Research & reports

Isabel María Madaleno · Food, nutrition and agriculture · Global

An essay argues that urban agriculture—food and non-food production occurring throughout urban and peri-urban fabric—could improve city dwellers' nutritional status and food security, strengthen food self-reliance and employment prospects, and make survival strategies more effective. It describes urban agriculture as a setting where children, young people, and adults engage directly in safe food production and develop respect for farmers' work, surveys the evolution of cities and green-space use in Europe and North America, presents recent urban agriculture experiences in African, European, and Latin American countries, and advocates urban agriculture as a local solution to social, ecological, political, and economic problems.

Maxwell D., Levin C., Armar-Klemesu M., Ruel M., Morris S., Ahiadeke C. · IFPRI Research Report 112, International Food Policy Research Institute · Ghana

Based on a 1996-97 survey, this IFPRI report analyzes the relationship between urban poverty, food insecurity, and malnutrition in Accra, developing food and livelihood security indicators suited to urban settings and examining nutrition outcomes among the urban poor.

Sarah Lineberger, Jayne M. Zajicek · HortTechnology · Global

This study evaluated the "Nutrition in the Garden" program's effect on students' attitudes and behaviors regarding fruit and vegetables. While students' attitudes towards vegetables and fruit/vegetable snacks became significantly more positive after gardening, no differences were detected in attitudes towards fruit. Crucially, students' fruit and vegetable consumption did not significantly improve, remaining at an average of 2.0 servings per day, which is below national averages and recommendations.

James Leo Garrett, Garrett, James L. · AgEcon Search (University of Minnesota, USA) · Global

This work presents a table of contents for a publication addressing urban food and nutrition security in the developing world. It covers topics such as urbanization, rural-urban interdependence, urban livelihoods, food supply and distribution, the significance of urban agriculture, nutrition transition, urban women's work-life balance, urban health threats, and programming for urban food and nutrition security.

Margaret Armar‐Klemesu, Daniel Maxwell, N. Bakker, Marielle Dubbeling, S. Gündel, U. Sabel-Koschella, H. de Zeeuw · · Ghana (Accra)

This abstract describes the geographical and climatic characteristics of Accra, Ghana. Accra is located on the east coast, near the Greenwich meridian and 5 degrees north of the Equator. The climate is hot and humid, with mean temperatures ranging from 24°C in August to 27°C in March, and an average annual rainfall of 730 mm, mostly in June, July, and October.

Tina M. Waliczek, R. Daniel Lineberger, Jayne M. Zajicek, Jennifer Bradley · HortTechnology · Global

This study investigated adults' perceptions of the benefits of children participating in gardening through a web-based survey (320 responses) targeting adults working with youth in garden situations. The study covered 128,836 children, primarily under 12, involved in gardening with teachers in school gardens. Adults reported benefits to children's self-esteem and reduction in stress levels. Comparisons showed parents viewed food production as most important, while teachers prioritized socializing and learning about plants.

Angela Moskow · Environment and Urbanization · Cuba

The promotion of urban agriculture in Havana, Cuba, as a response to the acute food scarcity that developed after Soviet aid and trade were sharply curtailed in 1989, is examined through research including interviews with households engaged in urban agriculture. The paper describes the contribution of Havana's 26,000 self-provision gardens to household nutrition and income and to community environmental quality, and discusses lessons that can be drawn from this experience.

Sarah Lineberger, J.M. Zajicek · HortScience · Global

A study (HortScience, 1999) developed a teacher curriculum guide, "Nutrition in the Garden," combining horticulture and nutrition lessons, and tested its effect on children's food preferences and eating behaviors using a pretest/posttest attitude instrument developed by Tom Baranowski and a 24-hour food recall journal. The abstract states that results examine the effects of school gardens on nutritional attitudes and behaviors but does not report specific outcome figures.

Tina M. Waliczek, R. Daniel Lineberger, J.M. Zajicek · HortScience · Global

An online survey was conducted on the KinderGARDEN Web page to investigate children's perceptions of gardening benefits. Children responded via email, reporting on their gardening experiences, learning, and perceived advantages. Results indicated that children positively valued gardening for recreation, and also mentioned educational, environmental, aesthetic, social, and economic benefits. Specifically, 81% felt they learned about the environment, 54% about plants, 31% cited recreation/fun, and 15% mentioned socialization with friends and family.

Parajas Il · PubMed · Global

A 3-year study in two elementary schools investigated the caries preventive effect of wild tea (tsaang-gubat) among schoolchildren. The experimental group drank one cup of tea daily for 17 months, prepared from fresh school garden leaves. Results indicated that wild tea is an effective caries preventive agent, showing a 75.67% decrease in caries incidence, though an increase in the third year was attributed to irregular consumption and reduced tea fluoride content.

