Research & reports
Peer-reviewed research and reports on community urban agriculture, food education, composting, welfare and more.
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Critical findings
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Feeding the Cities: Is Urban Agriculture the Future of Food Security?
2013Claire Corbould · · Global
This abstract discusses the role of urban agriculture, which produces 15 to 20 percent of the world's food supply, in global food security. Urban populations are vulnerable to food insecurity as they rely on external food sources. Some commentators suggest that urban agriculture may provide a solution to food security issues in cities.
Food sovereignty & justiceUrban–rural linkagePeri-urban agricultureAGRICULTURA URBANA E PERIURBANA agriculture urban and periurban
2013Juliano Avelar Moura, William Rodrigues Ferreira, Luciene de Barros, Lorandi Silveira Lara · Mercator · Global
This study discusses the viability of introducing urban and peri-urban agriculture models in municipal planning, driven by the need to improve the current chaotic management model of urban space. It focuses on the dynamics of relations between the environment, transport, and socioeconomics, presenting urban agriculture as a strategic program for harmonizing urban spaces.
PolicyUrban–rural linkagePeri-urban agricultureClimate changeOrganic and Local Food
2013Robert Paarlberg · · Global
Organic foods, initially championed in the early 20th century, gained commercial significance in the 1990s as consumers sought to avoid chemical residues and improve nutrition. However, scientific support for nutritional benefits and significant reductions in pesticide residue risks is weak. While organic crops reduce chemical runoff, they require more land due to lower yields, leading to the promotion of "local" foods and urban agriculture.
Organic cycleFood miles & supply chainFood sovereignty & justiceUrban–rural linkageUnderwriting Food Security the Urban Way: Lessons from African Countries
2013Franklin Obeng‐Odoom · Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems · Africa
Data from living standards and demographic health surveys and poverty trend studies in various African countries indicate that urban agriculture substantially contributes to food production and farmers' incomes. The article argues that urban agriculture empowers rather than limits, but to realize its full potential for food security in African cities, it must be understood within a broader socioeconomic and political reality. Factors like food safety, access, and distribution require careful attention.
Food sovereignty & justiceEconomicsPolicyUrban–rural linkageBorrowed Ground: Evaluating the Potential Role of Usufruct in Neighborhood-Scale Foodsheds
2013Benjamin Carl Kerrick · OhioLink ETD Center (Ohio Library and Information Network) · Global
Urban growth in the 20th and 21st centuries has increased urban food demand while diminishing agricultural production areas around cities. Urban agriculture can expand food access, engage urban dwellers in food production, and utilize unused urban lots. Idle or vacant land, both public and private, represents an important resource for this purpose.
CommunityFood sovereignty & justiceEconomicsPolicyUrban–rural linkageLa agricultura urbana y el cultivo de sí: los huertos de ocio a la luz de las dinámicas neorrurales
2013Fernando Richter · Dialnet (Universidad de la Rioja) · Global
This article examines the current boom in urban agriculture, noting a shift from its historical function of food production to a focus on recreational and leisure activities. It suggests that symbolic dynamics associated with new-ruralism, consumption, and a nostalgic search for authenticity converge in this phenomenon. The study proposes that Leisure Studies offer a valuable perspective for understanding the complexity of urban agriculture as a leisure experience.
CommunityDIYHealthUrban–rural linkageMunicipal commonage in South Africa: a critique of artificial dichotomies in policy debates on agriculture
2013Doreen Atkinson · African Journal of Range and Forage Science · South Africa
This paper critiques the assertion that commercialization of smallholder agriculture poses dangers for sustainable rangeland management in South Africa. It argues that a range of policy options are required, including commercialization and subsistence farming, large-scale and smallholder farming, various land tenure options, rural and peri-urban farming, and part-time farming. The case of municipal commonage land is used to demonstrate the effectiveness of flexible policy options regarding land ownership, farming scale, and the social nature of farming, but it is noted that effective institutional development is a key requirement in all cases.
Governance failurePolicyPeri-urban agricultureUrban–rural linkageFresh Squeezed: The Dilemma of Local Food Production Along Colorado's Front Range Urban Corridor
2013Amanda Jessie Weaver · Digital Commons - DU (University of Denver) · United States (Colorado)
This project combined U.S. Agricultural Census data with a survey of local producers in Colorado's Front Range Urban Corridor to examine the competition between urban development and food production. The study found that urban development is increasingly encroaching on rich agricultural lands, which are also desirable for housing. Consequently, Colorado faces increasing competition for land, potentially driving local food prices up and displacing producers to peripheral areas or out of food production entirely.
Governance failureUrban–rural linkageEconomicsPolicyClimate change基于“田园城市”的开发区建设思路研究
2013冉淑青, 周潮 · Acta Scientiarum Naturalium Universitatis Sunyatseni · China
This study explores the guiding significance of the "Garden City" theory for the development and construction of new development zones in China. Addressing issues of sprawling urban expansion and urban-rural separation, it discusses the ideal composition of development zones guided by the Garden City concept. This includes urban clusters, urban complexes, urban green space systems and urban agriculture, rapid transportation systems, and development strategies for urban construction, industrial development, urban-rural integration, social management, and policy formulation.
