Restorative Farms
Restorative Farms is a Dallas-based nonprofit operating a community-driven urban farming network that produces and distributes fresh produce through CSA subscriptions, farmers markets, and hydroponic facilities, while delivering paid vocational training and food access programs to underserved South Dallas households.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2017
- HeadquartersDallas, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What Restorative Farms does
Restorative Farms is a Dallas-based nonprofit urban farming organization founded in 2017 that operates a community-driven agrisystem addressing food insecurity and unemployment in South Dallas. The organization produces and distributes fresh produce (vegetables, hydroponic lettuce, microgreens, herbs, salad packs, and seedlings) through Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) weekly box subscriptions, farmers markets across multiple DART transit stations, a Whole Foods Market reseller channel, and an online storefront built on the Barn2Door e-commerce platform. Underlying production combines traditional soil-based farming at the Hatcher Station Farm with controlled environment agriculture infrastructure, including the 5,700-square-foot TAPkit hydroponic NFT facility (using Israeli agricultural technology from Netafim) and the GroZilla shipping-container farm producing 300+ heads of lettuce per week.
The business model blends commercial revenue with philanthropic support. Commercial streams include subsidized CSA subscriptions, direct produce sales, GroBox modular home-garden kit sales, and farm consulting services for organizations seeking to replicate urban farming systems. These are supplemented by tax-deductible donations and corporate sponsorships (Kosmos Energy, Toyota USA Foundation, Meadows Foundation, Green Mountain Energy Sun Club, Tito's Vodka, USDA NRCS) that fund paid vocational training through the Future Urban Farmers (FUF) program and the Kosmos TAPkit Internship and Fellowship Program. Primary customer segments are underserved South Dallas households receiving CSA boxes, FUF vocational trainees, local growers purchasing affordable seedlings, GroBox home gardeners, and microgreens entrepreneurs graduating from the in-house Microgreens Grower Training Program. Since inception, Restorative Farms reports distributing over 160,000 seedlings, generating more than $730,000 in training-program payroll, and delivering over 10,814 CSA boxes representing 810,000+ servings of fresh food. The organization is led by four co-founders (Dr. Owen Lynch, Brad Boa, Dr. Doric E. Earle, and Tyrone Day), governed by a board chaired by former PepsiCo executive Shawna Wilson, and operates with 1-10 employees across facilities in South Dallas.
Restorative Farms firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Restorative Farms
- Legal name
- Restorative Farms
- Website
- https://restorativefarms.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2017
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Restorative Farms is a Dallas-based nonprofit operating a community-driven urban farming network that produces and distributes fresh produce through CSA subscriptions, farmers markets, and hydroponic facilities, while delivering paid vocational training and food access programs to underserved South Dallas households.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Restorative Farms industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Urban Agriculture & Fresh Produce
- NAICS
- Vegetable and Melon Farming (1112), Other Food Crops Grown Under Cover (111419), Nursery, Garden Center, and Farm Supply Retailers (444240), Soil Preparation, Planting, and Cultivating (115112)
- SIC
- Agricultural Production-Crops (100), Agricultural Services (700)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) / Vertical Farming (Indoor LED Farms) (AFAGAHAJ)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Farm-to-Consumer Produce Boxes / CSA Delivery (AFAIANAC), Fresh Herbs & Microgreens Wholesale (AFAIACAC), Asparagus, Artichoke & Specialty Vegetable Farming (Asparagus, Artichokes, Celery, Okra) (AFAGADAI)
Keywords
Where Restorative Farms is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Dallas
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices4 records
Markets served
Restorative Farms business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain
Revenue model
- CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) Box Sales: Weekly distribution of CSA boxes containing seasonal fruits and vegetables to families in South Dallas at subsidized prices. All proceeds reinvested into farm operations and training programs.
- Direct Produce Sales: Online sales of vegetables, microgreens, herbs, lettuce, salad packs, seedlings, and garden supplies through Barn2Door e-commerce platform.
- GroBox Home Garden Kit Sales: Sale of modular, easy-to-use home planter kits with basic starter kit and instructions for self-sufficient food production.
