Research & reports

Zavisca J.R. · Slavic Review · Russia

An ethnographic study showing that dacha food cultivation among urban Russians serves as a discursive arena for debating the rationality and morality of the post-Soviet transition to capitalism, not merely an economic survival strategy.

Pallot J., Nefedova T. · Journal of Rural Studies · Russia (Moscow Oblast)

Examines the diverse forms and micro-geography of personal food plot production in Moscow Oblast, revealing how geographic, historical, and structural factors shaped household farming during the post-socialist transition.

· Irrigation and Drainage · Sudano-Sahel (Niger)

Documents the development of a low-pressure, low-cost drip irrigation system (the African Market Garden) for smallholder growers in the Sudano-Sahel.

Olufunke Cofie, R. van Veenhuizen, Pay Drechsel · · Sub-Saharan Africa

Urban and peri-urban agriculture (UPA) significantly contributes to food supply, employment, livelihoods, and poverty alleviation in many Sub-Saharan African cities, providing diverse foods including perishable items. However, UPA production often carries health risks from polluted urban water and faces challenges due to limited semi-official recognition and support from city authorities, sometimes conflicting with planners regarding land tenure and water use. More data is needed for appropriate recognition of this sector.

Christopher M. Smith, Hilda E. Kurtz · Geographical Review · United States (New York City)

New York City community gardens have faced political contestation for thirty years, notably in 1999 when 114 gardens were slated for public auction and redevelopment. This article examines the controversy as a politics of scale, where garden advocates expanded the dispute beyond individual gardens and the city. The analysis highlights the significance of scale politics for grassroots organizations within a market-centric, neoliberal economic framework.

James M. Wolf, M S van Wijk, X Cheng, Yuanhao Hu, C.A. van Diepen, A.W. Jongbloed, H van Keulen, C H Lu, R.P. Roetter · Environment and Urbanization · China (Beijing)

This paper reviews agricultural production trends in Beijing Municipality and their impact on water quality. Rapid urbanization and agricultural intensification have led to concerns regarding water resource quantity and quality. The agricultural sector, while supplying food, is a major water user and has contributed to significant water supply-demand gaps and high levels of water pollution, particularly from intensive crop, vegetable, and livestock production.

Jan Perez · eScholarship (California Digital Library) · United States (California)

This 2003 research brief investigated the experiences of Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) growers on the central coast of California. The study examined their motivations, economic viability, challenges, and issues related to equal access to their products. The research brief indicates that challenges and issues of equal access are present in CSA projects.

Derek Eaton, Thea Hilhorst · Environment and Urbanization · Africa

A 2003 paper examined the links between urban solid waste management and peri-urban agriculture in Bamako and Ouagadougou. Farmers near both cities value urban waste as an organic matter source and are willing to pay for it, but uncertain land tenure provides little incentive for safe disposal of dangerous elements in solid waste. Current plans to eliminate this recycling practice and promote large-scale composting are noted to be too costly for farmers, creating an incentive for illicit waste acquisition.

俞凯丰 · 上海农村经济 · China (Shanghai)

This paper discusses the profound changes in agriculture's function, its role in urbanization, and urban-rural relations within the context of Shanghai's development into an international metropolis. Following fundamental shifts in China's agricultural product supply and demand, agriculture in metropolitan suburbs is no longer merely a subsidiary food base. New urban demands and qualitative changes in agriculture necessitate its extension into secondary and tertiary industries and integration with cities, thereby giving agriculture new connotations and functions, and forming a new development pattern.

Thilak T. Ranasinghe · International Journal of Sustainable Development & World Ecology · Sri Lanka

Through experience in the Western Province of Sri Lanka, the "Family Business Garden" concept justifies the necessity of urban agriculture amidst limited urban infrastructure, environmental conditions, and socio-economic situations. This concept, by properly mixing environmental and commercial agricultural concerns, not only addresses family food requirements but also opens the way to produce for markets under liberalized economies by promoting agro-entrepreneurship and social capital development in urban communities.

Christian M. Rogerson · Acta Academica Critical views on society culture and politics · South Africa

This article examines international and South African research on urban agriculture's role in poverty reduction, arguing for the need for policy guidelines to support local initiatives in South Africa. It suggests that best practices from international urban agriculture policy interventions could form the basis for such guidelines.

Liao Minghui · Nongye xiandaihua yanjiu · China (ChangshaZhuzhouXiangtan)

This paper discusses the essentiality of urban agriculture development in urban compact districts, highlighting its multiple efficacies including economic, social, and ecological benefits. Based on an analysis of typical examples in ChangshaZhuzhouXiangtan, the paper describes the current status and identifies many problems in urban agriculture. Finally, numerous countermeasures are proposed for these issues.

Mulu Tesfay Gebru · Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research) · Ethiopia (Addis Ababa)

This research in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, investigated community gardens as urban food security initiatives, collecting data through surveys and market analysis. Seasonal fluctuations showed vegetable production peaked during the rainy season, contributing up to 30% of total annual harvests. Economic models indicated a positive correlation between garden size and local income generation, highlighting the potential of community gardens for food security and economic stability.

