Purpose: International food-security and sustainable-agriculture nonprofit. Comparable mission of addressing food insecurity through sustainable farming, though operating at a global rather than urban-community scale.
• American Community Gardening Association: National membership organization supporting community gardens across the U.S. Comparable as a community-gardening network and advocacy body, though not a direct program operator.
• Heifer International: Large global nonprofit tackling hunger and food insecurity through sustainable agriculture. Comparable food-security mission but operates internationally with a livestock/agricultural-development focus rather than urban gardens.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/urbanfarmingorg
• YouTubeyoutube.com/urbanfarmingworld
• Facebookfacebook.com/urbanfarmingglobalfoodchain
• Instagraminstagram.com/urbanfarmingorg
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/urbanfarming

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

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 Urban farming