Research & reports

Monsuru Adekunle Salisu, Che Rus Ridzwan, Yusuf Opeyemi Oyebamiji, Norhanizan Usaizan, Abiodun Emmanuel Abioye, Idris Fadheelah Biola, Nurudeen Babatunde Bamiro, Ahmed Kayode Omowunmi, Hussain Luqman · AIMS Agriculture and Food · Global

This systematic literature review, incorporating 37 articles, examined the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the global agri-food sector. The pandemic profoundly impacted all facets of the agri-food system. The review identified several measures to mitigate disruptions and enhance resilience, including robust policy, promotion of urban agriculture, support for small-scale farmers, enhancement of the international market, and technological innovations.

Martina Artmann, Marie Herzig, Henriette John · Discover Cities · Global

This study provides a framework for selecting and operationalizing indicators for a comparative sustainability assessment of different urban agriculture types, exemplified by Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) and vertical farming. Based on a qualitative content analysis of vision guidelines, results suggest that CSA can be considered the more sustainable form across all three sustainability dimensions. However, considering vertical farming's main benefit is increased food production efficiency, it is suggested to balance its shortcomings and lack of vision on social justice, biodiversity conservation, and food quality by fostering a hybrid model of community supported vertical farming. This suggestion implies that vertical farming alone has limited effects in these aspects.

Harshdeep Chandrakant Sapkale, Madhulika A. Sonawane · International Journal of Advanced Research in Commerce Management & Social Science · Global

A 2024 study explored the multifaceted importance of urban agriculture in urban and peri-urban areas, highlighting its role in enhancing food security, economic resilience, and environmental sustainability. The research examined entrepreneurial opportunities and strategies to foster sustainable food systems through innovative practices such as backyard cultivation, participatory gardens, green roofs, vertical farms, and tech-enabled marketplaces. It advocated for urban agriculture as a scalable model for addressing urban challenges and encouraging entrepreneurship, particularly in rapidly urbanizing regions like Asia and Africa.

Pavitira Manogaran, Nur Aliah Mansor · Practice, progress, and proficiency in sustainability · Malaysia (Penang)

This research investigates the impact of home gardening in Penang, Malaysia, which gained popularity during the COVID-19 pandemic due to increased food demand and supply chain disruptions. The study highlights home gardening's potential to promote self-sufficiency, food security, and sustainable practices, contributing to food system resilience and community well-being. It aligns with sustainable development goals like zero hunger and climate action.

Bai Qu, Zhenlei Xiao, Abhinav Upadhyay, Yangchao Luo · Journal of Agriculture and Food Research · Global

This review provides an overview of key characteristics differentiating sustainable food production from conventional agriculture, addressing challenges like environmental degradation and resource competition. It summarizes technologies promoting sustainable food production, detailing urban agriculture, next-generation plant-based foods, and food nanotechnology. The review concludes by proposing futuristic solutions and research for designing sustainable agri-food systems.

Veena G Sonole, Soumya CB, A Meghana, Mahesh G Shetty · International Journal of Research in Agronomy · Global

This review examines vermicomposting, a process using earthworms to convert organic waste into nutrient-rich compost. Vermicompost benefits horticultural crops, improves soil fertility, and reduces the need for chemical pesticides and fertilizers. Vermitechnology offers solutions for waste management, soil fertility, and sustainable agricultural practices in urban agriculture.

Suwa Lal Yadav, Manish Yadav, Devilal Birla, Indra Raj Yadav · · Global

Organic farming is evolving by integrating regenerative techniques, agroecological principles, precision agriculture, and urban farming concepts to meet growing demand for organic products. This approach aims to improve agricultural output, address climate change, manage pests, and optimize resource use, contributing to a sustainable and ethically sound food ecology. The organic industry is projected to grow due to increased consumer awareness and education.

Olabimpe Banke Akintuyi · Open Access Research Journal of Biology and Pharmacy · Global

This paper reviews the architectural integration of vertical farming systems in urban environments and their impact on food security. It explores design strategies like green walls and modular systems, emphasizing the role of technology such as AI and robotics in enhancing efficiency and scalability. Vertical farming is presented as a method to reduce reliance on long-distance transportation and mitigate climate variability, contributing to stable food production in urban centers.