Jitsuo Saito · Institutional Repositories DataBase (IRDB) · Global

This article explores the concept of green community tourism for urban citizens, discussing the ambivalence towards community and the role of green money in fostering green prosumerism. It suggests that green tourism can build communities that integrate both market and non-market economies, strengthening relationships between urban and rural communities and supporting Community Supported Agriculture (CSA). The article also references the Japanese Organic Certification Rule announced in 2000.

Diao Yong-zuo · Zhongguo Qingnian Zhengzhi Xueyuan xuebao · Global

Urban agriculture is a significant phenomenon of social and economic development and an important constituent of the urban industrial structure. It has overtaken and promoted traditional agriculture, with its function and influence extending beyond traditional agriculture, becoming a significant aspect of the modern urban economy. Actively cultivating urban agriculture is a key task for developing the modern urban economy and achieving agricultural modernization.

Sylvaine Lemeilleur, Ludovic Temple, Moïse Kwa · Agritrop (Cirad) · Cameroon (Yaoundé)

This study states that urban development, a key feature of socioeconomic change in developing countries, presents the challenge of increasing food supply to meet urban consumer demands. While peri-urban agriculture offers favorable conditions for intensifying production systems, there is limited research specifically on bananas. Therefore, this work aims to identify banana production systems in the peri-urban agriculture of Yaoundé, Cameroon's capital (1.4 million inhabitants).

N. Bertrand, Nicole Rousier · HAL (Le Centre pour la Communication Scientifique Directe) · France (Grenoble)

In the Grenoble urban region, agriculture holds relatively minor economic importance despite the region's strong technological development. However, the region's 2000 master plan assigned an essential role to farming. Peri-urban agriculture is a key issue in planning policies, engaging local officials, planners, and farming community representatives, but its economic weight remains low.

G. B. Luilo, Othman C. Othman · Journal de Physique IV (Proceedings) · Tanzania (Dar es Salaam)

This study measured heavy metal levels (cadmium, manganese, lead, and zinc) in Cynodon grasses near roads in Dar es Salaam City, Tanzania. Mean levels of lead and zinc varied exponentially with distance from the road up to 15m and correlated with average daily traffic, suggesting vehicular sources. For public health reasons, it is recommended that pasture grasses in road vicinities not be used for foraging dairy cattle and goats.

Lei Qion, Peng Ke-shan · Journal of Chongqing University. English Edition · China

This paper addresses three agricultural problems in China: slow agricultural growth, lagging rural development, and low peasant income. These issues, stemming from urban-rural disparities and financial deviations from the planned economy era, are analyzed with urban agriculture presented as an effective solution. The paper discusses the importance, basic concepts, and characteristics of urban agriculture, summarizes its role and development model in the Yangling agricultural high technology and production model area, and proposes sustainable development countermeasures based on advanced experiences from China and abroad.

André Fleury, Paule Moustier, Jean-Jacques Toiron · Agritrop (Cirad) · Global

This project aims to analyze the specificities and contributions of peri-urban agriculture to the transformation of peri-urban spaces into urban territories. It seeks to unify analytical concepts for agriculture in urban areas and produce intervention tools for urban planning and agricultural policy. The project hypothesizes that the sustainability of peri-urban agriculture depends on its ability to integrate into urban policy and projects, leveraging diverse urban demands.

Jiang Nai-li · · China (Shenyang)

This article defines urban agriculture, analyzes the advantages and necessity of its development in Shenyang, and proposes a suitable model, based on an extensive review of materials. The author concludes that broadening the function of urban agriculture is necessary to find a development path with Chinese characteristics.

Nathalie Bertrand, Nicole Rousier · Revue de géographie alpine · France (Grenoble)

This study analyzed the economic role of agriculture in the Grenoble urban region, France. From an economic perspective, agriculture was considered an activity of relatively minor importance in this region, known for its strong technological development. However, in the regional master plan approved in 2000, farming occupies an essential position. The study aimed to understand the role of peri-urban agriculture in the preparation of the urban region's development plan by specifying its assigned functions and analyzing how agriculture has been considered in regional plans.

You Shao · · China (Chongqing)

This paper examines the development of urban agricultural industrialization in the metropolitan periphery, using Chongqing, China, as an example. It identifies the position, role, and favorable conditions of urban agriculture, which embodies economic, social, and ecological functions. The study also highlights existing problems in Chongqing's agricultural industrialization and proposes countermeasures.

Neil S. Brantley · San José State University ScholarWorks (San Jose State University) · Global

This research project aims to provide a framework of relevant information for developing sustainable urban agriculture systems as a tool to improve the quality of life for the urban poor. Two different infrastructure contexts are presented, with the intent of relating the applicability of urban agriculture initiatives to enhancing destitute urban communities in both developed and developing worlds, referencing successful case studies. Urban agriculture is beginning to be recognized by the world community as one viable urban development option.

Zhou Xiao · · China (Guiyang)

This paper summarizes the concepts of urban agriculture and urban agriculture tourism, discussing its development in China and its particularities in Karst areas. It examines the development of urban agriculture tourism in Guiyang city, identifying five advantages and five types of agricultural tourism development. Based on these, the article proposes three zones corresponding to resource allocation for urban agriculture tourism in Guiyang and offers suggestions for its development.