Research & reports
Peer-reviewed research and reports on community urban agriculture, food education, composting, welfare and more.
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Hands-On Gardening in Childcare Centers to Advance Preschool-Age Children's Fruit and Vegetable Liking in Semi-Arid Climate Zone
2024Monsur M., Mansur M., Trina N.A., Cosco N. · International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 21(11):1485 · United States (Texas)
A randomized trial in eight Lubbock County childcare centers (149 children) testing standardized raised-bed garden intervention on preschoolers' fruit and vegetable knowledge and liking. Shows that collaborative childcare-garden programs can improve vegetable preferences even in semi-arid climates.
Food educationHealthFrom access toward sovereignty: A scoping review of municipal land access policies for urban agriculture in the United States
2024Raychel E. Santo, Sara N. Lupolt, Katherine M. Uhde, Robert C. Bennaton, Keeve E. Nachman · Elem Sci Anth · United States
This scoping review compares land access mechanisms for urban agriculture across the 40 most populous US cities. It finds 75% of cities used at least one mechanism but only 20% offered multiple options; temporary-use mechanisms (e.g., Adopt-A-Lot programs, city-run farms and gardens) were more common than secure-tenure options like long-term leases and land trusts; 45% of cities designed mechanisms with an equity focus; and fewer than a quarter offered complementary support such as subsidized water, liability insurance, soil testing, or funding.
PolicyCommunityTrace Metal Contamination in Community Garden Soils across the United States
2024Maeve Malone, Kabindra M. Shakya · Sustainability · United States
This paper reviews the state of heavy metal contamination (such as lead, arsenic, and cadmium) in community garden soils across the United States, noting that gardeners are exposed through pathways such as inhalation and ingestion. It states that contamination hot spots are higher in city areas with greater minority populations and lower incomes. The review outlines mitigation approaches including applying biochar and compost, using raised beds, and maintaining a natural pH.
HealthCommunityCompostEnergy Efficiency of Glasshouses and Plant Factories for Sustainable Urban Farming in the Desert Southwest of the United States of America
2024Md Azad, Nazim Gruda, Most Naznin · Horticulturae · United States (Desert Southwest)
This review assesses how controlled-environment agriculture—controlled glasshouses and building-integrated plant factories—can be sustained in the desert southwest of the United States by evaluating their energy and water efficiency. It reports that roughly 50% of operational energy costs in controlled glasshouses go to cooling, while 25–30% of energy costs in building-integrated plant factories go to artificial lighting. It notes that aeroponic building-integrated plant factories showed superior water and energy efficiency, and that integrating photovoltaic solar energy can significantly reduce energy costs for urban farming.
EconomicsRacial equity and the USDA's Office of Urban Agriculture granting program and urban offices
2024Kristin Reynolds, Cédric Gottfried, Tamarra Thomas · Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development · United States
This policy brief reports findings from a study examining, through a racial-equity lens, the rollout of the USDA Office of Urban Agriculture and Innovative Production established by the 2018 farm bill. Drawing on national surveys, interviews in New York City and Atlanta, GIS mapping, and policy review, it situates the provisions within the USDA's history of discrimination and offers policy recommendations for engaging socially disadvantaged urban farmers.
PolicyCommunityEconomicsUrban agriculture in Baltimore, Maryland: Documenting current irrigation practices and rainwater harvesting
2024Abriana Segal, Niya Khanjar, Julie Yang, Kelsey Brooks, Marcus Williams, Neith Little, Andrew Lazar, Rachel E. Rosenberg Goldstein · Urban Agriculture & Regional Food Systems · United States (Baltimore)
This study surveyed urban farms and community gardens in Baltimore, Maryland, to document irrigation practices, water sources, and interest in rainwater harvesting. Most sites were concerned about water availability yet all had access to city water; 27% were already harvesting rainwater and 54% were interested, and the authors suggest rainwater harvesting, food safety, and education programs could increase safe use of this water source.
CommunityDIYFood educationScalability of Urban Agriculture
2024Kristin Jones · Enquiry The ARCC Journal for Architectural Research · United States (Chicago)
Taking Alfred Caldwell's mid-century vision of small-scale farming as social empowerment as its starting point, this study examines three distinct urban farming approaches in Chicago—spanning raised-bed farming, aquaponics, hydroponics, and permaculture across a nonprofit, a community group, and a private entrepreneur—to assess their scalability and broader societal and environmental impact. It identifies numerous opportunities for scaling up and concludes that a multi-faceted, multi-scalar framework is needed to grow urban agriculture within resilient cities.
EconomicsCommunityPolicySustainable agriculture impacts in urban settings make the case for federal investments [Policy brief]
2024Hagan Capnerhurst, Hannah Quigley, Jake Hawes · Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development · United States
This policy brief examines the challenges facing urban agriculture in U.S. cities—scant funding, insecure land tenure, and environmental pollution—and profiles the USDA's emerging Office of Urban Agriculture and Innovative Production as a support apparatus. It calls for consistent, permanent federal funding outside the annual budget process to enable tailored technical assistance, reformed grant initiatives, and expanded data collection.
