Research & reports

Delphine Bernadette Ouédraogo, Delwendé Innocent Kiba, Zacharia Gnankambary, Sheick K. Sangaré, Diakouba Sirima, Hassan Bismarck Nacro, Michel Papaoba Sédogo · Journal of Agricultural Science · Burkina Faso (Ouagadougou)

This study investigated cropping practices and their drivers in 133 peri-urban farms near Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. Soil sample analysis revealed that monoculture led to low soil organic carbon, while polyculture led to low soil available potassium. The socio-economic conditions of the farms explained up to 60% of the variability in cropping practices.

Jennifer Kent, Susan E. Thompson · · Australia

This chapter reviews the link between the built environment and eating habits, noting that where people live and work influences food types and prices. It examines how urban planning in Australia supports local food production to encourage healthier eating. This support includes protecting peri-urban agricultural lands and promoting food cultivation in community gardens, verges, and homes.

Thị Ngọc Anh Nguyễn, Thi Hiep Ta · The Journal of Agriculture and Development · Global

Using 2016 survey data from 340 farm households in two administrative divisions (Dasar commune and Lac Duong town) of Lac Duong district, Lam Dong province, Vietnam, this article used Probit regression to examine how socio-economic and demographic characteristics, land area, and household members' occupations affected the probability of households changing their land-use purpose. It found that other production potentials retained on the land, despite limited land and income, directly affected farmers' decisions to change land use. Although close to Da Lat city and holding a large area of farmland, Lac Duong district remained a rural area not strongly affected by urbanization, and the study concluded there was no pressing need to change land-use purpose there, noting farmers could instead adopt advanced production methods such as hi-tech agriculture, urban agriculture, and agro-tourism.

Jean-Louis Yengué · HAL (Le Centre pour la Communication Scientifique Directe) · Cameroon

Focusing on the Cameroonian capital Yaoundé and one of its valleys, the Ekozoa, this study examines the forms taken by urban residents' cultivation of food and horticultural crops and its place within the urban fabric. Despite its illegality, this agriculture proved essential to the survival strategies of the poorest households, improving their nutrition and economic base, and it also played an environmental role through waste recycling and greening the city. At the same time it raised numerous problems related to pollution and public health. The solution proposed by the authorities is to bring these areas under control as non-buildable zones, incorporating them into a green network that is more ornamental than productive.

Claire Elizabeth Haselhorst, Grace Baldwin, Robert M. Stwalley · International Journal of Business and Economics Research ·

This piece argues that a lack of understanding between urban agriculture promoters and local city officials is stunting the development and economic sustainability of urban agriculture, since planning that fails to account for stakeholders can cause delays and economic setbacks. It states that urban farm installations require attention to neighborhood integration, city planning, adaptation to or upgrading of existing infrastructure, odor abatement and visual screening, but presents no original study data.

Magdalena Grochulska-Salak · Practice, progress, and proficiency in sustainability · Global

This book chapter, a conceptual rather than empirical piece, defines urban farming as building development for producing plants to meet local community needs and discusses shaping urban farms to preserve the environmental balance of urban spaces alongside the coexistence of architecture and greenery. It argues that technologies such as hydroponic and aeroponic production integrated into buildings can complement a city's functional and spatial structure in connection with public spaces and green systems, positioning the urban farm as an element of sustainable urban development.

Dan Li, Chun Hong Wong, Mei Fang Seet, Nicole Kuan · Frontiers in Microbiology · Singapore

This study conducted, for the first time to the authors' knowledge, an investigation of Stenotrophomonas maltophilia -- an emerging opportunistic pathogen capable of causing high-mortality nosocomial infections in immunocompromised patients while also being ubiquitous in the environment -- on leafy green vegetables and in a hydroponic farming facility in Singapore. Eleven isolates were recovered from three vegetable types (sweet basil, kale, parsley) and the nutrient solution, with high population levels reached in vegetables under abused storage temperatures (over 8-log CFU/ml in basil juice after six days at 20°C) and on hydroponic facilities through biofilm formation (8 to 9-log CFU/well), and UV treatment (over 4-log reduction at 250 mJ/cm²) was identified as an effective measure to reduce contamination in nutrient solutions and facilities.

Rana Muhammad Asif Kanwar, Zahid Mahmood Khan, Hafiz Umar Farid · Water Science & Technology · Global

A study in Multan, Pakistan, assessed the feasibility of biological treatment for a typical wastewater stream using daily trends in wastewater characteristics and designed a wastewater treatment (WWT) system for it. Parameters including pH (5.8-6.2), temperature (24-30°C), and BOD5 (128-265 mg/L) supported biological treatment; including nitrogenous BOD indicated a need for nitrification-denitrification, and linear regression of volatile suspended solids against total suspended solids showed high organic solids content suited to biological treatment. A BOD/COD ratio below 0.8 indicated a need for biomass acclimation. The designed system's major units were a primary clarifier, cascade aeration, trickling filter, adsorption filter, and chlorination contact tank. Over a 15-week validation period of the secondary WWT system, removal reached 91% for TSS, 46% for TDS, 88% for BOD5, and 87% for COD. The developed system was concluded to be an appropriate sustainable WWT system, with lower energy consumption and operating costs.

