named programs · 8 · from sources
What they call their work
Community Gardens
Provides garden plots across the Capital Region, enabling residents to grow their own produce while fostering community engagement and access to fresh food.
Good Food Market
Fixed-site market offering affordable, locally sourced produce and goods with a two-tier pricing model to ensure accessibility.
Healthy Stores
Places refrigerated produce displays in urban convenience stores to increase access to fresh food in neighborhoods with limited grocery options.
Produce Project
Urban farm program that employs high school students to grow and sell produce, teaching job skills, entrepreneurship, and nutrition.
Squash Hunger
Collects excess produce from gardens, farms, and markets and distributes it to food pantries, shelters, and soup kitchens.
Taste Good Series
Nutrition education program for pre-K through 2nd grade students using music, games, and hands-on food preparation.
Urban Greening
Tree planting and green space development initiatives to improve urban environmental quality and community well-being.
Veggie Mobile®
Traveling market that delivers fresh, locally grown produce to underserved urban neighborhoods through weekly stops.
activities · 11 groups
What they do
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Local Food Systems Development 2 activities
- Expand fresh food access in convenience storesImplements the Healthy Stores program by installing and maintaining refrigerated display units in urban convenience stores across Albany, Rensselaer, and Schenectady counties to increase availability of fresh, affordable produce in neighborhoods with limited food access.
- Facilitate farm-to-institution food distributionOperates a regional food hub at the Urban Grow Center and runs an Institutional Buying Program that supplies fresh, locally grown produce to schools, hospitals, and other institutions via direct delivery and an online marketplace, with no minimum order requirement.
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Tree Planting and Reforestation Initiatives 1 activity
- Conduct urban greening and tree planting initiativesPlants thousands of trees and creates public landscapes through biannual tree planting events with community volunteers, contributing to environmental health and community well-being in the Capital Region over three decades.
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Youth Workforce Development in Food & Environment 1 activity
- Deliver horticulture and job readiness training for youthRuns a year-round job readiness program for high school students in Troy, NY, involving cultivation of two acres of farmland, stipends, food shares, academic credit, and cooking classes with guest chefs to teach meal preparation using homegrown produce.
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Food Distribution and Hunger Relief 1 activity
- Distribute surplus produce through Squash Hunger programDistributes more than 40 tons (over 600,000 pounds) of fresh produce annually to food pantries, shelters, and soup kitchens through the Squash Hunger program, sourcing from gleaning efforts, unharvested farm produce, and excess garden harvests collected from community participants.
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Diabetes Self-Management & Prevention Programs 1 activity
- Implement clinical food referral programsOperates the Veggie Rx program, which partners with healthcare providers to connect patients with chronic conditions such as diabetes and hypertension to fresh produce through clinical referrals and targeted food access support.
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Horticultural Education and Community Gardening 1 activity
- Operate community gardens and provide garden plotsOperates over 50 community gardens across four counties in New York's Capital Region, providing access to more than 900 individual garden plots for residents to grow their own produce. These gardens also serve as sources of fresh food through participant donations to local food pantries.
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Food Policy Advocacy & Nutrition Education 1 activity
- Promote healthier vending optionsImplements Smart Vending initiatives by partnering with local vending companies to offer healthier snack options in workplaces and organizations, supported by accompanying nutrition education campaigns.
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Transportation Policy Advocacy & Infrastructure Reform 1 activity
- Promote safe and active transportation infrastructureImplements the Healthy Streets program to improve walkability and bikeability in urban areas by installing permanent and semi-permanent infrastructure such as bike racks and fix-it stations, educating road users on safety practices, enhancing visibility of urban trails, and advocating for adopted complete streets policies in cities like Troy, Cohoes, and Watervliet.
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Youth and Family Cooking Education 1 activity
- Provide nutrition education programsOffers hands-on nutrition education including the Taste Good Series for young children using music and games, and cooking classes for student farmers, promoting healthy eating habits through interactive learning.
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Local Food Market Operation 1 activity
- Run mobile markets to deliver fresh produceOperates the Veggie Mobile® and Sprout traveling markets, delivering fresh, affordable, locally grown produce to underserved urban neighborhoods across the Capital Region with over 30 stops per week. Also includes the Virtual Veggie Mobile®, an online marketplace connecting farmers with institutional buyers and piloting direct sales to low-income families.
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Shared Kitchen Incubator for Food Entrepreneurs 1 activity
- Support food entrepreneurs with shared kitchen and business trainingOperates a shared commercial kitchen with 24/7 access, storage, and loading facilities for food entrepreneurs, and offers business classes, personalized coaching, and a Product Manufacturing Workshop to help launch and grow food-based businesses.
