Research & reports

Catherine Féart, Pascale Barberger‐Gateau · World review of nutrition and dietetics · Global

This publication contains selected papers from the 'Healthy Agriculture, Healthy Nutrition, Healthy People' conference held in Ancient Olympia, Greece, in October 2010. Topics include the relationship between architecture and agriculture, food production systems and urban agriculture, physical activity, nutrition, genetic variation, and other determinants of human health. The papers indicate that optimal nutrition aligns with ecologically and economically sustainable agriculture, and highlight the need for scientific and political institutions to integrate research into urban planning, agriculture, and healthcare systems.

Marielle Dubbeling, H. de Zeeuw · Edward Elgar Publishing eBooks · Global

This handbook highlights that most urban growth occurs in less developed regions, often leading to over-urbanization where migrants struggle to find employment, adequate shelter, and sufficient food. Despite these challenges, urban poverty is frequently considered less severe than rural poverty.

Inge Wagemakers, Oracle Makangu Diki · Palgrave Macmillan UK eBooks · Congo (Kinshasa)

In rapidly growing African cities, particularly Kinshasa, urban agriculture is crucial for food provision, yet land available for agriculture decreases as cities expand. This study points out that in Kinshasa, population growth and a lack of empty land are pushing agriculture towards the city's periphery, threatening urban agricultural space. This situation highlights a conflict between the need to produce food and the need for living space.

Éric Duchemin · · Global

This paper discusses how urban agriculture improves the economic situation and health of poor and vulnerable families in both industrialized and developing countries. It suggests that policies reconciling urbanity and rurality can reduce food insecurity and better integrate the most vulnerable populations, contributing to sustainable development.

Olufunke Cofie · · Ghana (Accra)

This study examined the gender dimensions of livelihood sustainability through urban agriculture among vegetable producers in and around Accra, Ghana. Responses from 92 male producers and 8 female producers were analyzed, revealing a mean age of 39.4 years for males and 49.8 years for females, indicating females were older. The mean years of schooling were 6.4 for males and 7.1 for females. Urban agriculture significantly contributed to livelihoods, with farm size and access to credit identified as important determinants of income from urban agriculture.

Helen M. Byamugisha, Robert Ikoja-Odongo, George William Nasinyama · Library and Information Research · Uganda (Kampala)

A qualitative and quantitative study was conducted in Kampala City, Uganda, involving 380 urban farmers and 36 focus group respondents, to investigate the information needs and use among urban farmers. Results indicated that urban farmers' information needs were as varied as their diverse agricultural enterprises, and information use depended on the type of farming enterprise and activity undertaken. The study recommends that agricultural information dissemination in Kampala City should be based on urban farmers' enterprise groups and their specific information needs.

Abigail A. Aryeh-Adjei, P. Atengdem · Annals of Humanities & Development studies · Ghana

This study in Ashaiman Municipality, Greater-Accra region, Ghana, investigated the impact of Government/NGO support services on urban farmers' crop production and livelihoods. Surveying 104 urban vegetable farmers, it found that 88 farmers with access to support services from entities like the Ministry of Food and Agriculture and Pro Credit Bank observed improved crop production, whereas 16 without access did not. A significant difference was also identified between access to these services and various livelihood outcomes for urban farmers.

Zeng Shu-qin · Guangdong nongye kexue · Global

This paper conducted a comparative analysis of successful urban agriculture experiences in six developed countries: the United States, Japan, Germany, the Netherlands, France, and Singapore. It examined typical cases from these countries, focusing on their development characteristics, organizational forms, production characteristics, marketing and logistics, functions, and supporting policies. The successful experiences of these nations offer reference and inspiration for the development of urban agriculture in China.

Dieudonné E. Musibono, E.M. Biey, M. Kisangala, Camille Ipey Nsimanda, B.A. Munzundu, V. Kekolemba, J.J Palus · VertigO · Democratic Republic of Congo (Kinshasa)

Urban agriculture in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, serves as a palliative solution for social survival constraints such as a lack of remunerative salaries and sustainable jobs. However, poorly supervised urban farmers cultivate along busy roads, exposing vegetables to various contaminations, including lead. This practice highlights issues with site selection and supervision.

