Research & reports

Madison LeCroy, Olivia Alleyne, Rhyden Dowd, Gareth Stacke, Gizan Denoon, Faven Araya, Yomaha Gordon, Kimberly Charles, Perla Chebli, Chau Trinh-Shevrin, Stella Yi · Circulation · United States (New York City)

This pilot evaluated the East Flatbush Produce Program, a 100% cost-offset, culturally tailored community-supported agriculture (CSA) program co-developed with community partners and a local rooftop farm in Brooklyn, New York, serving Afro-Caribbean and Latine residents with high food insecurity. Participants received weekly culturally tailored vegetables plus bilingual nutrition education; weekly pickup attendance was 62% and 71% at the two sites and mid-point satisfaction was high (96% would recommend). The authors conclude the program demonstrated the feasibility and community acceptability of a cost-offset CSA.

Taylor Swenski, Jocelyn Smith Carter, Marjorie Kersten, Elizabeth Berkeley, K. Varner, Howard Rosing · Ecology of Food and Nutrition · United States (Chicago)

The "Grow Your Groceries Home Garden" intervention program, implemented in Chicago, United States in 2022, aimed to improve food access in food-insecure communities. A longitudinal investigation over two annual cycles surveyed 46 participants, complemented by focus groups with 9 participants, to evaluate food access, cost savings, health, and socioemotional outcomes. While results on improved gardening confidence over time emerged non-significant, participants reported increased food access, cost savings, healthier eating, stress reduction, and strengthened relational bonds.

Cláudio Yuri Rodrigues da Silva, Danilo de Souza Sobreira Filho, Leonardo de Mendonça · Revista Brasileira de Cannabis · Brazil

The "Horta Terapêutica Integrada a Atividades Sensoriais e Ecopsicologia" project by Brazil's Association for Socio-Historical Reparation (RESH) aims to address structural social and environmental problems such as food insecurity, social exclusion, and the psychosocial impacts of social vulnerability. This project proposes establishing a RESH Community Garden of approximately 150 m² for organic and medicinal food production, aiming to promote food sovereignty, social justice, and a culture of care benefiting mental health. Its methodology is based on agroecological practices, sensory activities, and ecopsychology principles, inspired by the Manguinhos Community Garden's consolidated experience.

Maria Eduarda Costa Maia, Nathalia Gomes Corrêa, Eder Everton Caldas de Oliveira, Waldenira Mercedes Pereira Torres · Aracê. · Brazil

This article reports on the creation and implementation of a school garden at Dep. Abel Figueiredo Municipal Elementary School in Mocajuba, Pará, Brazil. The project, initiated based on student demands identified through a documentary, involved 9th-grade students, PIBID scholarship recipients, and the school community. The school garden fostered practical learning, student leadership, collaborative work, and improved school meals, with strategies for sustainability including maintenance schedules and irrigation systems.

Maísa Aparecida da Costa · Brazilian Journal of Development · Brazil (Sete Lagoas)

This study aimed to evaluate the knowledge of unconventional food plants (PANC) among high school students' families in a private school in Sete Lagoas, Brazil, and to prepare flour from cansanção (Urera baccifera) leaves and assess its nutritional potential. While 54.1% of participants claimed to know the term PANC, consumption was low, with 62.2% reporting rare intake. Analysis of cansanção flour revealed high levels of protein (25.58 g/100 g), fiber (9.14 g/100 g), and calcium (5185 mg/100 g), highlighting its nutritional value.

Miguel Ángel Monteverde-Ávalos · Alteridades · Mexico (Ecatepec)

An ethnography of a dispute over a small community garden in a working-class neighborhood in Ecatepec, Mexico, revealed that internal socialization processes establish thresholds of respectability, leading to classifications that reproduce differential access to public space. The study found that these classifications result in the unequal distribution of spatial resources and contribute to the reproduction of an exclusionary urban order.

Alexei Anisin · Peace &amp Change · United States (Seattle)

This study analyzed the Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone (CHAZ) in Seattle, which emerged in June 2020 and lasted 24 days, functioning as an urban hub for mutual aid and urban farming. The research, using randomly sampled Fire Department reports, found that CHAZ had significantly higher emergency response rates and incident variability compared to adjacent areas. The zone was dismantled due to outbreaks of violence, including five shootings, two deaths, sexual assaults, and arson, indicating a failure to address communal safety.

