Research & reports

Susan Veldheer, Christina Scartozzi, Amy Knehans, Tamara K. Oser, Natasha Sood, Francis Puleo, Joie Cooper, Daniel R. George, Alicia J. Cohen, Renate M. Winkels · Current Developments in Nutrition · Global

This systematic scoping review analyzed 46 manuscripts from 30 studies published between 1990 and 2019 to understand clinical strategies used by healthcare organizations to increase patient access to fruits and vegetables (F&V). Six program models were identified, including garden-based programs and CSA. The overall quality of the included studies was weak due to selection bias and incomplete reporting, with only 6 out of 30 studies including a control group. While some studies showed improvements in dietary intake, objective health markers such as blood pressure and BMI had mixed results.

Noriah Othman, Siti Zabeda Mohammad, Nurhayati Abdul Malek, Mohd Ali Waliyuddin A. Razak · Environment-Behaviour Proceedings Journal · Malaysia

This study was conducted in Malaysia to identify deterrent factors hindering "community buy-in" in urban farming projects and to understand how to overcome these problems. The research aims to identify these factors to achieve and sustain community buy-in in urban farming projects in the future.

Betty T Izumi, Allea Martin, Teresa Garvin, Cesar Higgins Tejera, Sylvia Ness, Katy Pranian, Lauren Lubowicki · PubMed · Global

This study evaluated the preliminary effectiveness of "CSA Partnerships for Health," a 23-week grant-subsidized Community-Supported Agriculture (CSA) program, in improving dietary behaviors, self-efficacy to eat vegetables, food security, and overall health among 48 safety-net clinic patients. This single-group pretest-posttest study utilized interviewer-administered surveys. Statistically significant differences between post-intervention and pre-intervention values were observed for several outcomes, including vegetable intake, orange vegetable intake, eating habits, food security, ability to afford healthy meals, and general health status.

Margarita Triguero‐Mas, Isabelle Anguelovski, Judith Cirac‐Claveras, James J. Connolly, Ana Vázquez, Ferran Urgell-Plaza, Núria Cardona-Giralt, Esther Sanyé‐Mengual, Jordi Alonso, Helen Cole · Preventing Chronic Disease · Global

This study evaluated the association between urban rooftop gardening and the quality of life for individuals with moderate to very marked disabilities. Questionnaires, semi-structured interviews, and field observations were conducted with 54 gardeners and 43 non-gardeners. Results indicated that urban rooftop gardening was associated with better personal development and suggested enhanced physical and emotional well-being, sense of purpose, social inclusion, interpersonal relations, and general quality of life.

Pauline Marsh · · Australia

A 2020 study investigated the nexus between urban agroecology and public health, using four case studies of community gardens in urban and peri-urban sites in Tasmania, Australia. The research demonstrated how place-based modes of community care can impact broader public health aims, such as positive risk-taking and addressing health inequities, and have implications for urban agroecology. It concluded that an improved understanding of the connection between community gardening and public health principles allows for a better understanding of agroecology's significance and its potential contribution to human health and well-being.

H. Tayal Neeraj · · Global

This chapter explores the potential of home gardening, as part of urban agriculture, to contribute to human health through improved nutrition. While home gardens can provide nutrient-dense foods, the potential health impact of soil contamination must be addressed, as urbanized soils tend to have elevated levels of heavy metals and other toxins.

Piero Conforti, Giulia Ponzini, Alberto Zezza · Edward Elgar Publishing eBooks · Global

This chapter analyzes national household survey data on the prevalence of urban agriculture, its importance for livelihoods, and characteristics of engaging households in low- and middle-income countries. Approximately 25 million urban households in the studied countries practice crop or livestock activities, with over 20% of urban households involved in agriculture in almost half of these nations. The incidence of urban agriculture is not as extensive as sometimes claimed in the literature. On average, urban agricultural households are poorer and more deprived in both monetary and non-monetary dimensions of welfare.

