Research & reports

Innocent Awasom · Journal of Agriculture Food Systems and Community Development · Global

Urban and peri-urban agriculture is considered a creative method of food production to address increasing urbanization and food insecurity. Urban food gardens are noted to have the potential to mitigate hunger and food insecurity, offering health, socio-cultural, environmental, and economic benefits.

Teuku Fadhla, Mutia Ismail · · Indonesia

This program aimed to assist the Tunggai Hamlet community in Banda Aceh City, Indonesia, to develop an entrepreneurial mindset and innovation in hydroponic urban farming and marketing. The program sought to increase the entrepreneurial mindset of Tunggai Hamlet youth, enhance innovation capabilities in hydroponic and marketing businesses, and produce agribusiness products via healthy hydroponic systems for commercial use.

Paulo Germán García Murillo, Laura Belkis Parada Romero, Julio Ernesto Rojas Mesa, Bernardo Garibello Suan · · Colombia (Bogotá)

A research project on urban agriculture was implemented for fifth-grade primary students and their families at El Carmelo school in Teusaquillo locality, Bogotá D.C., Colombia. The project aimed to raise awareness about STEAM competencies (environmental, technological, pedagogical, and artistic), designing two experimental practices for home development using bean seeds. The project led to important reflections on educational work regarding STEAM competencies for strengthening the relationship between sustainability, technology, learning, and arts, addressing specific issues such as food security, nutritional culture, prototyping culture, and strengthening scientific citizenship.

Salvatore Engel‐Di Mauro, George Martin · · Global

This chapter examines the global relationship between food growing and capitalism over 500 years, identifying three profit-seeking formats: mercantilism, industrialism, and global financialization. It argues that capitalism has led to a de-industrialization of cities and a commodification of agricultural products by corporate megafarms, contributing to green gentrification in urban redevelopment. This has incited a food resistance trend, leading to the emergence of community gardens and farms.

K. C. Sahu, M. K. Satapathy · International Journal of Agriculture Extension and Social Development · India

This paper discusses rooftop gardens as an alternative for vegetable production in Bhubaneswar City, India. While rooftop agriculture can improve ecosystem services and enhance urban biodiversity, vegetable production activities on rooftops are limited due to multiple challenges that need to be addressed for widespread implementation. Rooftops are not a total solution for food security but can supplement other urban food sources.

Jasmine Lorenzini · · Global

This chapter discusses political consumerism and market-based activism, defining the latter to include political consumerism, food collectives like community-supported agriculture, and lifestyle activism such as veganism. It then examines different conceptions of social change in relation to these modes of action. Finally, the chapter presents transformative actions within the environmental movement, highlighting how political consumerism and food activism embody varied understandings and ideals of democracy.

K.R.M. Swamy, Prem Nath · · Global

This paper discusses important messages emerging from several international horticultural conferences and workshops held in the new millennium. Messages from these conferences, conducted over the last decade in India and other countries, were extracted under headings such as the status of horticulture in the food world, education, research, extension, production, development, policy, and technical cooperation among developing countries.

Haryuni Haryuni, Sapto Priyadi, Suswadi Suswadi, Mrih Rahayu, Achmad Fatchul Aziez · PROSIDING SEMINAR NASIONAL DIES NATALIS 41 UTP SURAKARTA · Global

This article reviews types and management of urban farming, concluding that vertical farming is widely adopted due to its adaptability to limited urban land. Plant management typically involves planned and regular practices, utilizing household waste for fertilization and pest control. Common plant disturbances are caused by insects, fungi, bacteria, and viruses.

Felix Zoll, Kathrin Specht, Rosemarie Siebert · Sociologia Ruralis · Germany

To investigate drivers of transformation in alternative food networks (AFNs) in Germany, interviews were conducted with producers and consumers in three AFN models: Community Supported Agriculture (CSA), food co-operatives, and self-harvest gardens, followed by qualitative content analysis. Participants in CSA and food co-ops reported a strong reconnection between producers and consumers, indicating transformative potential, while self-harvest gardeners primarily sought individual capacity building and access to their own garden. AFN participation was suggested to foster incremental transformation towards more sustainable food practices and a respective value system.

Chanie Derso Misganaw · Agriculture Forestry and Fisheries · Ethiopia

This review paper highlights the current lack of urban agriculture practice in Ethiopian towns and emphasizes its significance. Urban agriculture contributes to food self-sufficiency, social goodness, economic profitability, and environmental health, and is stated as the most appreciated means to improve livelihoods, generate income, create job opportunities, and fight against famine, depression, anxiety, and the spread of coronavirus. The paper discusses the types, principles, and prospects of urban agriculture based on updated information.

Salvatore Engel‐Di Mauro, George Martin · · Global

Claims that urban food production raises food security and creates a more just society are questionable and contradicted by data from the Global North. Urban land is insufficient, sunlight is often inadequate, and soil pollution is widespread. Technological attempts like vertical and rooftop farming have limited feasibility, may worsen environmental and social problems, and do not address major food sources, access, or waste. Furthermore, urban gardens are increasingly linked with socially devastating gentrification.

Leigh Whittinghill, Sait Sarr · Urban Science · United States (Louisville, Kentucky)

A survey of 40 urban farmers and gardeners in Louisville, Kentucky, assessed their agricultural practices and barriers. Most growers engaged in urban agriculture for non-commercial reasons, with only 11% operating for profit, and smaller farms were less likely to be profitable or certified. Common sustainable practices included composting (60%) and crop rotation (54%), while challenges involved limited space, farm certification access, pests, and lack of record-keeping.