Guéladio Cissé · Infoscience (Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne) · Burkina Faso (Ouagadougou)

This thesis investigates the sanitary risks of using polluted water for urban agriculture in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, where vegetables, including those eaten uncooked, are irrigated with such water. The study aims to assess diarrhoea incidence, parasitic infection prevalence, microbiological pollution levels in water, soil, and vegetables, and sociocultural factors. Initial findings indicate that peripheral sectors are more polluted than central ones, and exploited surfaces vary significantly by season. The abstract highlights potential sanitary risks due to pathogenic germs surviving in water, soil, and plants.

Beacon Mbiba · · Zimbabwe (Harare)

This paper addresses the implications of urban agriculture for urban management and poverty in Zimbabwe, covering various aspects such as off-plot cultivation in Harare, urban cultivation at home, urban maize markets, and institutional responses to uncontrolled urban cultivation. Evidence from Harare suggests that urban agriculture can be a counterproductive activity, highlighting challenges and conflicts in urban management.

James R. Preer, Ahmed N. Abdi, Harkewal S. Sekhon, George B. Murchison · Journal of Environmental Science and Health Part A Environmental Science and Engineering and Toxicology · Global

This study investigated cadmium (Cd) and zinc (Zn) concentrations in vegetables grown in community gardens on different urban soils. Vegetables from a low-pH urban soil without contamination history showed higher Cd and Zn levels than those from a reclaimed landfill with digested sewage sludge, and also higher than a low-metal, neutral-pH site. Liming on the low-pH site reduced Cd and Zn concentrations in beet, lettuce, radish, and Swiss chard leaves, reaching background levels after four years. The findings indicate that soil pH is more important than total soil Cd and Zn in determining vegetable metal availability.

H. B. Tukey · Cambridge University Press eBooks · Global

This paper defines urban horticulture as the functional use of plants to improve urban environments. It states that urban horticulture contributes to screening views, food production, reducing noise and air pollution, ameliorating urban climates, and improving human well-being. The abstract notes that information on city plants often comes from observations and anecdotes, and that strategies from commercial agriculture do not always apply well to urban horticulture.

· PubMed · Global

This paper emphasizes the need for technological infrastructure to maximize the value of medicinal plants within primary health care (PHC). The WHO Programme on Traditional Medicine highlights the importance of appropriate drug availability in PHC and recommends cultivating medicinal plants in home or community gardens. It advocates for strengthening data gathering and analysis capabilities for economic mapping of medicinal flora in developing countries and for clinical research on the safety and efficacy of herbal medicines used by traditional health practitioners.

Joel Flagler · HortScience · Global

An overview of horticultural therapy, describing how trained therapists prescribe and administer planting and gardening activities for people with physical, mental and social disabilities in hospitals, geriatric centers, schools, rehabilitation facilities, community gardens and prisons. It states that research measuring effectiveness in clinical and correctional settings, and databases documenting the benefits, are underway, without giving specific figures or results.

Kasipathy Kailasapathy · Ecology of Food and Nutrition · Sri Lanka

This study developed a model school garden (28m²) in Sri Lanka to provide part of the nutritional requirements for school children. The garden produced an average daily yield of 813g of vegetables, supplying significant percentages of a 10-12 year old child's recommended daily intake, including 115% of calcium, 151% of iron, 557% of vitamin A, and 1222% of vitamin C.

H. B. Tukey · HortScience · Global

Urban horticulture is defined as a scientific field focused on the functional uses of plants to maintain and improve urban environments. These functional uses extend beyond aesthetics to include screening against wind and views, influencing climate, reducing noise, combating air pollution, providing food, and enhancing human well-being in densely populated areas. The audience for urban horticulture includes landscape professionals, plant societies, and amateur horticulturists.

William E. Roweton · Psychological Reports · Global

This study discussed the instructional advantages of growing vegetable seedlings in an introductory child psychology course. The project drew students' attention to the importance of nutrition in child development, as well as the popularity and practicalities of urban gardening. Additionally, the activity of "raising" plants proved to be a provocative analogy to "rearing" children.

重一朗 浜, 伝 中村 · 年会予稿集 · Cuba

In Cuba, programs such as dietary diversification, food fortification, and supplementation are implemented to address micronutrient deficiencies like iron, vitamin A, and iodine. Urban agriculture is positioned as one strategy to increase dietary diversity by enhancing the availability and consumption of vegetables and fruits. Research in Cuba has shown that vitamin A deficiency is nonexistent in children up to 7 years of age.