Masao Makiyama, Mami Inoue · JOURNAL OF RURAL PLANNING ASSOCIATION · Global

This study examined kleingartens (stay-type allotment gardens) established by private organizations, finding an increasing number of such gardens. Case studies revealed that privately established kleingartens tend to have higher use fees compared to government-established ones. Furthermore, problems identified include the reduction of administrative and maintenance expenses, location conditions, and the succession of managers.

Nyumbaiza Tambwe, Michael Rudolph, Ran Greenstein · Africa · Democratic Republic of Congo (Lubumbashi)

A study was conducted in Lubumbashi, Democratic Republic of Congo, from November 2004 to March 2005, on 100 farming households that adopted urban agriculture as an alternative livelihood after the collapse of a mining company. Data collected through semi-structured interviews, in-depth questions, and observation revealed that despite practicing urban agriculture, the living conditions of 75% of households declined, and 20% stabilized their living conditions but could not completely alleviate poverty. Only 5% of farmers achieved food security.

Ricardo Alberto Forero Rubiano, Hollman Giovanni Parra Vargas, Ricardo Andrés Luna Cristancho, Edwin Raúl Rivera Casadiego · · Global

This review article surveys different hydroponics systems and examines how they can serve as an alternative to traditional agriculture in urban areas, in the context of population growth and changing housing construction. It notes that hydroponics offers the advantage of producing goods free of chemical insecticides and other harmful pollutants, describing it as a simple, clean and economical method regardless of plant type — ornamental, medicinal, or food.

Sinan Koont · University Press of Florida eBooks · Cuba

This chapter describes how Cuba's 1980s economic reforms ("perfeccionamiento empresarial") sought to link urban agriculture workers' incomes more closely to their production output, noting that Cuba's urban agriculture price-formation and supply-demand mechanisms provide relatively high incomes for the workforce, and that non-monetary "moral" incentives—awards such as "de referencia" and "de excelencia" status given to individuals, collectives and provinces, plus an annual December 27 meeting between the President and outstanding urban agriculturalists—operate alongside material incentives to raise workers' self-esteem and social standing.

Sinan Koont · University Press of Florida eBooks · Cuba

An assessment of Cuban urban agriculture's production and distribution outcomes finds that the most successful subprogram is fresh vegetable production, which has grown rapidly island-wide, while other subprograms remain active but less developed. Distribution occurs through thousands of points-of-sale, MALs, self-provisioning, and MAEs, with social consumption at workplaces, hospitals, and schools. Urban agriculture plays a significant role in improving Cuban diets but has not led to food sovereignty; other outcomes cited include employment generation, environmental benefits, and community building.

Sinan Koont · University Press of Florida eBooks · Cuba

This book chapter opens with a review of various perspectives on urban agriculture in Cuba, gathered by the author through many interviews. It then reports on the author's own urban-agriculture site visits: the Municipality of San Cristóbal (including the IPA Batalla de Rubi hydroponic unit and UBPC El Mango); the Municipality of Matanzas (including Organopónico Triangulo and an Organipónico at the Empresa Forestal); Santiago de Cuba (Organopónicos Luis M. Poz and Roberto Alegre Capriles); and the City of Havana (UBPC Organopónico Vivero Alamar, CCS Antero Regalades Falcón, CCSF Arides Estevez Sánchez, parcela de Falcón, and the patio La Hierba Buena, which holds national-reference status). The chapter is descriptive, presenting site accounts rather than quantitative findings.

Luke M. Brander, Mark J. Koetse · Journal of Environmental Management 92(10): 2763-2773 · Global (meta-analysis)

Runs separate meta-analyses of the contingent-valuation and hedonic-pricing literatures to examine which physical, socio-economic and study-design characteristics drive the value of urban open space. Finds a positive, significant relationship between population density and open-space value, and that urban parks are valued more highly than forest, farmland or undeveloped land - but flags that methodological differences across studies have a large effect on estimates and that regional preference differences may limit how transferable any single value estimate is.

