Urban Agriculture Policy Research Articles

Cultivating Urban Agriculture Policies: Local Government Entrepreneurs’ Strategies in Three Brazilian Cities

Urban agriculture (UA) is increasingly recognized in policy and academic discussions for its potential to promote sustainable food systems and reduce food insecurity. Due to their proximity to citizens, local governments are well-positioned to advance these initiatives. However, the factors that drive governments in densely populated cities to develop UA policies remain relatively understudied, especially in the Global South. To address this gap, we employ a comparative case study approach based on key informant interviews and documents to examine how local government actors pursue UA policies in the Brazilian cities of Recife, Rio de Janeiro, and Curitiba. We find that certain municipal bureaucrats act as “policy entrepreneurs,” emerging as pivotal figures in creating, maintaining, and adapting municipal UA policies in Brazilian cities. These policy entrepreneurs use a number of strategies to advance their policy preferences, secure resources, and legitimize their actions within the public administration. These approaches include collaborating with civil society, forging partnerships within and outside of government, framing their proposals within international policy guidelines, and leveraging media coverage and external recognition. In doing so, policy entrepreneurs shape UA policies by introducing new programs, making them resilient to changes related to electoral turnover, and diversifying initiatives from direct government support for gardeners to, for example, incorporating UA into urban planning regulations. This article thus provides valuable insights for policymakers and underscores the crucial role of local government bureaucrats, particularly those acting as policy entrepreneurs, in shaping policies that contribute to making cities sustainable.

How is urban agriculture practiced, institutionalized, implemented, and sustained? A literature review

Urban agriculture (UA) has emerged as a crucial strategy for ensuring sustainable food access in both developing and developed nations. However, the interplay between planning regulations and land availability significantly influences farmed land's scope and location, directly impacting UA activities' scale and intensity. The spatial mechanisms governing land use for UA stem from planning regulations, which may or may not align with food policies shaped by municipal actors—whose objectives often differ from those of civil actors. This review analyzes current urban agriculture practices in cities to explore how UA is practiced, institutionalized, implemented, and sustained, considering the influence of governance mechanisms and focusing on land-based forms of UA. By reviewing 51 peer-reviewed articles, consistent challenges impeding UA across various contexts were identified. Key factors include discord between civil and municipal actors, contextual elements affecting the enactment of supportive UA policies, and urban densification encroaching upon UA land. While these issues vary between developed and developing cities, they are primary drivers of informal or constrained UA practices and tenure insecurity. The review concludes that policies aimed at regulating UA to enhance food security should prioritize scaling up farming practices by ensuring access to larger plots with more secure tenure durations. Additionally, it emphasizes the need for flexible land-use and zoning ordinances that accommodate dual land uses, the establishment of UA protection zones to counter urban densification, and the active participation of civil actors in the process.

Mapping and Assessing Urban Agriculture in São Paulo: Tackling Socio-Economic and Environmental Issues through Nature-Based Solutions

Inefficient urban transformations pose multifaceted challenges. In this context, urban agriculture (UA) can address environmental and socio-economic issues. Despite recent UA policies in São Paulo, the lack of data hampers comprehensive evaluations, highlighting the need for robust indicators to enhance environmental sustainability. This article assesses São Paulo’s UA potential using an Ecosystem Services (ES)-based approach, combining ES spatial mapping and a producer survey at 49 UA sites. Results show natural habitats and anthropic areas within urbanised land, especially in the south, with high habitat quality scores. Nine ES were identified: food supply, commercialisation, income generation, waste mediation, lifecycle maintenance, soil formation, leisure/social, well-being, and education. Utilising mixed methods, this study provides innovative insights into ES related to UA in São Paulo, offering valuable input for urban policies and planning.

