Everest Farming

Everest Farming - educating city dwellers about agriculture through hydroponics.

Growing urbanization means that less and less children know where their food comes from. Not knowing the nature and benefits of produce leads to the growing adoption of horrifying diets which harm health and destroy the future of children. Unfortunately, school curriculums have not updated to provide sufficient health awareness and teachers are blamed for their students’ lack of knowledge. 

Everest Farming intends to solve this problem by developing and producing compact indoor hydroponic systems that are cheap enough for most households and can be used as supplemental devices to help educators teach about produce and healthy eating. These hydroponic systems combined with an interactive app educates people about produce and is simple to use, making it a perfect product for teachers or even those who want to improve their diet. 

Our goal is to assist teachers in health education and change the eating habits of people around the globe.

We are the only non-profit company who sells small hydroponic systems to the general public and then uses those profits to enhance hands-on learning for children in poor school districts. Typical hydroponic systems are for industrial use and are too large for the typical homeowner or renter. We make our system small enough to keep at home and still be able to sustain sizable plant growth

Everest Farming uses its technology to create high quality and desirable hydroponic systems whose profits are then used to fund the company’s solution. In addition, Everest Farming intends to uses its own technology to provide hands on learning and make teaching of life sciences easier and more enjoyable

To provide working hydroponic systems to at least one low-income public school in the Rochester, NY area, where the company is based, and begin receiving feedback on how the company’s solution can be better modified

The goal within the next three to five years is to have a fully functioning and profitable company that is able to consistently supply high-quality hydroponic units across the northeastern United States and have supplied classroom sized hydroponic sets to every low-income public school in the Rochester, NY metropolitan.

Everest Farming will initially reach out to its customers by word of mouth and social media in addition to being shown on local news stations. Fellow students, professors, and locals will be the first customers the company reaches out to. Everest Farming intends to follow-up with customers to receive feedback about its products, even fixing or replacing these initial products if necessary.

Everest Farming intends to reach its beneficiaries by personally attending schools and speaking with superintendents, teachers, other staff, and students. Regular visits to these schools are how the company will receive feedback to improve its philanthropic mission.

N/A

Everest Farming intends to serve at least one full class of students, which approximates to about 30 people all together. Considering the company’s hydroponic systems can be used by multiple people, one hydroponic set could potentially serve an entire school. This suggests that Everest Farming could potentially serve hundreds of people within the first year. Within three years, Everest Farming plans on serving thousands of students and hundreds of teachers through its interactive and educational hydroponic systems.

Each team member brings both their technical and practical skills together in order to help Everest Farming make the greatest impact possible. When it comes to technical skills, Amanda’s electrical engineering background, Alec’s mechanical engineering endeavors, and Mike’s venture into data science will allow Everest Farming to create a high quality product. On a practical level, Amanda’s amable social skills, Alec’s agricultural knowledge, and Mike’s business savvy will allow the company to quickly expand and make a large impact on society.

The revenue model for Everest Farming is the selling of home hydroponic systems to the general public both online and in stores. These systems consist of one foot tall plastic towers with inlets to allow the growth of a variety of plant life. The towers are capable of hanging or standing on their own and are highly versatile. To connect with those who are wanting a technical side, the hydroponic systems are synced with an app that will allow the user to take of his or her plants with ease.

This revenue model is positioned for long-term sustainability because the product can be used by anyone, whether they live in a house, an apartment, or a trailer home. With such a large market, Everest Farming is capable of generating large profits that can be used towards its philanthropic goals of assisting teachers in low-income schools and showing children how to eat healthy, be sustainable, and possibly grow their interest in STEM fields.

Solve is a platform that brings together entrepreneurs, innovators, problem solvers, and mentors in one place. This is a perfect opportunity for Everest Farming to receive feedback and hear others’ experiences so that the company can improve itself. Of course, Everest Farming will attempt to achieve a partnership with RISE, which will accelerate growth.

Some key barriers include working with school administrations—convincing them to incorporate our technology into their classrooms and finding the best way it can help teachers. Another barrier is perfecting the technology and making it successful in the market.