Research & reports
Peer-reviewed research and reports on community urban agriculture, food education, composting, welfare and more.
Theme
Critical findings
2115 results(50 / 85)
The experience of community urban gardens: Social organization and food security
2019Joeli Silva de Souza, Ryzia de Cássia Vieira Cardoso, Lídice Almeida Arlego PARAGUASSÚ, Sidione Ferreira dos Santos · Revista de Nutrição · Brazil (Salvador-Bahia)
A cross-sectional exploratory study in Salvador-Bahia characterized community gardens, with five out of seven gardens participating and data collected from 13 horticulturists. 80.0% of gardens lacked land legalization, 100.0% operated without technical support, and 60.0% had no social organization. Major difficulties included lack of funding, volunteers, and water use restrictions, indicating insufficient policies limited technical support and financing.
Governance failureCommunityFood sovereignty & justiceEconomicsPolicyUrban agriculture in Mitchells Plain, Cape Town: examining the linkages between urban gardeners and supporting actors
2019Tinashe P. Kanosvamhira, Daniel Tevera · South African Geographical Journal · South Africa (Cape Town)
A mixed-methods study in Mitchells Plain, Cape Town, examined the linkages between urban gardeners and supporting actors using questionnaires and in-depth interviews. Findings indicate that the nature and strength of these linkages are critical for urban gardening success. However, there is minimal cooperation among non-state actors in the area.
Governance failureCommunityPolicyImpact of Wastewater-Irrigated Urban Agriculture on Diarrhea Incidence in Ahmedabad, India
2018Timo Falkenberg, Deepak Saxena · Indian Journal of Community Medicine · India (Ahmedabad)
A 12-month case-cohort study of 187 households in four communities of Ahmedabad, India, purposively selected by irrigation water type (groundwater, surface water, wastewater), with bimonthly self-reported health diaries and most-probable-number measurement of Escherichia coli in water. Mean E. coli concentrations per 100 mL were 3.04×10^4 (groundwater), 9.28×10^5 (surface water) and 4.02×10^9 (wastewater) — all exceeding international irrigation water standards. Diarrhoea incidence was 7.92 episodes per 1000 person-weeks in the groundwater area versus 13.1 (wastewater) and 13.4 (surface water), with a positive correlation between irrigation water quality and diarrhoea. Wastewater reuse is often promoted as a water-scarcity fix for urban agriculture; this study shows it carries a health cost borne by the farming households themselves.
Contamination & food safetyHealthOrganic cycleSustainability of Urban Agriculture: Vegetable Production on Green Roofs
2018S. Alan Walters, Karen Stoelzle Midden · Agriculture · Global
Vegetable production on green roofs faces multiple challenges, resulting in minimal current activity despite its potential for urban agricultural sustainability. While intensive green roof systems are considered suitable for vegetable production, extensive systems with shallow-rooted crops like lettuce, kale, and radish show the greatest potential for sustained productivity due to building weight restrictions. Deeper-root crops like tomatoes require constant monitoring of fertility and moisture. Green roofs are not presented as a total solution for urban food provision.
Economic viabilityDIYCommunityClimate changeEconomicsUrban and Peri-Urban Agriculture as A Pathway to Food Security: A Review Mapping the Use of Food Sovereignty
2018Michelle Tendai. Chihambakwe, Paramu Mafongoya, Obert Jiri · Challenges · Zimbabwe
This review maps the use of food sovereignty principles in urban and peri-urban agriculture (UPA) in Zimbabwe, addressing its potential for food security. Despite UPA being ingrained in urban households' livelihoods, institutional arrangements governing the practice remain ambivalent. The review underscores that the failure to involve all stakeholders undermines UPA, leading to heightened food insecurity and unsustainable practices.
Governance failureFood sovereignty & justicePeri-urban agriculturePolicyEconomicsThe politics of urban agriculture
2018Nathan McClintock, Christiana Miewald, Eugene McCann · · North America
This chapter explores urban agriculture (UA) as fundamentally political practices, examining its role in neoliberal governance and sustainability policy-making, and as an object of contestation. It relates UA motivations and practices to processes of urbanization and political economic restructuring. The chapter highlights that UA is a site of political contestation, arising from broader political economic shifts.