Vívian Ariane de Oliveira Costa, Raíssa Aline Pereira, Mariana Azevedo Rabelo, Paula Montenegro Euzébio, Angela Liberali Pinheiro, Gabriella Ribeiro · Revista Brasileira de Educação Ambiental (RevBEA) · Brazil

This article reports on a school garden implemented in Early Childhood Education at Cirandinha School, in partnership with the Poços de Caldas Botanical Garden Foundation, after in-person classes resumed post-COVID-19. Using a qualitative and descriptive approach, the experiment aimed to promote critical environmental education and healthy habits. Results indicated active participation by children, increased autonomy, and environmental awareness, showing the garden as an integrative resource linking school, family, and community.

R P Mula, Molly Doane, Gabrielle Powell, Myer G. Mula · Asian Journal of Agricultural Extension Economics & Sociology · United States (Chicago)

This study visited, documented, and described 15 community gardens in Chicago, Illinois, and interviewed their leaders. It found the utmost importance of saving traditional crop seeds (heirlooms) for diversity, climate change mitigation, and health, as these are grown organically. Insights include reorienting mindsets, crafting garden requirement manuals, consolidating the value chain, and educating health workers on promoting community gardening.

Threice Natália Ribeiro Pexe, Julia Yumi Muraoka, Fabiana Cristina Donofrio, Cibele Bonacorsi · Scientific Electronic Archives · Brazil (Sinop)

Parasitological and microbiological evaluation was conducted on 40 vegetable samples (watercress, lettuce, chicory, kale, escarole, arugula, parsley) randomly selected from supermarkets, open-air markets, and a community garden in Sinop, Brazil. Before treatment, 12 out of 40 (30.0%) vegetable samples were contaminated with enteroparasites, and all 40 showed microbial growth, with 3 (7.5%) containing Escherichia coli. After sanitization with sodium hypochlorite, parasitic forms were absent, but high initial contamination was confirmed.

Henrique Freitas Ferreira Reis, Ana Lorena Demarques Moura, Maria Rita Scotti Muzzi, Eleonora Sad de Assis · RCMOS - Revista Científica Multidisciplinar O Saber · Brazil (Belo Horizonte)

This work analyzed the relationship between urban densification and microclimatic impacts, focusing on the Confisco neighborhood in Belo Horizonte, Brazil, which is susceptible to heatwaves, landslides, and food insecurity by 2030. A systematic literature review of 33 sources evaluated the feasibility of implementing green roofs as a nature-based solution to mitigate climate extremes and promote food security through urban gardens. Results indicate green infrastructure reduces surface temperatures by up to 10.46°C and retains up to 90% of stormwater runoff, while socially strengthening psychosocial resilience and food sovereignty among low-income families.

Abby M. Lohr, Jazlyn Vargas-Robles, Gladys B. Asiedu, Yahye Ahmed, Hana Dirie, Luz Molina, Graciela Porraz Capetillo, Josh Schachter, Mark L. Wieland, Irene G. Sia · Health Promotion Practice · United States (Minnesota)

This Photovoice study in Southeast Minnesota, US, conducted in fall 2023, collaborated with 14 Hispanic/Latino and Somali immigrant health promoters to document their health-related assets and needs. Thematic analysis revealed three themes: healthy choices, inclusion of people and cultural celebrations, and access to opportunity. Participants desired expanded community garden programming, environmental protection, accessible healthy options, access to culturally appropriate foods, and increased access to jobs, affordable housing, and healthcare.

Hoyoon Jung · The International Journal of Social Sustainability in Economic Social and Cultural Context · Brazil (Belo Horizonte)

This study analyzes Belo Horizonte, Brazil's right-to-food model, which has reduced hunger and promoted social equity through integrated food policies like subsidized food programs and urban agriculture. Despite its successes, the model faces challenges in policy sustainability, financial constraints, and political continuity, and the study notes limitations including reliance on secondary data.