- Farm Consulting Services: Consulting services for organizations and individuals looking to create their own urban farming systems, with expertise in small-scale intensive farming, seedling production, and CEA.
- GroBox Community Program: Sale of GroBox units to community members to build extended network of home-based food growers complementing the greater agrisystem.
- Donations and Sponsorships: Tax-deductible donations supporting paid hands-on vocational training and production/distribution of healthy fresh food. Sponsorships cover FUF participant wages and training materials.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Monthly | CSA Weekly Box Subscription |
| Unit Pricing | Monthly | FUF Sponsorship Tiers |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | GroBox Home Garden Kit |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Produce and Seedlings |
Go-to-market motion4 records
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels6 records
Restorative Farms product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Restorative Farms operates an urban farming network in South Dallas that grows and sells fresh produce — vegetables, microgreens, herbs, hydroponic lettuce, salad packs, and seedlings — through CSA subscriptions, farmers markets, and an online store (Barn2Door). The nonprofit supplements produce sales with the GroBox modular home planter kit, garden supplies, branded merchandise, vocational training programs (Future Urban Farmers, Microgreens Grower Training), and farm consulting services for organizations building urban farming systems.
Product overview
Restorative Farms operates a multi-faceted urban farming network and community food security initiative in Dallas, Texas. The organization functions as a unified platform combining direct produce sales with workforce development programs. The core product portfolio includes fresh produce categories (CSA boxes, vegetables, salad packs, hydroponic lettuce, microgreens, herbs, and seedlings/transplants) sold through an e-commerce platform, supplemented by home gardening products (GroBox, BM7 soil mix, worm castings, compost). These commercial offerings are interconnected with social programs including the Future Urban Farmers (FUF) vocational training, Seedling Farm distribution network, TAPkit and GroZilla hydroponic growing systems, Microgreens Grower Training, and Farm Consulting services. The programs both utilize and support the production operations, creating a closed-loop agrisystem where training occurs at the Hatcher Station Farm and production revenue funds community empowerment initiatives.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- GroBox: A modular, easy-to-use home planter - a home-based garden kit designed for self-sufficient food production and community empowerment.
- Box Brigade
- GroZilla
- TAPkit
- Kosmos TAPkit Internship and Fellowship Program
- Future Urban Farmers (FUF)
- Community Supported Agriculture (CSA)
Products and services
- CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) Subscription Weekly subscription produce box containing seasonal fruits, vegetables, herbs, and greens grown in South Dallas, delivered to homes and distributed at subsidized prices to underserved communities.
- Fresh Vegetables
Quantifiable outcome
- Over 160,000 seedlings distributed, saving community over $480,000 since 2017
- +4 more outcomes
Companies that use Restorative Farms
Customer profileNamed customers3 records
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Restorative Farms technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
Restorative Farms partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Ten partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core and minor.
- Kosmos EnergyflagshipMajor supporter enabling the TAPkit hydroponic facility and Kosmos TAPkit Internship and Fellowship Program for workforce development in Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA).
- American Heart AssociationcoreCollaboration on West Dallas STEM Market bringing fresh produce to North Texans, featuring weekly markets and community health initiatives.
- DART (Dallas Area Rapid Transit)corePartnership to bring fresh produce to DART transit stations through the DART Market program, making healthy food accessible at transit hubs.
- SMU Meadows School of the ArtscoreAcademic partnership through Dr. Owen Lynch's roles as Associate Professor and Senior Research Fellow at Hunt Institute, bringing research and student involvement.
- Whole Foods MarketcoreLocal retailer partner for distribution of Restorative Farms produce to health-conscious consumers.
- Texas A&M AgriLife ExtensionminorAgricultural extension partnership providing expertise and resources for urban farming operations.
- Frazier RevitalizationminorSouth Dallas community development organization focused on neighborhood revitalization and economic opportunity.
- Big Tex Urban FarmsminorState Fair of Texas urban farming initiative, fellow Dallas urban agriculture organization.