Governance failurePolicyFood sovereignty & justiceCommunityEconomicsBrownfields to Greenfields: Environmental Justice Versus Environmental Gentrification
2018Juliana Maantay, Andrew Maroko · International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health · United States (New York City)
This study examined whether proximity to community gardens in less affluent neighborhoods is associated with an increased likelihood of gentrification, using Brooklyn, New York as a case study. Employing GIS and spatial analysis, the results suggest that proximity to community gardens is associated with significant increases in per capita income over a five-year period. This indicates that environmental improvements, such as community gardens, may paradoxically spur gentrification and the displacement of existing lower-income residents, raising concerns for environmental justice.
Equity & displacementCommunityEconomicsPolicyWelfareCommunity‐supported agriculture in the United States: Social, ecological, and economic benefits to farming
2018Mark Paul · Journal of Agrarian Change · United States (Massachusetts)
This paper evaluates the livelihoods of Community-Supported Agriculture (CSA) farmers in the Connecticut River Valley of Massachusetts from their perspective. Results indicate that while CSA farmers earn more farm income than other U.S. farms on average, they still earn far below the median national income and generally fail to earn a living wage. Despite these economic findings, farmers stressed the importance of broader social, ecological, and economic benefits to farming. The study concludes that CSA has largely failed to provide adequate livelihoods for farmers to date.
Economic viabilityCSA & TeikeiEconomicsCommunityUrban Agriculture as a Sustainability Transition Strategy for Shrinking Cities? Land Use Change Trajectory as an Obstacle in Kyoto City, Japan
2018Kimisato Oda, Christoph Rupprecht, Kazuaki Tsuchiya, Steven R. McGreevy · Sustainability · Japan (Kyoto)
A study in Kyoto City, Japan, examined agricultural land use from 2007–2017 to assess urban agriculture as a sustainability strategy for shrinking cities. Analysis revealed a 10% decline (209 ha) in agricultural land use over ten years, with main post-agricultural uses being residential (40%) and vacant land (28%). The findings indicate that Kyoto City is not currently positioned to benefit from population decline through localized food production.
Limited or null effectUrban–rural linkagePolicyFood sovereignty & justiceClimate changeAn Analysis of the Changes in the Structure of Allotment Gardens in Poland and of the Process of Regulating Legal Status
2018Anna Trembecka, Anita Kwartnik-Pruc · Sustainability · Poland
This study analyzed data on the number and area of allotment gardens, their distribution across Poland, and the process of regulating the legal status of land occupied by allotment gardens. The research identified the number and area of family allotment gardens in Poland, along with the range and types of claims against them. The study found that land occupied by family allotment gardens requires protection and legal status regulation, which is difficult due to various entities submitting claims to these areas because of their attractive urban locations.
Governance failurePolicyCommunityUrban–rural linkageSmall-scale urban agriculture results in high yields but requires judicious management of inputs to achieve sustainability
2018Robert McDougall, Paul Kristiansen, Romina Rader · Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences · Australia
This study evaluated small-scale urban agriculture systems in Australia using economic and emergy (embodied energy) analyses. While these systems used land efficiently, they were relatively inefficient in their use of material and labor resources. Benefit-to-cost ratios demonstrated that, on average, the gardens ran at a financial loss, and emergy transformity was one to three orders of magnitude greater than many conventional rural farms. Only 14.66% of all inputs were considered "renewable," resulting in a moderate mean environmental loading ratio (ELR) of 5.82.
Economic viabilityEconomicsClimate changeOrganic cyclePeri-urban agricultural land vulnerability due to urban sprawl – a multi-criteria spatially-explicit scenario analysis
2018Suranga Wadduwage · Journal of Land Use Science · Australia (Adelaide)
A multi-criteria spatially-explicit study in the Adelaide metropolitan area, Australia, investigated agricultural land vulnerability to urban sprawl under opposing policy directions. The study showed higher agricultural land vulnerabilities in “Business-As-Usual” and “Accelerated Economic Development” scenarios, extending into rural areas with a leap-frog effect. This confirms the need to sacrifice farmland uses to maintain land supply for urban development under these conditions.