Pierrette Hondagneu‐Sotelo · Revue d’ethnoécologie · United States (Los Angeles)

This article examines urban community gardens and urban farms in Los Angeles as sites for the recreation and re-creation of homelands for Mexican and Central American immigrants. Based on ethnographic research conducted between 2010 and 2023 across several sites, the author demonstrates that these gardens function as hybrid spaces where everyday home-making practices unfold. Gardeners cultivate Mesoamerican plants, materially and symbolically reshaping urban space while forging bonds of attachment to place and community.

Elmira Ramazanova, Manvitha Marni, Roger Wong, Leah Gable, Zezhen Pan, Zorimar Rivera‐Núñez, Daniel E. Giammar · Environmental Geochemistry and Health · United States (St. Louis)

A study in St. Louis, Missouri, examined total metal/metalloid concentrations and in-vitro Pb bioaccessibility in soil from twenty community gardens. Lead was identified as a metal of concern, with soil in 21% of sampled plots containing Pb concentrations above recommended thresholds for gardens. Although Pb bioaccessibility was low (< 5.4%), total metal/metalloid concentrations varied spatially within gardens, and Pb and As concentrations correlated positively with garden age, highlighting the importance of multiple plot sampling.

Ada Folques, Mario R. Paredes, Vanessa Apaolaza, Patrick Hartmann · Business Strategy and the Environment · United States

This study examined demand-side drivers of consumers' willingness to pay for food forest produce in the United States, using a quota-based online panel sample of 845 adults. It focused on nature connectedness, perceived health risks from monoculture farming, climate change concern, and need for uniqueness. All four factors positively influenced willingness to pay, with nature connectedness being the most influential. The impact of climate change concern on willingness to pay was stronger among consumers with low uniqueness-seeking and weaker among those with high uniqueness-seeking.

Alexa McLaughlin, Stephanie Ward Chiasson, Jeanne Godin · Canadian Food Studies / La Revue canadienne des études sur l alimentation · Canada (New Brunswick)

This process evaluation assessed the reach, effectiveness, adoption, implementation, and maintenance of the New Brunswick School Food Pilot Project (NBSFPP) using the RE-AIM framework in eleven schools across New Brunswick, Canada. While school administrators reported positive impacts on program optimization, student leadership skills, food literacy, and eating behaviors, no significant effect was found on teachers’ perceptions of students’ diet or academic outcomes. Program sustainability was largely dependent on receiving funding.

Piedley Macêdo Saraiva, Aline Maia de Macedo, Cicera Giovanna Michelly Ferreira de Oliveira, Enzo Fernandes Sá, Laysa Yanne Silva Moreira, Thayla Sousa de Oliveira, Rayna Petrola Rocha Dias Milfont · Revista Ibero-Americana de Humanidades, Ciências e Educação · Brazil

This study analyzed the implementation of a vertical garden in a nursing home in Juazeiro do Norte-CE, Brazil. The intervention contributed to the reuse of construction waste, the production of toxic-free food, and increased opportunities for interaction among residents and caregivers. However, it also revealed limitations related to the vulnerability of the target audience, scheduling incompatibilities with the academic team, and the institution's dependence on continuous garden maintenance.

Malone M., Johnson B., Richard SI., Garcia N., Hamlin S. · Journal of Environmental Management · United States (Seattle)

Compares heavy-metal concentrations in vegetables grown in urban community gardens in the Seattle metropolitan area with produce from the grocery stores participants regularly used — a question set by the partnering farmers themselves. Metal concentrations frequently exceeded health guidelines in both, but were generally higher in the community-garden produce. Cadmium and lead posed the greatest risk and may exacerbate health risks for some populations.

Christine Jie Li, John H. Schulz, Sa Tun Bo Bo · Journal of Community Practice · United States

Semi-structured interviews with 18 Burmese refugees in the United States explored their experiences across three types of community-assisted garden programs — individual backyard gardens, personal-use community gardens, and enterprise community-assisted gardens. The interviews produced three broad themes (benefits, challenges, and issues with recruitment and support), with reported benefits including strengthened family relationships, access to culturally relevant and fresh organic vegetables, reduced food budget spending, and improved social relationships, alongside challenges that the study describes as a complex mixture affecting refugees' nutritional, economic and social well-being.