PolicyEconomicsContending food sovereignty with cultivating kinship through community gardens
2024Max Sano · Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development · United States (Santa Clara Valley)
This is a book review of Gabriel R. Valle's "Gardening on the Margins," which draws on anthropological, community-based research in California's Santa Clara Valley. It highlights the La Mesa Verde community, whose gardeners engage in community gardening not only out of necessity but through an "ethic of care."
CommunityPolicySoils information for urban customers: A perspective
2024Hannah M. Ohm, Thomas M. DeSutter, Christina L. Hargiss, Keith A. Anderson, Nathan E. Derby, Beverly Alvarez‐Torres · Urban Agriculture & Regional Food Systems · United States
This perspective article argues that, although urban agriculture is gaining popularity across the United States and national-level soil information exists, urban residents often have limited detail about the soils in their communities. It suggests that agencies such as the Natural Resources Conservation Service could expand existing soil survey programs (e.g., WebSoilSurvey) and that trace-element testing and interpretation would improve knowledge of the risks urban soils pose to food quality. The authors emphasize opportunities for local, state and federal entities to support the soil-science needs of urban growers.
PolicyHealthCommunityGarden access and barriers for low-income community members
2024Cherish Duerst, Robert Williams, Jose Lopez, Douglas LaVergne · Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development · United States (Minnesota)
This study surveyed food-pantry customers in the Bemidji area of rural northern Minnesota about access and barriers to gardening in its many forms—residential, container, and community. Although 91% of respondents wanted to garden and 85% had gardened before, only 31% were active gardeners, and the study identifies specific barriers preventing otherwise motivated low-income individuals from gardening, along with participant-suggested solutions within reach of local policymakers.
WelfareCommunityPolicySoil microbial activity profiles associated with organic compost fertilizers in an urban garden
2024Carolyn A. Zeiner, Maria N. Kisch, Ethan D. Lynch, Paliza Shrestha, Gaston E. Small · Urban Agriculture & Regional Food Systems · United States (Minnesota)
This study characterized soil microbial activity profiles—microbial abundance, soil respiration, extracellular enzyme activity, and crop yield—in an urban agriculture system in Minnesota, USA, using recycled organic compost (manure or municipal) at high or low rates. A high application rate of manure compost supported 6–10× higher basal respiration, and microbial biochemical function predicted 50% of the variability in bell pepper yield while community size alone was a poor predictor, indicating that "more is better" does not necessarily hold for soil microbial health.
CompostOrganic cycleShifts in host–parasitoid networks across community garden management and urban landscape gradients
2024Azucena Lucatero, Noah R. Smith, Peter Bichier, Heidi Liere, Stacy M. Philpott · Ecosphere · United States (California)
Using ecological networks, this study quantified interactions between herbivorous insects and their parasitoids across 22 urban community gardens on the Central Coast of California, relating host abundance, parasitism rates, and network structure to local garden management and surrounding landscape composition. It found that both local management and landscape composition influenced parasitism, while only local factors affected host abundance and network structure, suggesting local garden management decisions may shift host–parasitoid network structure with variable outcomes for biological pest control.
BiodiversityCommunityReframing Urban Agriculture: Open Land for the Public Good
2024Melody Ng · Critical Planning · United States (California)
This essay uses historical-structural analysis to examine how the history of US municipal land-use policies and urban agriculture informed the design of California's Urban Agriculture Incentive Zones (UAIZs) and their failure to increase land access and security for community food producers. It argues that UAIZs sit at the end of a long history of lot-conversion programs used for urban crisis management, and calls for reframing urban agriculture around land equity—the right not only to occupy but to manage land in service of one's community.
PolicyCommunityCan Aquaponics Be Utilized to Reach Zero Hunger at a Local Level?
2024Flores-Aguilar P.S., Sánchez-Velázquez J., Aguirre-Becerra H., Peña-Herrejón G.A., Zamora-Castro S.A., Soto-Zarazúa G.M. · Sustainability · Mexico
The paper examines, in light of SDG 2 (Zero Hunger), how aquaponics can contribute to food security through the production of high-quality protein and decentralized local production.
DIYCommunityPolicy"Not everyone has the privilege to have good food": promoting positive youth development and social justice values in school gardens
2024· Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences · USA
A study examining how school gardens can promote positive youth development and social justice values among participating youth.
Food educationCommunityWelfareRole of Gardening in Mental Health, Food Security, and Economic Well-Being in Resettled Refugees: A Mixed Methods Study
2024Gangamma R., Walia B., Minkoff-Zern L., Tor S. · Journal of Patient Experience · United States
A mixed-methods study examining the role of gardening in the mental health, food security, and economic well-being of resettled refugees.