Kalpana Waiba, Alina Maharjan, R Shakya · Journal of Environment Sciences · Nepal

This study investigated the status and impact of urban agriculture on the population in the Kathmandu Valley, Nepal. A structured questionnaire survey of 230 families showed that 51% of respondents had access to growing areas and 76% chose kitchen gardening. The main motivations were economic considerations (50%) and personal satisfaction (20%). Participants reported cultivating 55% of their diet, contributing to good health, though challenges such as plant diseases (40%) were present.

Zeina ElZein · Chinese Journal of Urban and Environmental Studies · Global

This paper reviews articles on the water, energy, and food nexus and urban resilience from the past 10 years, exploring the need for interdisciplinary approaches. It identifies key research foci, gaps, and future research needs. Recommendations for future studies include allocating funds to ensure vulnerable communities' access to resources, sustainable operation of urban agriculture practices, circular economy and reuse, and engaging experts, local authorities, and communities in decision-making and training. The study also recommends using quantitative assessment to identify the impact of urban agriculture and urban water management practices on the environment and including socio-economic aspects in assessment models.

Harry Wiyanto · Labs Jurnal Bisnis dan Manajemen · Global

This conceptual review aims to explore the factors, specifically knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP), that influence the adoption of urban farming practices. Urban farming is presented as a means for food security with diverse goals and benefits, including improved access to fresh produce and reduced climate change impact. The study seeks to gain a deeper understanding of the overall concept of the KAP model in relation to urban farming adoption.

Avi Friedman · · Global

This chapter explores the concept of urban agriculture as an approach to address challenges in the current food system, including food insecurity, environmental degradation, and unhealthy eating habits. It examines design principles for creating sustainable and productive edible landscapes and the benefits of farmers' markets, offering insights for urban planners, designers, and policymakers.

Cherry Love B. Montales · International Journal of Research Publication and Reviews · Global

This systematic review analyzed 25 peer-reviewed studies published between 2014 and 2020 to explore how agricultural programs are implemented in secondary schools. Using clear inclusion/exclusion criteria and thematic analysis, the review showed that school gardens, often combined with other activities, were the most common initiatives. These programs involved students, teachers, parents, and other stakeholders, with key themes identified as health and nutrition, food security, teaching, environmental sustainability, learning, and the use of information and communication technology.

Efadul Huq · International Journal of Urban and Regional Research · Bangladesh (Dhaka)

This article argues that in the global South, ecological infrastructure often displaces marginalized urban dwellers by erasing existing informal agricultural practices, or "green informalities." Based on research with urban farmers facing eviction in Dhaka, Bangladesh, it highlights that these green informalities are crucial for understanding grassroots practices and collective power-building. The study advocates for recognizing the political and affective dimensions of informal urban agriculture as a socially just ecological infrastructure that prioritizes justice and dweller agency.

Muhammad Waseem Khan, WU Qun, Siqi Yan, Komal Bilal, Muhammad Bilawal Junaid, Wesam Atef Hatamleh · Journal of Urban Planning and Development · Global

This global study investigated the multifunctional role of land-use planning in peri-urban and urban agricultural drylands, using a survey of 680 participants and a structural equation model. Findings indicated that amenity, landscape and recreational value, and proximity significantly affect these areas. Conversely, large rural lots in China's Tianjin region negatively affected both the level of urbanization and urban agricultural drylands.

Mostafa Baniasadi, Mohammad Eydipour · Nature Conservation · Iran (Dezful)

This study analyzed citizen preferences and willingness to pay (WTP) for community garden services in Dezful, Iran, using a choice experiment with 170 respondents in autumn 2022. Results showed citizens were willing to pay 4.57 USD per month, valuing cultural services most, followed by provisioning services. Age, being native, education, household expenditure, and awareness of ecosystem services significantly affected WTP.

Paula Mota Santos · Social Inclusion · Portugal (Porto)

Grassroots urban horticultural plots (hortas) in the Porto Metropolitan Area, Northern Portugal, are informal communities that have existed for decades, often involving over 20-30 people. However, these low-income urbanite horticultural communities are not cherished by city governance, which does not prevent their destruction. This incompatibility between urban governance and grassroots communities hinders the right to the city for the low-income urbanites who created them.