E. Christian Wells, Sarah Combs · Practicing Anthropology · United States

A paper examines 'healthfields'—former brownfields, land whose contamination history impedes redevelopment and which in the US are disproportionately concentrated in underserved communities of color linked to poor health outcomes—redeveloped through participatory approaches to provide health benefits such as recreational parks, community gardens, and health care centers. Noting that healthfields are difficult to realize because local governments often see them as low-return investments offering little tax-base benefit relative to operation and maintenance costs, the paper describes the history and outcomes of a university-community partnership redevelopment project that catalyzed additional development including attainable housing, evaluating its public health contribution using an established land-reuse model for safely cleaning up and reusing contaminated brownfields.

Lauren J Franks · FHSU Scholars Repository (Fort Hays State University) · United States (Kansas)

The Community Cultivation program, a grant proposal project focused on Hays, Kansas, in the United States, sets out a plan for how a community garden could improve access to healthy food in rural areas. Guided by the question of how community-based food initiatives can reduce nutrition-related disparities, the proposal responds to the HaysMed Community Health Needs Assessment, which identifies nutrition and fresh produce access as critical concerns for Ellis County. With an emphasis on food-insecure and low-income individuals, the planned garden aims to reduce health disparities tied to socioeconomic status and strengthen community connections by building gardening and cooking skills. It proposes a multi-phase implementation plan involving collaboration with sustainable landscapers, development of gardening infrastructure, and educational classes, with visitor logs and participant surveys planned to track access to fresh produce, garden usage and skills applied; data collection and analysis are planned to continue throughout implementation.

G. Bastian, Sarah Lane, Haley McMahon, Olivia Husmann, Evangeline Schumacher · Journal of Agriculture Food Systems and Community Development · United States

One in eight South Dakota residents faces food insecurity, which has been linked to higher prevalence of chronic diseases such as heart disease and diabetes. Against this backdrop, this study conducted a preliminary process and impact evaluation of Dakota Food Rx, a pilot community-supported agriculture (CSA) produce prescription (PRx) program in the Northern Black Hills of South Dakota. Healthcare providers (Prescribers) referred low-income and/or food-insecure adults with diet-related chronic disease (Patients) to receive weekly produce boxes from a local specialty producer (Grower); evaluation measures included patient pre-post surveys and key informant interviews with Prescribers, Growers and Patients. From June to November 2024, 30 patients participated, receiving 434 produce boxes (mean 14.5 per patient) valued at over $14,000. Ten pre-surveys and eight post-surveys were completed (seven pre-only, five post-only, three both), along with nine interviews. Overall program satisfaction was high, and patients responding at post-test reported higher food security and sense of community than at pre-test. Thematic analysis of the interviews indicated patients improved their diet, food access and overall health, and that relationships were built among program participants; however, Prescribers, Growers and Patients all reported having to adapt to the program, with future considerations including increased communication, improved workflow, and additional resources.

Ruyu Liu, Daniel Harwood, Ora Kemp, Alyson Rosenthal, Roger Figueroa, PhD, MPH, MSc · Public Health Nutrition · United States (New York City)

A quasi-experimental pilot study with 3-month follow-up assessed a food pantry-led, subsidized community-supported agriculture (CSA) program called Farm Share in New York City. Farm Share provided biweekly bags of about 25 pounds of fresh produce at $5 per bag; control participants were recruited from a comparable food pantry without CSA (Farm Share n=54, control n=69), predominantly Hispanic/Latino, Black or African American, foreign-born, female and with a high school education or lower. Retention at follow-up was 65.0% (Farm Share n=33, control n=47). Skin carotenoids increased by 12 points in the Farm Share group relative to control, adjusted for smoking status, age, sex and birthplace (P=0.005), but total Healthy Eating Index (HEI) declined by 6.3 points (P=0.031) and the saturated fats HEI component declined by 1.1 point (P=0.027) in the Farm Share group. Improvements in fruit and vegetable intake (P=0.25) and food security (P=0.16) were not statistically significant.

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) · U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) · United States

This official U.S. EPA page on 'The Effects' of nutrient pollution explains that excess nitrogen and phosphorus entering air and water cause algal blooms, degrading water quality and reducing dissolved oxygen. It states cyanobacteria can release toxins that sicken people and animals via contact, drinking water, or contaminated seafood, that nitrates in drinking water pose risks to infants, and that excess airborne nitrogen contributes to ammonia and ozone formation. The page itself contains no specific numeric statistics on economic damages or dead-zone area.