Research & reports

Ledogar Rj · PubMed · Zambia (Lusaka)

In 1978, a pilot project was initiated in Lusaka, Zambia, by UNICEF and The American Friends Service Committee to expand urban agriculture. This project aims to establish kitchen gardens on residential plots, cultivate road reserves and green belts, utilize idle land during the rainy season, raise small livestock, promote cooperative cultivation of small holdings in the urban periphery by low-income residents, and eventually resettle some urban residents on farms. The goal is for the service to be self-supporting by 1980.

Martha Díaz-Betancourt, Luciana Ghennandi, Ana H. Ladio, Ismael R López-Moreno, Estela Raffaele, Eduardo H. Rapoport · Revista de Biología Tropical · Latin America

This study compared edible weed biomass in tropical (Coatepec, Mexico, 400 samples) and temperate (Bariloche, Argentina, 739 samples) Latin America. Average edible fresh biomass ranged from 1277-3582 kg/ha in tropical areas and 287-2939 kg/ha in temperate areas. 43 species were sampled in Coatepec and 32 in Bariloche, with general means of 2.1 and 1.3 tons/ha respectively.

Natália da Silva Lemos, Liza Maria Da Souza de Andrade, Valério Augusto Soares de Medeiros · Paranoá cadernos de arquitetura e urbanismo · Brazil

This research analyzed urban planning challenges in Brazil from the perspective of urban agriculture, examining social policies and legal frameworks including the City Statute (Law 10.257/2001) and Law 6.766/1979. The findings indicate a gap in legal provisions for urban agriculture actions and practices within land use and occupation regulations. The study suggests guidelines for implementation to address this deficiency.

Mickie E. Swisher, Rose Koenig, Jennifer Gove, James A. Sterns · EDIS · United States (Florida)

This bulletin from the University of Florida explains the concept of a consumer-supported farm (Community Supported Agriculture, or CSA). CSA is a production method where consumers directly partner with farmers to secure their own food production, and this bulletin describes the steps required to develop such a partnership.