Geo-sustainable Practices in Urban Agriculture: A Study of Sustainable Land Use and Natural Resource Conservation at Household Level

This study explores urban agriculture as a solution to food insecurity in Lahore, Pakistan, amid rapid urbanization and declining agricultural productivity. Using a mixed methods approach, the research assesses the current state of urban agriculture, community willingness to adopt such practices, and the factors influencing this adoption. Data was collected from households in Johar Town and Faisal Town through surveys, complemented by a literature review of global urban agriculture policies. The findings reveal limited practice of urban agriculture but significant willingness among residents, driven by factors such as self-reliance, high food prices, and health concerns. However, barriers like lack of access to land, guidance, and time hinder widespread adoption. The socio-economic profile of respondents indicates varied interest and awareness based on age, income, and household size. The study emphasizes the need for policies promoting urban agriculture, including community gardens, vertical farms, and wastewater reuse. Educational campaigns and professional training are essential to raise awareness and build skills among urban dwellers. The research concludes that urban agriculture can enhance food security and sustainability in Lahore with robust policy support and community engagement. Future research should expand the study area, use more nuanced data collection methods, and explore the economic viability of urban agriculture initiatives. Such efforts aim to advance urban agriculture practices and policies in Lahore, making the city more self-sufficient and resilient in food production.

Linking policies and regulations to sustainable finance for the promotion of urban agriculture: Evidence from micro and small businesses

Urban agriculture is closely tied to several of the Sustainable Development Goals. It can play a critical role in helping to achieve these goals by promoting sustainable food production and consumption, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and creating more sustainable cities. It is also considered a pathway for overcoming food security in urban areas. However, this needs to be integrated with policies and regulations supported by sustainable finance. Due to COVID-19, conflict, and lack of infrastructure in Ethiopia, several challenges must be addressed to promote urban agriculture to aid food security. Hence, this study is conducted to examine how government policies and regulations promote urban agriculture through sustainable finance in Ethiopia. The study employed both an explanatory research design and a mixed research approach. Multi-stage sampling techniques that include (Simple random sampling techniques and judgmental sampling were used. The data was collected from selected micro and small enterprises engaged in urban agriculture. The structural and measurement model is estimated with the help of smart-pls software version 4. The study's finding implies that government policies and regulations have an insignificant effect on urban agriculture. At the same time, the study finding implies that sustainable finance has an important mediating role between urban agriculture and government policies. Hence, the impact of government policies and regulations on urban agriculture is found to have an indirect effect. Based on the study's findings, the study recommends that all stakeholders promote innovation and entrepreneurship that promote urban agriculture through sustainable finance.

Reversing food-land relationships in the city: Insights from the Seeding East Buffalo Fellowship Program

The Seeding East Buffalo Fellowship (SEBF) pro­gram, co-founded by community and academic organizations from Buffalo, NY in 2022, supported residents in Buffalo’s Black neighborhoods to grow their own food, emerge as urban agriculture (UA) leaders, and engage in and advocate for UA policy. This article reflects on the lessons learned from this pilot program. The authors, all of whom are either co-founders or team members of the SEBF program, drew from field notes and qualitative interviews with SEBF growers in this article. Key lessons for policy change are that programs must be rooted in the community’s history, pedagogical strategies must be tailored to the local context, and long-term relationships must be fostered. . . .

The role of urban agriculture in food-energy-water nexus policies: Insights from Europe and the U.S

The growth of urban agriculture (UA) has raised the awareness of city officials and civil society organizations of its potential effects on food systems. This has led to various policies to regulate and support UA. This research characterizes existing food, energy and water (FEW nexus) policies based on policy data from five case study cities in Europe and the U.S. (Dortmund, Gorzów Wielkopolski, London, Nantes, and New York City) to analyze their relationships to UA, and to identify policy types that support resource-efficient UA. The paper presents the results of an analysis of 78 policy documents related to UA and the FEW nexus, and the results of a Q-sort ranking by UA policy experts on the effectiveness of 16 generalized UA policies in promoting resource-efficient UA.The number, type, and degree of support for nexus policies vary among the five case studies. The results show that the majority of policies (36) are implemented at the local scale, that few policies (19) incorporate all elements of the nexus, yet many nexus policies include UA indirectly. Regulations are more prevalent and are considered more effective at ensuring resource-efficient UA than incentives or awareness-raising policies. The study offers guidance to policy makers who want to improve resource use in future UA pointing at the increasing importance of local food policies.