PolicyUrban–rural linkageCommercialization of Urban Farming: The Case of Vegetable Farmers in Southwest Nigeria
2013Roseline J. Akinlade, Olubunmi Lawrence Balogun, Adekemi A. Obisesan, Akinlade, Roseline J., Balogun, Olubunmi L., Obisesan, Adekemi A. · AgEcon Search (University of Minnesota, USA) · Nigeria
This study analyzed the determinants of commercialization among 230 urban vegetable farmers in Oyo and Lagos states, southwest Nigeria, using primary survey data and a Tobit model. It found that farmers' participation in domestic and regional markets remains low due to various constraints, notably poor market access. The average farm size was 0.05ha, and the average market participation index was 0.73. Factors influencing commercialization included age, farm size, association membership, education, distance to market, and input costs. The study concluded that social capital significantly affects market participation, and recommended proactive support from governments and NGOs to facilitate farmer organizations and market linkages.
Economic viabilityEconomicsUrban–rural linkageFood sovereignty & justiceHarmony of Interests
2013Max Pearlstein · · Cameroon
Rachel Gilbert, Grace Lange, and Sarah Wright, alumni of Dickinson, founded Cameroonian Roots. This program disseminates microfinance opportunities and education in urban agriculture and women's empowerment.
Urban–rural linkageWelfareFood educationThinking about the Chinese-style Community Supported Agriculture
2013Chen Hui-fan · Anhui nongye kexue · China (Zhengzhou)
This article analyzes the Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) model in Zhengzhou and proposes a new Chinese-style CSA model, "daughter-in-law in the city, her husband outside the city," inspired by roof vegetable gardens. This model is presented as beneficial for organic agriculture development and urban roof greening, offering a mutually beneficial practice for combining roof greening and agriculture. It is described as a green economy approach that promotes ecological environment protection and urban-rural economic development.
CSA & TeikeiDIYUrban–rural linkageEconomicsReinvigorating Waikiki: Multi-Sensory Architecture for Urban Agriculture
2013Yukihiro Yamaguchi · ScholarSpace (University of Hawaii at Manoa) · United States
This research aimed to enhance Waikīkī's image with sustainable planning and design, focusing on visitors' perceptions. While visitors' images of Waikīkī were primarily positive, the region faces environmental problems including inadequate recycling, transportation, and agriculture/aquaculture issues. The project proposes a new sustainable solution incorporating urban agriculture with an international event, Expo Hawai‘i 2020, to address these environmental challenges.
Urban–rural linkageClimate changeThe Potential--and Limitations--of Urban Farming
2013Marc van lersel · · Global
Agriculture faces the 21st-century challenge of feeding a growing, urbanizing population while minimizing negative environmental impact. Urban farming has been presented as a potential solution to perceived problems with conventional agricultural production, but its effectiveness as a comprehensive solution is questioned.
Limited or null effectUrban–rural linkageClimate changeFood sovereignty & justiceSurvey and Analysis on the Demand of Urban Agriculture Development on Finance in Tianjin
2013Zhao Shu-ji · Tianjin Agricultural Sciences · China (Tianjin)
In Tianjin, the demand characteristics for financial support for urban agriculture development were investigated. The results showed that peasant households and agricultural zones had multiple needs for agricultural techniques, and urban agriculture development required significant support from government fiscal and monetary resources.
EconomicsPolicyUrban–rural linkageState of Australian Cities Conference (SOAC) 2013 Comparing food efficient design and planning of built environments in Sydney and Miami
2013Sumita Ghosh · · Global
This paper aims to measure and compare the morphologies and spatial dimensions of three typologies of small local food production spaces—urban small farms, community gardens, and home gardens—in two low-density suburban residential neighborhood case studies in Sydney and Miami. Miami's integrated form-based zoning code, "The Transect," provides design and planning guidelines for six zones from urban to natural areas. Results indicate that morphological analysis can significantly assist in the design and planning of built environments and the formulation of planning policy.
CommunityPolicyUrban–rural linkage비혼 여성 활동가들의 공동체 농사를 통해 본 도시농업의 여성주의적 실천 가능성
2013김효정 · 한국여성학 · South Korea
Through in-depth interviews and participant observation research targeting women's activist organizations established since 2010, the characteristics of urban agriculture cases led or participated in by unmarried women in their 20s and 30s were analyzed. Unmarried women activists met the growing demand for safe and healthy food among single-person households through community farming in urban areas, practicing agriculture not only for food production but also as a lifestyle pursuit and recreational culture. However, their practices face limitations such as urban space constraints, difficulties for unmarried women to relocate to rural areas, excessive ecological value attribution, and a lack of solidarity with rural communities.