Jake Mowrer, Jeremy Merrill, Don Conlee, Joseph Marble, Bruce Dvorak · Journal of Living Architecture · Global

Against the backdrop of urban agriculture's potential to benefit inner-city communities by reducing food transport distance, raising awareness of food production, and improving nutrition, health, and economic status, this study grew green beans, cantaloupe, eggplant, squash, and tomatoes in a rooftop garden. The results indicate that water source quality and rooftop climatic conditions (solar-induced temperature rise) can limit the success of untrained rooftop gardeners. The study concludes that outreach and educational materials on overcoming these obstacles will be necessary to help untrained urban agriculture farmers establish productive gardens in rooftop environments.

Ana Nadal, Daniel Rodríguez-Cadena, Oriol Pons, Eva Cuerva, Alejandro Josa, Joan Rieradevall · Urban forestry & urban greening · Global

This study assessed the feasibility of implementing rooftop greenhouses (RTGs) in the social housing neighborhood "La Comuna Santa Clara de San Millán" in Quito, Ecuador. Standard assessment methods were adapted for a social neighborhood in three steps: characterization based on criteria, determination of available roof surface, and estimation of production, self-sufficiency, and self-supply. The results showed that 33.2% (7.70 ha) of the neighborhood's rooftops had short-term feasibility for installing rooftop greenhouses, with the potential to produce 1,579,140 kg of tomatoes and 56,720 kg of lettuce per year.

Sandeep Kumar, Lal Chand Malav, ICAR- National Bureau of Soil Survey & Land Use Planning, Nagpur, 440033, Maharashtra, Shiv Prasad, Sunita Yadav, Amrita Daripa, ICAR- National Bureau of Soil Survey & Land Use Planning, Nagpur, 440033, Maharashtra · Agropedology · Global

This review argues that rapid industrialization and mechanization are driving heavy metal pollution worldwide, with both anthropogenic and natural sources of heavy metals reaching soil, water bodies and plants and ultimately entering the human body through the food chain. Heavy metals accumulate in plants and living organisms after uptake from soil and cause harm, and they are also toxic to soil biological activity by disrupting key microbial processes. The review states that, due to industrial development in urban areas, heavy metal contamination — from metals such as zinc, copper, lead and cadmium — has become a serious threat to the peri-urban agriculture that supplies vegetable production, and it surveys sources of contamination and remediation techniques, with a particular focus on phytoremediation.

David C. Grossman, L.M. van den Berg, Hyacinth I. Ajaegbu · · Global

This is a record of the open discussions from a four-session workshop held in Netanya in June 1996. The first session addressed forming growers' associations to secure access to land and to consumers; the second covered technology transfer for water management; the third examined ecological aspects of urban and peri-urban gardening; and the fourth compiled mission statements each participant wrote after the presentations and discussions. The main synergy expected from urban and peri-urban farming was identified as its use of urban waste products to yield fresh agricultural produce, with geographers and cartographers seen as playing an important role in supporting peri-urban and urban farmers.

JTC Corporation · JTC Corporation · Singapore

Published by JTC on 27 Feb 2019, this article describes urban farming company Comcrop, whose founder Allan Lim started his first community farm in Bukit Panjang in 2011, later ran a rooftop farm at *SCAPE, and then built a 36,000-square-foot facility with six greenhouses at a JTC site in Woodlands. The Woodlands farm grows leafy vegetables such as pak choy, lettuce and mizuna at high output; CEO Peter Barber states the first greenhouse alone can produce 40 to 50kg a day. Barber envisions placing farms in every neighbourhood in Singapore to employ locals and supply supermarkets, while Lim stresses the need to build agricultural research capability in Singapore.

Michelle Tendai. Chihambakwe, Paramu Mafongoya, Obert Jiri · Challenges · Zimbabwe

This review maps the use of food sovereignty principles in urban and peri-urban agriculture (UPA) in Zimbabwe, addressing its potential for food security. Despite UPA being ingrained in urban households' livelihoods, institutional arrangements governing the practice remain ambivalent. The review underscores that the failure to involve all stakeholders undermines UPA, leading to heightened food insecurity and unsustainable practices.

Rachel Carey, Sarah James · · Australia (Sydney, Melbourne)

This chapter examines peri-urban agriculture in Australia, focusing on case studies in Sydney and Melbourne. It explores the pressures on peri-urban fringes, noting that while food needs are increasing due to population growth, the capacity of these areas to meet them is decreasing due to urban sprawl. The research highlights policy and planning options to protect these regions, emphasizing their potential contribution to urban sustainability and resilience amidst climate change and water scarcity.