Governance failurePeri-urban agriculturePolicyUrban–rural linkageThe spatial and temporal variation of water quality at a community garden site in an urban setting: citizen science in action
2018Martin Dawson, Mike Hutchins, Nuria Bachiller‐Jareno, Steven Loiselle · Freshwater Science · United Kingdom (London)
A citizen-science study from 2014 to 2016 assessed water quality in a 5.6-ha urban community garden in southwestern London, using borehole water. Measurements of specific conductance and tryptophan-like fluorescence were taken over 28 months. The study found no evidence of external contamination sources or temporal changes in water quality. However, significant variations in water quality between boreholes were directly linked to on-site manure storage and use, and local geological conditions.
Contamination & food safetyCommunityHealthOnion (Allium Cepa) Production in Urban and Peri-Urban Areas: Financial Performance and Importance of this Activity for Market Gardeners in Southern Benin
2018Fabrice Dossa · Agricultural Research & Technology Open Access Journal · Benin
A study in southern Benin surveyed 60 onion farmers across three municipalities (Grand-Popo, Cotonou, Sm-Kpodji) using quantitative and qualitative methods. It found onion production to be financially profitable, with performance enhanced by age, experience, and producer group membership, and improving socio-economic and food situations. However, significant constraints include financial, institutional, organizational, property, and production-related issues.
Economic viabilityEconomicsPeri-urban agricultureFood sovereignty & justice"Grow what you eat, eat what you grow": urban agriculture as middle class intervention in India
2018Camille Frazier · Journal of Political Ecology · India (Bengaluru)
This article examines the motivations and practices of organic terrace gardeners (OTGians) in Bengaluru, India, who grow food in private spaces. While OTGians successfully create a vibrant community driven by food safety and environmental concerns, their efforts are limited to the middle class due to class-specific concerns and production practices. The study highlights that urban gardening in this context remains an intervention primarily for the middle class.
Equity & displacementDIYCommunityFood sovereignty & justiceClimate changeHealthCompeting Discourses of Household Food Insecurity in Canada
2018Zsofia Mendly‐Zambo, Dennis Raphael · Social Policy and Society · Canada
Household food insecurity (HFI) affects over 1.7 million Canadian households, yet government action to address it has been remarkably limited. Non-governmental efforts like food banks and community gardens have depoliticized HFI, complicating solutions. The study argues that the critical materialist political economy discourse, which is least considered, best explains HFI in Canada and offers the most effective response.
Limited or null effectWelfareCommunityPolicyEconomicsUrban foodprints (UF) – Establishing baseline scenarios for the sustainability assessment of high-yield urban agriculture
2018Khadija Benis, Rukaia Gashgari, Adnan Alsaati, Christoph Reinhart · DSpace@MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) · Saudi Arabia (Riyadh)
The Urban Foodprints (UF) methodology was applied to assess the environmental sustainability of high-yield urban agriculture in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, focusing on tomatoes. While urban production in high-yield greenhouses could reduce Global Warming Potential by 9% and water savings were significant, the energy needs of these greenhouses were considerably higher than the baseline. This indicates a trade-off where environmental benefits are partially offset by increased energy consumption.
Economic viabilityEconomicsClimate changeFood sovereignty & justiceUrban–rural linkageFactors for Effectiveness of Social Innovations in Urban Agriculture
2018Dona Pickard · International Journal of Sociology of Agriculture and Food · Bulgaria (Plovdiv)
This paper analyzes an urban agriculture case in Plovdiv, Bulgaria, where the municipality cleared over 2 hectares of long-tolerated allotments without involving users, despite NGOs promoting urban agriculture as a social innovation. The case exemplifies barriers hindering social innovation, particularly regarding governance, as the eviction occurred without discussion about the future of urban agriculture. This suggests a lack of civic participation and access to resources for deprived groups.