- Dallas InnerCity Growers Collaborative (DIG)coreCo-founded by Brad Boa in 2022, regional urban agricultural conference (DIG Summit) bringing together growers, academics, activists, scientists, funders united by sustainable food system mission.
- State Fair of TexasminorMajor Texas event organization supporting urban farming through Big Tex Urban Farms initiative.
Scale indicators7 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Restorative Farms competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- GrowNYC: New York nonprofit running farmers markets, urban agriculture, and food access programs — comparable mix of CSA/farmers-market distribution plus community programming to Restorative Farms.
- AeroFarms: Pioneer in commercial indoor vertical farming using controlled environment agriculture to produce leafy greens — comparable technology stack and product categories to Restorative Farms' TAPkit NFT hydroponic system.
- Bowery Farming: Indoor vertical farming company producing pesticide-free leafy greens and herbs for retail — directly comparable product mix and CEA approach to Restorative Farms' hydroponic lettuce and herbs.
- Gotham Greens: Large-scale commercial urban hydroponic greenhouse operator producing leafy greens and herbs sold through retail and foodservice — directly overlaps Restorative Farms' hydroponic lettuce, herbs, and microgreens categories at much greater scale.
- Plenty: Vertical farming company using indoor LED-driven towers to produce leafy greens at commercial scale — comparable CEA category and produce portfolio to Restorative Farms.
Regional players
- Big Tex Urban Farms: State Fair of Texas urban farming initiative in Dallas and a named partner of Restorative Farms — comparable Dallas-based urban agriculture programming serving overlapping audiences.
Direct peers
- Square Roots: Tech-enabled urban farming company operating containerized indoor farms with a social mission around food access and grower training — closely comparable to Restorative Farms' TAPkit/GroZilla hydroponics plus FUF training model.
- Urban Roots: Austin-based nonprofit using urban agriculture to train youth and feed the community — closely comparable nonprofit urban-farming-plus-workforce-development model to Restorative Farms' FUF program.
- Smallhold: Distributed network of indoor mushroom and microgreens farms with a focus on local food systems and sustainability — closely aligned mission and product overlap with Restorative Farms' microgreens program.
Emerging players
- Green City Growers: Cleveland-based urban farming social enterprise focused on food access and job creation — comparable nonprofit urban-ag + workforce-development structure to Restorative Farms.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Restorative Farms social profiles
Digital presenceRestorative Farms financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Restorative Farms leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles15 records
Restorative Farms funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Restorative Farms 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 Restorative Farms
What does Restorative Farms do?
Restorative Farms operates an urban farming network in South Dallas that grows and sells fresh produce — vegetables, microgreens, herbs, hydroponic lettuce, salad packs, and seedlings — through CSA subscriptions, farmers markets, and an online store (Barn2Door). The nonprofit supplements produce sales with the GroBox modular home planter kit, garden supplies, branded merchandise, vocational training programs (Future Urban Farmers, Microgreens Grower Training), and farm consulting services for organizations building urban farming systems.
Is Restorative Farms a public or private company?
Restorative Farms is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Restorative Farms founded?
Restorative Farms was founded in 2017. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Restorative Farms based?
Restorative Farms is headquartered in Dallas, United States, in the North America region.
How does Restorative Farms make money?
Six revenue lines are on record. CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) Box Sales are the primary driver. The others are direct Produce Sales, groBox Home Garden Kit Sales, farm Consulting Services, groBox Community Program and donations and Sponsorships.
Who are Restorative Farms's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are GrowNYC, AeroFarms, Bowery Farming, Gotham Greens and Plenty. Big Tex Urban Farms is listed as a regional player. Direct peers are Square Roots, Urban Roots and Smallhold. Green City Growers is listed as an emerging player.
Does Restorative Farms have an API?
No public API is recorded for Restorative Farms.
What industry is Restorative Farms in?
Restorative Farms's product category is Urban Agriculture & Fresh Produce. Its primary akta.pro industry code is AFAGAHAJ, Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) / Vertical Farming (Indoor LED Farms), with a secondary code of AFAIANAC, Farm-to-Consumer Produce Boxes / CSA Delivery. Its NAICS code is 1112 and its SIC code is 100.