Francisco Fransualdo de Azevedo, Helena Perxacs, Maria Angelis Alió · Mercator · Global

This study aimed to deepen the social dimension of urban agriculture by examining experiences in cities such as Barcelona, Girona, and Natal. It proposed a scheme of the various advantages urban agriculture offers to society, including contributing to urban poverty reduction and improving public health. The study concluded that urban agriculture represents a social phenomenon of territorial resistance and a transition towards a more balanced productive paradigm.

Samantha Noll · Open Philosophy · Global

This study explores how justice-oriented urban agriculture projects, guided by "food justice" and "food sovereignty" goals, transform city contexts by reducing regulatory barriers that could perpetuate systems of oppression. The study argues that by removing regulatory barriers, urban agriculture projects are transforming cityscapes in ways that cultivate justice at the system level.

Rasmuna Mazwan Muhammad, Nik Rozana Nik Mohamed Masdek, Mohd Tarmizi Haimid, Siti Zahrah Ponari, Zulhazmi Sayuti · · Malaysia

This study in Malaysia investigated the effectiveness of urban farming in reducing household expenses among the urban poor, who spend 50-70% of their income on food. Using questionnaires, FGDs, and interviews, it found that urban farming, particularly aquaponics, led to a significant average reduction of RM66 per month in household expenses. The study concluded that urban farming benefits the community by supplying nutritious vegetables, improving housing aesthetics, and reducing costs.

Martin Mulligan, Yaso Nadarajah · · Sri Lanka

A broadly based committee formed in Hambantota, Sri Lanka, immediately after a disaster played a crucial role in ensuring survivors received aid and respectful treatment. This study emphasizes the importance of equitable relief aid delivery and long-term assistance needs assessment. It also notes that poor people and communities often create their own coping mechanisms, and that home gardens and community gardens can enhance food security for poor households, particularly during periods of rising food prices.

Andrew Coulter · DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) · Global

This article argues that the medical establishment should consider prescribing diets with a higher ratio of unprocessed plant-based foods to address urban healthcare crises, chronic diseases, and health inequalities. Research indicates that vegetarian diets are associated with decreased mortality, coronary artery disease, and hypertension. Additionally, plant-based diets offer more affordable protein sources compared to meat and seafood.

Hannah Whitley · · Global

A book chapter reviewing global research on gender and urban agriculture. It notes that limited statistics and inconsistent definitions of urban agriculture make an accurate profile of operators difficult, but regional studies show women make up the majority of urban agriculturalists. The chapter discusses women's motivations for engaging in urban agriculture and its links to neighborhood-level change, identifies seven challenges facing women urban growers drawn from the academic literature, and sets out a future research agenda on women urban agriculturalists.

Suzanne Mallick, Philip Marsh, Dave Kendal · Figshare · Australia

This report presents the first phase of a research project examining how a community garden project at the Melville St student accommodation could benefit the health and wellbeing of students and the broader community, as part of the University of Tasmania's shift in focus from Sandy Bay to the Hobart CBD. Before the garden was installed, the team collected qualitative, quantitative and observational data through interviews, focus groups, observational studies of public space use and an online survey, intended to inform future management of the site; a second phase collecting post-installation data was planned for late 2020, subject to COVID-19 restrictions.

Illana C. Livstrom, Gillian Roehrig, Amy Rex Smith · International Journal of Research on Service-Learning and Community Engagement · Global

A single-case study examined Grounding Roots, an urban agricultural internship program that brings together youth interns, undergraduates and community elder mentors in intergenerational garden groups, asking how community-based education through internships can support youth marginalized in traditional educational settings. The program was found to support youth in multidimensional learning and identity development within community-based spaces that connect learning to their communities and lives, particularly for youth with marginalized identities, through elements including recognizing and leveraging youths' existing assets, building confidence, leadership identities and diverse relationships, and connecting participants with the broader community, underscoring the value of intergenerational mentoring, diverse learning communities and work-based learning.

