Research & reports

Otu W. Ibok, Idiong C. Idiong, Nsikan Edet Bassey, Ekaette S. Udoh · Agricultural Science · Nigeria

This study investigated the effect of urban food crop farming household productivity on household food security in Cross River State, Southern Nigeria. Data was collected from 217 urban food crop farmers using a two-stage sampling technique and analyzed with food security index, food insecurity/surplus gap index, head count index, productivity index, and logistic regression. Results showed that 53.5% of households were food insecure, while 46.5% were food secure. Logistic regression revealed that urban farming household productivity had a significant positive effect on household food security status.

程春建 · 杭州（周刊） · China (Hangzhou)

In 2014, Hangzhou, China, outlined five main tasks for developing modern agriculture, aiming to build "three strong cities" (ecological quality agriculture, efficient facility agriculture, modern urban agriculture) and "five million" urban supply bases. Key tasks included ensuring effective supply, with grain planting area exceeding 2.33 million mu and total output over 930,000 tons, and increasing the self-sufficiency rate of "vegetable basket" agricultural products in the main urban area to over 58%. Another task was to increase production and income, targeting a 2% increase in total output value and an 11% increase in farmers' income.

Hillary J. Shaw · · United Kingdom (Birmingham)

This chapter describes four stages by which people have become divorced from the origins of human food: industrialization, globalization, supermarketization, and dromology. Ashram Acres, established in 1981 in Birmingham, England, exemplifies many merits of urban agriculture, aiming to utilize the agricultural expertise of local migrants from South Asia, the Caribbean, and Ireland.

Ophélie Robineau, Julia Tichit, Thomas Maillard · · Burkina Faso (Bobo-Dioulasso)

This study examines the socio-spatial integration of urban agriculture in three southern cities: Bobo-Dioulasso (Burkina Faso), Metro Manila (Philippines), and Saint-Louis (Senegal). It highlights different integration modes resulting from urban farmers’ practices. In Bobo-Dioulasso, farmers establish social relationships to ensure access to productive resources; in Metro Manila, the appropriation of practices and networks of actors at the local level guarantees sustainability; and in Saint-Louis, farmer-initiated organizations assert their interests with urban authorities.

Ranka Junge, Andreas Graber · Zürcher Hochschule für Angewandte Wissenschaften digital collection (Zurich University of Applied Sciences) · Global

This paper discusses the need for practical tools and a stronger scientific base for sustainable urban farming, noting that visionary schemes often lack current practical application with available technologies. It identifies requirements for urban food production, including high quality, safety, and cost-effectiveness, and suggests innovations in planting, pest control, irrigation, and integration with existing building infrastructures. Aquaponics is presented as having the potential to contribute to all these aspects.

Attila Tóth, Ľubica Feriancová · Acta horticulturae et regiotecturae · Spain (Barcelona)

This study investigated squat farming as a typology of urban agriculture, focusing on the case study of Can Masdeu, a squatted and cultivated land at the northern city border of Barcelona, Spain. It aimed to understand how landscape and urban structures are influenced by land cultivation and how the social dimension of squat farming is structured. Spatial and perceptual analyses were applied, and users were interviewed through discussions and questionnaires, with results describing the spatial and social characteristics of squat farming at Can Masdeu.

Evan Weissman · Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems · United States (New York City)

This case study in Brooklyn, New York, used mixed qualitative research methods to investigate the political possibilities of urban agriculture for fostering food justice. Findings indicate that problematic contradictions rooted in the neoliberalization of urban agriculture limit the transformative possibilities of farming the city as currently practiced in Brooklyn. The study suggests that longstanding agrarian questions are informative for critically interrogating urban agriculture as a politicization of food.

Liu Hong-yi · Nongye xiandaihua yanjiu · Global

This paper discusses the concept of "modern agriculture into town," or urban agriculture, covering various city sizes and urban agglomeration areas. Findings indicate that urban farming is viable only when the comprehensive utility of agricultural output per town's land equals or exceeds that of non-agricultural industries. Urban agriculture is characterized by marketability, high profitability, public goods, and vulnerability, and requires national food security, agricultural scientific progress, and reduced industrial-agricultural disparity.

Christine Brown-Paul, Sam Ross · Practical Hydroponics and Greenhouses · Indonesia (Jakarta)

In Jakarta, Indonesia, urban farming and hydroponics are increasingly used to feed the growing population and ensure food security. This article highlights hydroponic strawberry production in Bandung and features a large hydroponic grower that supplies Jakarta supermarkets and operates an educational facility for future hydroponic professionals.

Davide Olori · Archivio istituzionale della ricerca (Alma Mater Studiorum Università di Bologna) · Italy

This publication aims to collect research contributions on new movements and self-organized initiatives that re-use and transform various parts of the city, including abandoned buildings, green areas, and public spaces. These experiences, such as informal community gardens and squatter occupations, can be interpreted as interstitial practices or a growing method of urban construction.

Michael Christie · · Australia

This study describes a government consultancy into the feasibility of a remote Aboriginal community garden in Galiwin'ku, Arnhem Land, Australia. Researchers collaborated with Yolgu knowledge-authorities to develop a "transdisciplinary research methodology" that integrates academic and Aboriginal knowledge practices. The project aimed to establish a garden with a non-Indigenous gardener to address high unemployment and food prices, but faced challenges in communicating with the government without compromising Yolgu methodologies.

Claudia Mattogno, Manuela Ricci, Bruno Monardo, Pietro Antonio Valentino, Anna Laura Palazzo · IRIS Research product catalog (Sapienza University of Rome) · United States (San Diego)

This paper explores recent policies and planning practices for urban agriculture (UA) in the United States, particularly in California, focusing on its potential for urban revitalization and social inclusion. It examines strategies for agricultural re-use and rezoning of vacant urban areas within the context of 'healthy food access'. The experience in San Diego, CA's City Heights neighborhood demonstrates the potential of UA to combine social inclusion with physical and economic redevelopment.