WelfareHealthCommunityUrban food waste for soil amendment? Analysis of waste-based compost for urban agriculture in Rosario, Argentina
2024· Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems · South America
Study examining the use of urban food waste compost in urban agriculture in Rosario, Argentina. Analyzes waste-to-resource conversion and organic cycling potential.
Organic cycleFood lossCompostDIYSustainable Urban Agriculture: Unlocking the Potential of Home Gardens in Low-Income Communities
2024· The Professional Geographer · North America
Explores how home gardens in low-income communities unlock potential for urban sustainability. Analyzes interconnections between food access and environmental sustainability.
Food educationWelfareOrganic cycleMunicipal Compost Public Health, Waste Management, and Urban Agriculture: A Decadal Study of Fugitive Pb in City of Boston, Massachusetts, USA
2024Yang et al. · GeoHealth · United States (Massachusetts)
Decadal study of Boston's municipal composting program. Lead concentrations consistently exceeded EPA soil benchmarks. Program halted in 2012. Highlights importance of compost safety for urban agriculture.
CompostHealthOrganic cycleTackling Historical Inequities in Urban Organic Waste and Composting
2024Boston University School of Public Health · Boston University School of Public Health · United States
Examines historical inequities in urban organic waste and composting access. Highlights disparities in low-income and communities of color. Advocates for equitable policy design and implementation.
CompostPolicyHealthVegetable Gardening and Health Outcomes in Older Cancer Survivors: A Randomized Clinical Trial
2024Wendy Demark-Wahnefried, Robert A. Oster, Kerry P. Smith, Harleen Kaur, Andrew D. Frugé, W. Walker Cole, Julie L. Locher, Gabrielle B. Rocque, Maria Pisu, Jennifer R. Bail, Harvey Jay Cohen, Douglas R. Moellering, Cindy K. Blair · JAMA Network Open · United States (Alabama)
A randomized trial in Alabama, USA, assigned 381 older cancer survivors (mean age 69.8 years, 69.0% female) with suboptimal vegetable and fruit intake, physical activity or physical function to a one-year home vegetable gardening intervention (supplies plus mentoring by certified master gardeners) or to a waitlist. The primary outcome — a composite index of improvement in vegetable and fruit intake, moderate-to-vigorous physical activity and physical function — did not differ significantly (4.5% intervention vs 3.1% waitlist, P=.53), nor did vegetable and fruit intake between arms (mean difference 0.3 servings/day, P=.10). The intervention arm did show significant gains in physical performance (2-minute step test +6.0 steps; 30-second chair stand +0.8 repetitions), perceived health (+8.4 points on a 100-point scale) and gut microbiome alpha diversity. The COVID-19 pandemic significantly moderated effects, so the trial does not establish that gardening halts functional decline in older adults.
Limited or null effectElderlyWelfareHealthExperiences from a land-based learning project focused on local food interventions
2024Abbey Palmer, Phillip Warsaw, Aaron J. McKim, R. Bud McKendree, Marion Nettleton, Tiffany Marzolino, Haley Brasier · Journal of Agriculture Food Systems and Community Development · United States
This study evaluated a land-based learning program in northern Michigan, involving two schools, two teachers, their students, food-service directors, local farmers, and a university extension educator. The program delivered farm-to-school content through 20 instructional sessions, leading students to identify and implement interventions to increase local food in school lunches. Findings indicate that this framework offers similar benefits to traditional farm-to-school programs, with added flexibility and educational advantages.
Food educationCommunityCSA & TeikeiRevisão de literatura: ecoformação, transdisciplinaridade e as produções acadêmicas sobre educação
2024Evandro dos Santos Taborda, Vera Lúcia Simão, Joel Cezar Bonin · Cadernos Cajuína · Brazil
This descriptive and qualitative literature review, conducted from April 8 to May 10, 2023, analyzed 20 theses and dissertations from databases like Periódicos Capes, Google Scholar, and Scielo Brasil. It is part of a master's research investigating transdisciplinary and eco-formative pedagogical practices with high school students using a community garden in Santa Catarina, Brazil. The study suggests that continuing such practices in high school can strengthen the connection between education and society, offering integrated learning opportunities.
Food educationCommunityStructural equations modelling applied to the study of Communities Supported Agriculture (CSAs) located in the Southeastern region of Brazil
2024Gustavo Alves de Melo, Luiz Gonzaga de Castro Júnior, Eduardo Gomes Carvalho, Maria Gabriela Mendonça Peixoto, Samuel Borges Barbosa, Patrícia Guarnieri dos Santos, André Luiz Marques Serrano, Lucas Oliveira Gomes Ferreira, José Baltazar Salgueirinho Osório de Andrade Guerra · DYNA · Brazil
This descriptive, quantitative study used structural equation modeling to investigate the relationship between various Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) variables in Southeastern Brazil. The study confirmed that socioeconomic characteristics positively influence CSA performance. Limitations included data collection methods and difficulties from the Covid-19 pandemic.
CSA & TeikeiEconomicsCommunity