Joanne Dolley · Geographical Research · Global

This study argues that community gardens can function as "third places" that facilitate informal interactions among neighborhood residents. When community gardens serve as third places alongside their placemaking features, they help connect new residents to a place, easing challenges associated with population mobility, such as social isolation.

Presidencia de la Nación (Argentina) · Argentina.gob.ar (Presidencia de la Nación / INTA) · Argentina

An official Argentine government article on ProHuerta, a self-provisioning garden program. Launched on August 3, 1990 by resolution of INTA's governing board, it has since reached more than 4 million beneficiaries and supported 637,847 gardens (97% household gardens, 1,826 community gardens, and 13,000 school gardens). It reports 9,192 volunteer promoters (67% women), and cites a nutritional evaluation finding a typical household garden covers about 72% of recommended overall consumption.

Murray J., Wickramasekera N., Elings M., Bragg R., Brennan C., Elsey H. · Campbell Systematic Reviews, 15(4):e1061 · Global

A systematic review assessing how care farming (social farming) affects quality of life, depression and anxiety across different service-user groups. It finds that agriculture-based welfare support may improve mental health and social interaction, while highlighting the need for more robust evidence.

Ina Säumel, Suhana E. Reddy, Thomas Wachtel · Sustainability, 11(4), 972 · Global

A foundational paper of the EU EdiCitNet project that positions citizen-led food production (Edible City Solutions) as urban infrastructure generating socio-cultural ecosystem services—social cohesion, education, health—alongside regulating services such as stormwater management and biodiversity. It offers a framework in which participatory productive green space underpins social resilience and sustainable food-system transitions.

Christensen S., Dyg P. M., Allenberg K. · Local Environment 24(3):231-248 · Denmark

Mixed-method study of 'integration-gardening' in Copenhagen examining how urban community gardens build bridging social capital and contribute to social integration of immigrants, while also noting its limits.

Audate P. P., Fernandez M. A., Cloutier G., Lebel A. · BMC Public Health 19:672 · Global

Scoping review synthesizing 101 studies. Urban agriculture showed positive impacts on food security, fruit and vegetable consumption, dietary diversity and child nutrition, but methodological rigor of evidence was limited.

· Springer (book chapter) · Villapinzón, Colombia

Examines low-cost oyster mushroom cultivation as an income- and nutrition-generating alternative for rural low-income women in Villapinzon, Colombia. Highlights mushroom growing as an accessible, low-capital livelihood option.

Pernille Malberg Dyg, Søren Christensen, Corissa Jade Peterson · Health Promotion International · Global

A thematic review of 51 articles published between 1980 and 2017 examined the effects of community gardens on wellbeing among vulnerable populations. Findings suggested positive impacts on physical health and individual/social wellbeing, but food security enhancements were inconsistent. Two articles raised potential food safety concerns in urban community gardens, recommending attention to minimizing these risks.

Emmanuel Patroba Mhache, Elna Lyamuya · Huria Journal of the Open University of Tanzania · Tanzania (Dar es Salaam)

This review paper examined the role of urban agriculture in alleviating poverty for women in the Dar es Salaam Region, Tanzania. It found that women's participation in urban agriculture contributes to food security, increases household income (average net income Tshs 58,356.2 per month), offers employment, and reduces poverty. However, numerous bottlenecks hinder women's involvement in urban agriculture, including poor markets, water shortage, land shortage, seed unavailability, lack of capital, lack of government support, crude working tools, lack of water pumping machines for irrigation, poor storage facilities, and lack of agricultural extension services.

Llanos Roa, Juan Sebastián · · Colombia (La Guajira)

The Awarala Project in Albania, La Guajira, Colombia, aims to create a resilient region by reducing dependence on mining and gasoline smuggling. It seeks to benefit indigenous communities, urban populations, farmers, and Venezuelan immigrants by improving living conditions through eco-rancherias with community gardens and providing spaces for tourism and alternative energy production. The project includes 15 hectares of solar panels, 30 wind turbines, and biodigesters for organic waste.