Karen Rideout · Environmental Health Review · Global

The NCCEH (National Collaborating Centre for Environmental Health) has conducted presentations and workshops since 2008 to explain the concept of food security within the context of public and environmental health practice. They have illustrated the relevance of food security to public health, explored ways to identify and mitigate potential health risks of food security projects like urban agriculture, and identified intersections between food security advocacy and public health protection.

Arne Wangel · · Denmark (Copenhagen)

This paper discusses efforts to develop a Social LCA methodology to account for social impacts in the life cycle of existing products. It specifically shifts focus to the design phase of products and services yet to be constructed by start-ups and community groups. A maritime gardening project concerning the growing, harvesting, and eating of native oysters in the harbor of Copenhagen is presented as an example of urban farming initiatives.

Renee Meschi · Sound Ideas (University of Puget Sound) · United States (Tacoma)

This research examined the plants, fungi, and people of Tacoma's Swan Creek Park Food Forest (SCPFF) in the United States. The study investigated the site's history, including indigenous plant use by the First People of Cascadia, Native American food sovereignty projects, and the influence of immigration waves. It concluded with recommendations for ethical development and cultural sensitivity at the SCPFF.

Marike Brits · Farmlink Africa · South Africa (Cape Town)

Oranjezicht City Farm (OZCF) in Cape Town, South Africa, was established in response to rising crime in surrounding neighborhoods. According to Sheryl Ozinsky, one of the project's founders, the idea for the farm originated as a response to increasing crime in the vicinity.

R. Panwala, Alyssa Joyce, Manuel R. Reyes · VTechWorks (Virginia Tech) · Global

Natuculture is defined as any human-made system that mimics nature in human-disturbed landscapes. It is an agroecologically balanced and biologically diverse system designed for food production, stormwater treatment, and recreation.

Aisling Murtagh · Irish Geography · Ireland

This exploratory paper considers the broad dynamics of alternative food activity in Ireland, examining the nature of resistance and whether a collective vision exists across initiatives, illustrated by two examples: a community garden and a consumer food co-op. Alternative food initiatives commonly found in Ireland include allotments, community gardens, farmers’ markets, farm shops, and on-farm food enterprises.

Jeanne Simonelli, Stephanie Paladino · Culture Agriculture Food and Environment · United States

This issue focuses on the movement to reintegrate food production into the civic, moral, and economic life of communities. Specifically, it highlights a qualitative study on the perceived benefits of community gardening in Baltimore, Maryland. The study explores the benefits to individuals, neighborhoods, and the city, suggesting these can be used as urban planning tools for developing healthy urban environments.

Salwa Tohmé Tawk, Mounir Abi Said, S.K. Hamadeh · Oxford University Press eBooks · Global

This study in the Middle East and North Africa region investigated the relationship between urban agriculture and food security in two peri-urban locations: Bebnine, Lebanon, and Wadi el Seer, Jordan. High food insecurity was prevalent in both locations, demonstrating that producers were more food insecure than non-producers. Food security was found to be strongly associated with poverty and the number of household members.

Never Assan, Edmore Nhamo · · Sub-Saharan Africa

This discussion highlights the opportunities and needs for developing and adopting urban agriculture to enhance food security in Sub-Saharan Africa. It notes that rapid urbanization is increasing demand for crop and livestock products, leading to a growing food deficit and affecting urban food insecurity. Strategies to promote food productivity gains should focus on infrastructure, appropriate agricultural policies, new technology, and incentives for urban farmers within a fair policy environment.

Becky L. Jacobs · eYLS (Yale Law School) · United States (Detroit)

Detroit, Michigan, has become a leader in urban agriculture, with an estimated 1500 to 2000 gardens supported by individuals and businesses, including the Cadillac Urban Gardens. Various organizations and public-private coalitions promote sustainable local agriculture in the city. Knoxville, Tennessee, proposed creating an "urban food corridor" in 2012 to improve food access, health, and stimulate economic development by connecting land, farming, processing, distribution, sale, and composting.

Alexander Follmann, Valérie Viehoff · Local Environment · Germany

This paper investigates NeuLand, a community garden created in March 2012 on a brownfield site in Cologne, Germany. It assesses NeuLand as typical of a new form of political engagement 2.0, focusing on local problems and direct actions, and its potential to offer a blueprint for alternative urban futures and new ways for citizens to claim their "right to the city." The study links the NeuLand experiment to broader discussions on alternative socio-ecological futures, extending beyond analyses of urban gardening solely for sustainable food production or community cohesion.

Jacqueline Percebois · ASp · Global

This paper linguistically analyzed various environmental terms, from the institutional discourse of "sustainable environment" to individualized local discourse like "guerrilla gardening" and "incredible edible." It investigated their emergence, development, linguistic characteristics, lexical environment, and French equivalents within economic and social contexts. The analysis highlighted a clear contrast between two discursive positions and the gap between intention and action.

Feng Hai-jia · · China (Xi'an)

This study analyzed the interactive coupling relationship and spatio-temporal characteristics between urbanization and urban agriculture function in Xi'an metropolitan zone, China, using correlation and coupling models. Based on data from 2000 to 2011, the correlation degree of factors was above 0.6, indicating a close relationship, with urban economy impacting urban agriculture and urban agriculture influencing urbanization. The coupling degree ranged from 0.6 to 0.85, showing a trend towards higher-level coordination, but significant spatial differentiation was observed, with the northwest area having a lower coupling degree than the southeast.