Governance failureCommunityPolicyDirect Marketing Strategies and Farmers’ Technical Efficiency in U.S. Agriculture
2018Gregory Astill, Darlington Sabasi, Johnson Gwatipedza, Astill, G., Sabasi, D., Gwatipedza, J. · AgEcon Search (University of Minnesota, USA) · United States
This study examined the relationship between direct marketing strategies and technical efficiency among U.S. farmers using stochastic frontier analysis. On average, farmers employing direct marketing strategies were found to be less technically efficient than those who do not. However, for the largest quantile of growers, direct marketing users were more technically efficient.
Economic viabilityCSA & TeikeiEconomicsFood miles & supply chainHunger in the Land of Plenty:Local Responses to Food Insecurity in Iowa
2018Gabrielle Roesch‐McNally, Jacqueline Ann Nester, Andrea Basche, Eric Christianson, Emily Zimmerman · Lincoln (University of Nebraska) · United States (Iowa)
Story County, Iowa, despite being in a highly agriculturally productive state, faces significant food insecurity. In 2014, 15.2% of its residents (nearly 14,000 individuals) were food insecure, with 45% of them not qualifying for government assistance. The county dedicates only 2.4 acres of cropland per thousand residents to fruit, vegetable, and nut production, significantly lower than the US average of 32 acres, highlighting a paradox of hunger amidst agricultural abundance.
Limited or null effectFood sovereignty & justiceUrban–rural linkageEconomicsThe organisation of urban agriculture in Cape Town, South Africa: A social capital perspective
2018Tinashe P. Kanosvamhira · Development Southern Africa · South Africa (Cape Town)
Based on a literature review, urban agriculture and its organizational forms in Cape Town, South Africa, were explored. A lack of effective coordination of initiatives among supporting actors was suggested to be a significant pitfall in the development of urban agriculture. Furthermore, the failure of farmers to self-organize was identified as equally detrimental. Therefore, improved synergies between state and non-state actors are called for to enhance the gains of urban agriculture.
Governance failureCommunityPolicyTypically Diverse: The Nature of Urban Agriculture in South Australia
2018Georgia Pollard, James Ward, Philip Roetman · Sustainability · Australia (South Australia)
This paper explores the economic sustainability of home food gardens in South Australia using new data from the Edible Gardens project online survey. While saving money is a top motivation for many respondents, the study notes that it remains to be seen whether current gardening practices actually support this aspiration. The paper concludes that more work is needed to measure the full costs of different gardens to better predict their financial accessibility and economic sustainability.
Economic viabilityDIYEconomicsUrban–rural linkageAnalysis of Urban Agricultural Effects by Factors According to the Urban Citizens Income Level: Socially Sustainable Effect, Negative Effect, and Economically Sustainable Effect
2018In-Kyoung Hong, Young Chae, Yoonah Jang, Sangmi Lee, Jung Nam Su · Journal of people, plants, and environment · South Korea
A study in South Korea surveyed 115 urban citizens to analyze urban agriculture's effects based on income level, identifying socially sustainable, negative, and economically sustainable factors. Findings showed psychological stability, connection with nature, and local agricultural vitalization correlated significantly with income level. However, the negative effect of urban agriculture showed no significant correlation with income level.
Limited or null effectEconomicsCommunityPolicyUrban food production in Harare, Zimbabwe
2018Percy Toriro · · Zimbabwe (Harare)
This chapter explores the governance of urban food production in Harare, Zimbabwe, from 1890 to the present. Evidence indicates that while the practice has gained general acceptance through shifting positions over the years, the status of producers remains uncertain. This uncertainty stems from the lack of full incorporation of urban food production into city plans by planning officials, whose values are out of sync with Harare's lived reality.
Governance failurePolicyFood sovereignty & justiceCommunityGrowing Gardens Sustainability: Challenges and Opportunities Facing the Strategic Expansion of Anchorage, Alaska’s Community Garden System
2018Shannon Donovan · Case Studies in the Environment · United States (Anchorage)
A multi-faceted needs assessment, including a community survey, stakeholder workshop, and key informant interviews, was conducted in Anchorage, Alaska, to explore the strategic expansion of its community garden system. The study found that demand for community gardens far outweighs supply. To sustainably meet diverse needs, expansion efforts should focus on accessible locations, gardener capacity building, and strengthening partnerships.
Limited or null effectCommunityWelfareFood sovereignty & justicePolicy