Equity & displacementCommunityWelfareFood sovereignty & justiceEconomicsUrban–rural linkageTactics of Development Zone Construction Under the Direction of the Theory of Garden City
2013Ran Shu · Journal of Huaiyin Institute of Technology · China
This study examined the guiding significance of the over 100-year-old Garden City theory for the construction of new development zones in China. Addressing issues like continuous development and urban-rural separation in Chinese cities, the research analyzed the core ideas of the Garden City theory and its relevance for development zone construction. It discussed the ideal composition of development zones, including city groups, urban complexes, urban green space systems, urban agriculture, and rapid transit systems, as well as development tactics encompassing city construction, industrial development, urban-rural integration, social management, and policy formulation.
PolicyUrban–rural linkageMaatschappelijke kosten-batenanalyse stadslandbouw : de cases voedseltuin Rotterdam, de Nieuwe Warande en Hazennest Tilburg
2013Ruud Abma, U. Kirchholtes, J.E. Jansma, M.P. Vijn · Data Archiving and Networked Services (DANS) · Europe
Urban agriculture is a subject of societal interest, seen as a promising contributor to sustainable urban development. It offers alternatives for agricultural professionals, accessible locations for urban residents to relax and learn, and often improves the physical and social environment of neighborhoods.
EconomicsCommunityHealthUrban–rural linkageUrban and Peri-urban Agriculture in Phnom Penh, Cambodia: Challenges and Opportunities
2013Simon Underhill, Underhill, Simon · Asian Journal of Agriculture and Development · Cambodia
This paper reported on trends in urban agriculture (rice, vegetables, cattle, swine, and poultry) in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, since 1993. Approximately 20% (125 square kilometers) of the municipal area of Phnom Penh is used for agriculture, supporting nearly 300,000 livestock. Between 1993 and 2011, livestock populations declined but increased in 2011, while vegetable production and cultivated area decreased, and rice production increased.
Urban–rural linkageFood sovereignty & justiceEconomicsPolicyUrban Agriculture:The Major Direction of Future Agricultural Development in Huainan City
2012Du, Xing-ying · 亚洲农业研究：英文版 · China (Huainan)
This paper analyzes the necessity of developing urban agriculture in Huainan City, China, identifying it as crucial for agricultural industry transformation, urban-rural integration, sustainable urban development, and effective resolution of issues concerning agriculture, countryside, and farmers. It also examines the city's endowments for urban agriculture and proposes a basic conception for its industrial form and spatial framework.
Urban–rural linkagePolicyEconomicsFood sovereignty & justiceInsecticide susceptibility status of the malaria vector Anopheles arabiensis in Khartoum city, Sudan: differences between urban and periurban areas
2012Osama M. E. Seidahmed, M.A. Abdelmajed, Mashair Sir El Khatim Mustafa, Abraham Mnzava · Eastern Mediterranean Health Journal · Sudan (Khartoum)
A baseline survey in Khartoum city, Sudan, from September to November 2007, assessed the insecticide susceptibility of 9820 Anopheles arabiensis specimens across 6 urban and periurban sites. The mosquito was susceptible to bendiocarb, propoxur, fenitrothion, deltamethrin, and lambda-cyhalothrin. However, susceptibility rates for malathion, DDT, and permethrin differed significantly between urban and periurban sites, and 50% knockdown times were significantly higher in periurban populations for deltamethrin, lambda-cyhalothrin, and malathion.
HealthBiodiversityUrban–rural linkageMechanism of Raising Urban Agricultural Effective Investment by Industrial Value Chain
2012Yun Xiao-lan · Anhui nongye kexue · Global
This paper introduced the concept and application status of value chain management, and the implications of using an industrial value chain to increase effective urban agricultural investment. Based on value chain management principles, the study explored the mechanism for increasing effective urban agricultural investment through the value chain of urban agriculture and other industries.
EconomicsUrban–rural linkageA Work in Progress - The British Columbia Farmland Preservation Program
2012Barry E. Smith · · Canada
The British Columbia Farmland Preservation Program, established by the Land Commission Act on April 18, 1973, aims to preserve the province's valuable farmland. This program has sustained economic and social benefits from agriculture, preserved community character, and maintained natural capital. The Agricultural Land Reserve (ALR) has also acted as an urban growth boundary, contributing to compact urban development and addressing land use conflicts.
PolicyUrban–rural linkageEconomicsHealthThinking of developing modern urban agriculture in Minhang District of Shanghai
2012Zeng Fan-rong · Shanghai nongye xuebao · China (Shanghai)
This paper presented ideas and proposals for the future development of modern urban agriculture in Minhang District, Shanghai, particularly during the Twelfth Five-Year Plan period. These proposals focused on developmental orientation, adjustments to industrial structure and spatial distribution, and innovation in agricultural management systems.
PolicyUrban–rural linkage