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financials · form 990 · fy2024
revenue
Total revenue$3.17M
Contributions & grants$2.51M79%
Program service revenue$547K17%
Investment income$8K0%
Other revenue$107K
expenses
Total expenses$3.79M
Program expenses87%
Admin / overhead10%
Fundraising3%
Salaries & benefits$1.40M
Grants paid out$0
Largest expense lineCompensation
balance sheet
Total assets$12.04M
Cash$315K
Investments$366K
Liabilities$5.70M
Net assets$6.34M
Liquid reserves2.2 mo
3 years on record · 2020–2024 · YoY revenue -5.4%
leadership · form 990 part vii · fy2024
Who runs it
paid leadership · 2
| Name | Title | Hours/wk | Compensation |
|---|---|---|---|
| AMY KLEIN | CEO | 40 | $112K |
| JESSICA TROWBRIDGE | COO | 40 | $77K |
board members · 13
- ANOUSH KOROGHLIAN SCOTT — PRESIDENT
- DEBORAH BENNETT — DIRECTOR AT LARGE
- JEAN GERBINI — DIRECTOR
- KATIE DECKER — DIRECTOR
- KIM HICKOK — VICE PRESIDENT
- KIMBERLY SANGER JONES — DIRECTOR
- LAURA KOZIEN — SECRETARY
- LYNNE RITTNER — DIRECTOR
- MARK BRYANT — TREASURER
- MEGAN LEITZINGER — DIRECTOR
- MICHAEL WHITEMAN — DIRECTOR
- SARAH BILOFSKY — DIRECTOR
- SUSAN MCCORMICK — DIRECTOR
relationships · 31
Who they work with
- CDPHP Funder — Sponsors the Good Food Market operated by Capital Roots
- CDPHP Partner — Sponsors the Veggie Mobile® mobile market program.
- CONCERNSU Partner — Local food pantry partner accepting produce donations from community gardeners.
- Capital District Latinos (CDL) | Albany Partner — Receives fresh produce distributions from the Squash Hunger program.
- Catholic Charities | Albany Partner — Receives fresh produce distributions from the Squash Hunger program.
- City of Cohoes Partner — Adopted a complete streets policy drafted by Capital Roots in 2016.
- City of Troy Partner — Collaborated with Capital Roots to adopt a complete streets policy in 2014.
- City of Watervliet Partner — Adopted a complete streets policy drafted by Capital Roots in 2017.
- Fidelis Care Partner — Partner organization associated with community garden program support or sponsorship.
- Franklin Community Center | Troy Partner — Receives fresh produce distributions from the Squash Hunger program.
- Good Food Market Partner — Provides a sales outlet for incubator kitchen entrepreneurs within the same facility.
- Hannaford Partner — Partner in the CLYNK program where donors return bags of cans and bottles to support fresh food and community gardens.
- LifeWorks Community Action | Troy Partner — Receives fresh produce distributions from the Squash Hunger program.
- MVP Health Care Funder — Provides financial support for the Healthy Stores program.
- Nisky NOW | Schenectady Partner — Receives fresh produce distributions from the Squash Hunger program.
- Oakwood Community Center Partner — Local food pantry partner accepting produce donations from community gardeners.
- Refugee Welcome Center | Albany Partner — Receives fresh produce distributions from the Squash Hunger program.
- Rensselaer County Government — Provided initial help to launch the Farm-to-School program.
- Salvation Army | Saratoga Springs Partner — Receives fresh produce distributions from the Squash Hunger program.
- Saratoga Community Health Center | Saratoga Springs Partner — Receives fresh produce distributions from the Squash Hunger program.
- Schenectady Foundation Funder — Provides financial support for Capital Roots' efforts to expand access to fresh, local food.
- Shelters of Saratoga (SOS) | Saratoga Springs Partner — Receives fresh produce distributions from the Squash Hunger program.
- Smart Growth America Government — Recognized Troy’s complete streets policy, developed with Capital Roots, as the 2nd best in the nation.
- St John’s Episcopal Church Partner — Local food pantry partner accepting produce donations from community gardeners.
- The Schenectady Foundation Funder — Provides financial support for expanding access to fresh, local food.
- USCRI | Albany Partner — Receives fresh produce distributions from the Squash Hunger program.
- USDA Government — Provides support for the expansion of the Farm-to-School program.
- West Hill Refugee Welcome Center Partner — Local food pantry partner accepting produce donations from community gardeners.
- Whitney M. Young Health Partner — Collaborates on the Veggie Rx program to connect patients with chronic health conditions to fresh food and nutrition services.
- guest chefs Partner — Collaborates with guest chefs to lead cooking classes for student participants.
+ 1 more
strategies · 5
How they approach the work
Named approaches extracted from this org’s sources. Where others share an approach, follow it to see the full set of orgs running it.
- Client Choice and Dignity-Centered Distributionmethodology: client_choice_modelBy allowing individuals to choose their own foods and receiving them through respectful, community-based networks, we increase engagement and dietary uptake because autonomy and dignity enhance program effectiveness and reduce stigma.
- Food-Is-Medicine Integrationmethodology: food_is_medicineBy connecting patients with diet-related chronic diseases to fresh food and nutrition support, we improve health outcomes because clinical recognition of food as a treatable determinant increases adherence and reduces disease burden.
- Local Food Systems for Equity and Healthmethodology: systems_changeBy building localized, community-driven food systems—through farm-to-institution procurement, local sourcing, and breaking down systemic barriers—we improve access to fresh food and strengthen regional economies because equitable structural access sustains long-term change more effectively than charitable models.
- Multifunctional Urban Greeningmethodology: urban_greeningBy transforming underutilized urban land into green spaces and planting trees through volunteer-led initiatives, we address environmental, social, and public health challenges simultaneously because nature-integrated neighborhoods improve air quality, foster civic engagement, and reduce stress.
- Youth Development Through Agricultural Trainingmethodology: experiential_youth_developmentBy combining sustainable farming with life skills and entrepreneurial training, we prepare youth for job readiness and educational advancement because hands-on, purpose-driven work builds confidence, discipline, and real-world competencies.