Jenny Gustavsson, Christel Cederberg, Ulf Sonesson, Robert van Otterdijk, Alexandre Meybeck, FAO · Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) · Global

This FAO study, conducted for the SAVE FOOD! congress at Interpack 2011 in Düsseldorf, estimates that roughly 1.3 billion tons of edible food produced globally is lost or wasted each year. It finds large regional disparities in per capita consumer-level food waste: 95-115 kg/year in Europe and North America versus only 6-11 kg/year in sub-Saharan Africa and South/Southeast Asia. Combined per capita food losses and waste across the supply chain are reported at 280-300 kg/year in Europe and North America versus 120-170 kg/year in sub-Saharan Africa and South/Southeast Asia.

FAO · Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) · Global

FAO's programme on urban and peri-urban agriculture, presenting a framework to support city food production for food security, jobs, environment and nutrition.

Astee L. Y., Kishnani N. T. · Journal of Green Building · Singapore

Examines the commercial viability of building-integrated rooftop farming on Singapore's public housing estates, modeling that nationwide adoption could sharply raise domestic vegetable output while cutting imports and carbon emissions.

Zezza A., Tasciotti L. · Food Policy 35(4):265-273 · Global

Using household survey data from 15 developing countries, this seminal study analyzes urban agriculture's contribution to poverty reduction and food security among the urban poor, finding it is mostly own-consumption oriented and offers modest but real welfare benefits.

Leonie Pearson, Linda Pearson, Craig J. Pearson · International Journal of Agricultural Sustainability · Global

This paper reviews research on urban agriculture, focusing on its social, economic, and environmental sustainability dimensions. It proposes three elements and three scales for urban agriculture, highlighting legal, social, and economic constraints and opportunities. The analysis suggests future research priorities include identifying principles for resilient cities and trialling innovative institutional mechanisms.

Rodica Sima, Ioana Micu, Dănuţ Maniutiu, N. Sima, Vasile Lazăr · Bulletin of University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine Cluj-Napoca Horticulture · Global

Edible landscaping integrates food-producing plants into ornamental settings, enhancing gardens with unique decorative components and offering health, aesthetic, and economic benefits. This approach considers both the aesthetic value and food production benefits of edible plants. Integrating vegetables into private property landscapes can provide a source of healthy fresh food and add aesthetic value through the cultivation of unusually colored or shaped varieties.

Charles French, Mimi Larsen Becker, Bruce E. Lindsay · Journal of Agriculture Food Systems and Community Development · Cuba (Havana)

This study examined urban agriculture in Havana, Cuba, using secondary data and interviews with 11 urban gardeners. It found that while agrarian reforms after 1991 led to the growth of private urban gardens and cooperatives, Cuba's integration with the global economy and adoption of free-market principles have since forced dramatic adjustments in the urban agriculture sector. This shift presents challenges to the sector's original role in food security.

Geoffrey Ross Owens · Africa · Tanzania (Dar es Salaam)

This article, using ethnographic and historical approaches, examines unplanned peri-urban settlements on Dar es Salaam's northern and western fringe, Tanzania, between 1975 and 2000. These districts were established by educated urban professionals who used urban farming as an economic diversification strategy. The study found that these settlements contributed to the reproduction of socio-economic inequality, attracting additional economically influential urban in-migrants after 1991.

Sumiko Abe · Journal for the Integrated Study of Dietary Habits · Global

This report examines the weakening relationship between agriculture and food, leading to market failures, reduced competitiveness, and information deficiencies, with processed foods and supermarket purchases dominating. It focuses on direct sales and Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) as methods to realize "eating habits of volitional selection." These regional markets foster trust and traceability, contributing to food safety, and the study introduces examples from 12,000 direct sales stores, female farmer enterprises, and the Pal System Consumers Cooperative Union.