John Wilkinson · Bristol University Press eBooks · Global

This book argues that the wave of agri-food innovations under review takes urban life, rather than rural production, as its point of departure, motivated by urban sensibilities like health, climate, and animal wellbeing, and existing urban food consumption practices. The two main innovations analyzed—climate-controlled agriculture and alternative proteins—can be integrated into the urban environment, radically reducing the agricultural footprint and environmental pressure. Combined with deindustrialization and energy transition, new food perspectives question the historical urbanization-agriculture relation, identifying varied food provision forms, often involving significant urban food production. A radical city-country separation occurred only in the early 20th century due to public hygiene, transport innovations, and the end of horse transport. Deindustrialization in the North and urban poverty in the South see urban agriculture reintroduced as a food security strategy. Urban designers envision food reintegration into the city, compatible with the innovations analyzed.

Huq, Efadul · Smith ScholarWorks (Smith College) · Bangladesh (Dhaka)

Research in Dhaka, Bangladesh, indicates that ecological infrastructure often erases existing informal agricultural practices, leading to the displacement of marginalized urban dwellers. Based on engaged research with a collective of urban farmers facing eviction, this paper argues that green informalities are crucial for understanding grassroots practices and can be appreciated as socially just ecological infrastructure.

B.J.M. van Vliet, Kamonashish Haldar, Matthijs T. Wessels, Katarzyna Kujawa-Roeleveld, Gert Jan Veldwisch · Water International · Global

This study examined the governance of irrigated urban agriculture in Arusha, Tanzania, and Khulna, Bangladesh, from a service regime perspective. Findings showed how service regimes bridge the gap between formal governance institutions and practices around irrigated urban agriculture. It is concluded that acknowledging, facilitating, and aligning these regimes can strengthen governance arrangements.

Elin Montelius · Journal of Risk Research · Sweden

This paper analyzes the utopia of self-sufficiency as a response to risk and uncertainty, particularly focusing on the growing interest in gardening and cultivating vegetables in Sweden. Using intersectional risk theory, it examines how narratives of self-sufficiency function to address ecological risk and uncertainty, and how utopian narratives can contribute to undoing risk.

Godwin K. Naazie, Isaac Agyemang, Anthony Mwinilanaa Tampah-Naah · Discover Environment · Ghana

This study investigated climate change adaptation strategies among 191 urban crop and livestock farming households and 13 key informants in Ghana using mixed methods. Findings revealed a significant link between farmers' educational status, gender, and climate adaptation information sources. Strategies include cultivating improved crop varieties, rearing exotic animal breeds, and treating animals with vaccinations and chemicals, but access to agricultural extension services remains a primary challenge.

Lee D. Bryant, Roy Maconachie, Bastian Schnabel, Abubakarr Swaray, Howard Gigi, Solomon Gbanie, Kabba Haroun Bangura, Anthony Kamara, Prince Antwi-Agyei · Water Science & Technology Water Supply · Sierra Leone (Freetown)

This paper examined the environmental health status of three urban and peri-urban agriculture (UPA) sites in Freetown, Sierra Leone. Qualitative and quantitative data revealed heavy metal concentrations significantly exceeding regulatory limits in sweet potato leaves and arable soil. Additionally, soaring levels of faecal coliform bacteria were found in irrigation water, and crops were identified as hyperaccumulators for environmental contaminants.

Paul Teng · Asian Journal of Agriculture and Development · Global

This paper examines urban agriculture's role in national planning, particularly concerning global food security challenges as urban populations grow. It notes that urban and peri-urban agriculture, ranging from community gardens to commercial farms, has seen rapid technological development and private investment, especially since the early 2020s. Beyond economic and food security benefits, urban agriculture also offers environmental and social advantages for cities aiming to reduce their carbon footprints.

Anusha Ghimire, Sunil Ojha, Srijana Saud, Sanju Aryal, Anjali Thapa, Prabina Bhandari · INWASCON Technology Magazine · Global

This review summarizes the need for urban horticulture, its challenges, opportunities, and new trends. Urban horticulture addresses threats to food security, environmental quality, and community well-being in urban settings by providing local produce, improving green spaces, and fostering human-nature connections. It faces obstacles such as plant selection and nutrient recycling, but new techniques like aeroponics and vertical farming are emerging.