Suranga Wadduwage · Journal of Land Use Science · Australia (Adelaide)

A multi-criteria spatially-explicit study in the Adelaide metropolitan area, Australia, investigated agricultural land vulnerability to urban sprawl under opposing policy directions. The study showed higher agricultural land vulnerabilities in “Business-As-Usual” and “Accelerated Economic Development” scenarios, extending into rural areas with a leap-frog effect. This confirms the need to sacrifice farmland uses to maintain land supply for urban development under these conditions.

Ayinde BA, Nicola Cantoreggi · International Journal of Environment Agriculture and Biotechnology · Senegal (Dakar)

This study focused on the commercial dimension of urban and peri-urban agriculture (UPA) in the Dakar region, Senegal, involving 214 market gardeners across three production areas. Results showed that UPA, specifically urban market gardening, constitutes a full-fledged commercial activity with monetary income significantly higher than Senegal's minimum wage. This almost exclusively commercial orientation allows agri-urban households to cover their food and non-food expenses inherent in urban living.

P.S. Bouda, Edmond Hien, A. Dioma, Hyacinthe Kambiré, Yacouba Maïga, Der Adolphe Somé, Sylvie Nazaret, A.S. Ouattara · DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) · Burkina Faso

A study in Ouagadougou sub-urban agricultural fields, Burkina Faso, assessed the impact of using untreated Solid Urban Wastes (SUW) as agricultural fertilizers on soil properties and crop production. SUW amendment significantly increased pH, total C, N, P, and available P, and maize height and biomass yield were 124% and 164% higher in amended plots, respectively. However, trace metal elements (Cu, Zn, Pb, Ni, Cr) concentrations were higher in amended fields, indicating that urban waste carries contaminants posing public health risks.

Doris Laury Beatriz Dzib Moo, Gerardo González García, Analuisa González Dzib · · Global

This paper proposes urban gardens for Colonia Lindavista in Tabasco, Mexico, to demonstrate the benefits of urban agriculture. The project aims to raise awareness and secure institutional support, highlighting the advantages of daily consumption of organic vegetables for health and family economy. This initiative seeks to increase the resilience of the Colonia Lindavista community, which was chosen as a pilot site starting in January 2017.

E. Gunilla, Annika Olsson · · Sweden (Gothenburg)

This chapter focuses on peri-urban food production and provisioning as overlooked aspects of urban sustainability in developed countries. It discusses how agricultural production for urban consumption in peri-urban areas is often abandoned and replaced by urban sprawl and recreational activities. The chapter elaborates on the multiple dimensions of sustainable local food systems as an alternative to globalized systems, including results from a European research project with a case study from a peri-urban region in Gothenburg, Sweden.

Susan Parham, Jacques Abelman · · Global

This chapter explores urban design in developed countries, viewing food as a critical social, economic, and cultural factor influencing and being influenced by urban space design. It broadly defines food spaces to include diverse settings like streetscapes, markets, restaurants, urban gardens, and peri-urban farming. The authors suggest that food-conscious urban design is central to sustainable urban space.

Luca Salvati, Silvia Pili · Journal of Sociological Research · Greece (Athens)

This study proposes an approach to understand new food production strategies in fragmented peri-urban landscapes, focusing on local primary sector actors. A preliminary survey in the Athens metropolitan region, Greece, aims to identify trends in peri-urban farming and their implications for farmers and citizens, considering urban sprawl and land-use conflicts.

Amina Abubakari, John Asiedu Larbi, Robert Clement Abaidoo · Journal of Tropical Diseases · Ghana (Kumasi)

A 2018 study in Kumasi, Ghana, assessed 7017 health facility data from 77 communities to investigate malaria transmission in areas with wastewater irrigation. It found approximately 3698 malaria cases in wastewater irrigation areas and 3319 in areas without, with a P-value of 0.1914, indicating no statistically significant difference. However, Anopheles spp. mosquito densities were high in furrows, followed by ponds, suggesting that anthropogenic activities related to urbanization and wastewater irrigation may contribute to malaria transmission.

Renan Borro Celestrino, Silvia Cristina Vieira · DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) · Global

This study surveyed the implementation cost and presented the step-by-step operation of small-scale aquaponic systems for family agriculture and peri-urban areas. As a descriptive and experimental research, a practical experiment involved feeding 27 kg of fish, with their waste nourishing 144 Crespa Lettuce seedlings. The findings suggest that aquaponic systems tend to be a sustainable alternative due to low implantation costs, practical management, and healthier production from organic plant nutrition and the non-use of chemicals.

Nguyen Phuong Le, Nguyen Mau Dung · International journal of Rural Development Environment and Health Research · Global

A 2018 case study on the multifunctionality of peri-urban agriculture in Trau Quy Commune, Hanoi City, Vietnam.