Ana Poštek, Ivica Kisić, Marija Cerjak, Luka Brezinščak · Journal of Central European Agriculture · Croatia

This paper analyzes various social aspects of urban agriculture and presents examples from Croatia where social benefits are the primary purpose. Urban agriculture can have social effects such as fostering activism, gender equality, social cohesion and inclusion, education, and cultural heritage preservation. However, policymakers struggle to implement urban agriculture within city planning.

Nurlela Machmuddin, Ahmad Mubarak, Rayhana Jafar, Jufriadi Jufriadi · Jurnal Ilmiah Membangun Desa dan Pertanian · Indonesia (Tarakan)

This study, conducted in Tarakan City, Indonesia, from April to June 2021, analyzed public perception of hydroponic technology for independent household food procurement. Respondents, with an average age of 30 and high school education, showed a heightened perception (81.11%) of hydroponics. The highest perceived benefits included healthier plants, maintained quality, easy and practical maintenance, and a high selling price compared to conventional methods.

Christina Ergas · · United States

This chapter explores urban ecovillages in the United States, highlighting challenges faced by ecovillagers in a neoliberal context. It examines cultural conflicts between sustainability and consumer culture, and points out the exclusive, upper-class, white nature of the local food movement in the US. Monetary and time constraints have made local organic food an elite phenomenon, often cited as a first step to gentrification in urban communities.

S Priyadharshina, V. Sumitra Devi, Sheeba Chander · · Global

This paper explores urban agriculture as a solution to the increasing urban population's reliance on rural areas for food. It defines urban agriculture as developing, processing, and distributing food in or around metropolitan areas, including various practices like animal cultivation and agroforestry. The paper suggests that urban agriculture can enable cities to implement sustainable practices, reduce carbon footprints, and foster self-sustainability.

Alessandra Piccoli, Adanella Rossi, Angela Genova · Sustainability · Italy

To understand the potential of the Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) model in Italy, two investigations were conducted in 2019 and 2020, analyzing structural and organizational aspects, and resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown. Findings indicate that CSAs represent a radically innovative experience capable of redefining production and consumption practices, demonstrating remarkable resilience due to their common value basis and strong interdependence and solidarity among members.

Mario Jordi Sánchez, Antonio Luis Díaz Aguilar · Sustainability · Spain (Seville)

Through observation and qualitative analysis of community urban gardens in southern Spain (Andalusia), this paper notes that the people who cultivate allotments within these community gardens attribute a wide variety of different meanings to their practices. This plurality of meanings moves beyond the rational-technical dimension of the act of growing, while at the same time redefining the act of consuming organic food, because of its connection with productive and social activities.

Anna Kapała · Comparative Law Review · United States

This study analyzed federal, state, and local regulations in US law to identify instruments supporting local food systems (LFS), including food safety, zoning, tax law, and federal programs. It found that US law lacks a systematic approach to LFS support, but identified legislative tools such as food safety exemptions, sales tax exemptions, local zoning laws for urban agriculture, and federal grant programs.

Christina Ergas · · Global

This concluding chapter summarizes lessons from urban agriculture and ecovillages, defining radical sustainability as socially and ecologically transformative and regenerative. It identifies tools for radical sustainability, including community care and skill sharing. The chapter offers practical, community-oriented solutions for socioecological crises, particularly for those unable to implement urban farming, and discusses the potential for large-scale structural change or collapse.

Ramón Antonio Mosquera Mena, Yolvi Prada Millán · Universidad Nacional Abierta y a Distancia eBooks · Colombia

Urban and peri-urban agriculture in Colombia offers benefits such as alleviating food insecurity and creating jobs, but currently lacks government policies to support these processes. This paper contextualizes relevant experiences and technical tools for implementing agroecological orchards, emphasizing environmental and social sensitivity. It also notes that agricultural research in Colombia is still emerging, requiring more applied research for technological development to benefit communities and farmers.

Nicole Paganini, Silke Stöber · The Journal of Agricultural Education and Extension · South Africa (Cape Town)

This long-term study in Cape Town, South Africa, developed and employed a co-research approach with urban farmers, using mixed methods including focus groups, farming diaries, and surveys. Participants perceived the research process itself as more important than the results, as they developed agency for change. The mutually developed results were used by co-researchers to establish a representative body advocating for small-scale farmers' needs.

Trecy Austin, Marleni Marleni · Jurnal Abdimas Indonesia · Indonesia (Palembang)

This community empowerment activity in Sialang Village, Palembang City, Indonesia, involved training and direct practical assistance to implement urban farming, specifically hydroponics and BUDIKDAMBER (fish and vegetable cultivation in buckets). The program aimed to enhance food security and support the Climate Village Program during the COVID-19 pandemic. Participants from RT 19 and RT 65 RW 13 gained understanding of urban farming methods and their health and economic benefits, showing readiness to adopt these practices in their households.

Halie Kampman, Shun-Nan Chiang, Salam Sawadogo · Gastronomica The Journal of Food and Culture · Philippines; Senegal

This study compares the surge in household and community gardening in the Philippines and Senegal during the COVID-19 pandemic, focusing on urban and peri-urban areas. It analyzes how government policies and community responses shaped this increased interest, noting that Philippine policy promotes citizen food growing for national self-sufficiency, while Senegalese policy favors large-scale, commercially oriented modernization. The research highlights contrasting visions for future food systems in these two Global South countries.

Celeste Ferreira, Janice Cindy Gaudet, Anthony Chum, Michael A. Robidoux · Food Culture & Society · Canada

This paper explores local food initiatives in Moose Cree First Nation, a remote northern community in Ontario, Canada, focusing on a community garden project. It documents steps taken to build local food capacity and understand the challenges and opportunities the community faces in regaining autonomy over its food system. The findings are based on community-based participatory action approaches.