Which urban agriculture conditions enable or constrain sustainable food production?

ABSTRACTUrban agriculture (UA) has been adopted as a strategy for food security in urban areas. This study identified the conditions for development of UA through a systematic review of UA case studies. It classified the enabling and constraining conditions within the three compositional elements of UA – necessity, ability, and opportunity – and determined the primary and secondary conditions for UA design by the country income group. The following conditions are required for both high-income and low/ middle-income countries: Motivation/public awareness; labour/human resources; policy and institutional infrastructure; social capital; and arable land and resources for farming. Agricultural education/training and research and technical development are needed for low and middle-income countries as the key secondary conditions. In high-income countries, a lack of farmers’ knowledge and urban development are the main challenges to UA implementation. Therefore, the research findings could be meaningful evidence for making decisions and designing UA policies for sustainable food production.

Food production and resource use of urban farms and gardens: a five-country study

There is a lack of data on resources used and food produced at urban farms. This hampers attempts to quantify the environmental impacts of urban agriculture or craft policies for sustainable food production in cities. To address this gap, we used a citizen science approach to collect data from 72 urban agriculture sites, representing three types of spaces (urban farms, collective gardens, individual gardens), in five countries (France, Germany, Poland, United Kingdom, and United States). We answered three key questions about urban agriculture with this unprecedented dataset: (1) What are its land, water, nutrient, and energy demands? (2) How productive is it relative to conventional agriculture and across types of farms? and (3) What are its contributions to local biodiversity? We found that participant farms used dozens of inputs, most of which were organic (e.g., manure for fertilizers). Farms required on average 71.6 L of irrigation water, 5.5 L of compost, and 0.53 m2 of land per kilogram of harvested food. Irrigation was lower in individual gardens and higher in sites using drip irrigation. While extremely variable, yields at well-managed urban farms can exceed those of conventional counterparts. Although farm type did not predict yield, our cluster analysis demonstrated that individually managed leisure gardens had lower yields than other farms and gardens. Farms in our sample contributed significantly to local biodiversity, with an average of 20 different crops per farm not including ornamental plants. Aside from clarifying important trends in resource use at urban farms using a robust and open dataset, this study also raises numerous questions about how crop selection and growing practices influence the environmental impacts of growing food in cities. We conclude with a research agenda to tackle these and other pressing questions on resource use at urban farms.

Urban Soil Safety Policies: The Next Frontier for Mitigating Lead Exposures and Promoting Sustainable Food Production.

Urban soils bear the persistent legacy of leaded gasoline and past industrial practices. Soil safety policies (SSPs) are an important public health tool with the potential to inform, identify, and mitigate potential health risks faced by urban growers, but little is known about how these policies may protect growers from exposures to lead and other soil contaminants. We reviewed and evaluated 43 urban agriculture (UA) policies in 40 US cities pertaining to soil safety. About half of these cities had a least one SSP that offered recommendations or provided services for soil testing. Eight cities had at least one SSP containing a requirement pertaining to any topic (e.g., soil testing, a specific best practice for growing). We found notable inconsistencies across SSPs for “acceptable” levels of lead in soils and the activities and behaviors recommended at each level. We specify research needed to inform revisions to US Environmental Protection Agency guidance for lead in soils specific to UA. We conclude with a series of recommendations to guide the development or revision of SSPs.

The challenge of urban food production and sustainable water use: Current situation and future perspectives of the urban agriculture in Brazil and Italy

• Tap water use in urban agriculture albeit climate change/urban water risk scenarios. • No studies addressed impacts of urban agriculture on public water supply systems. • Research need on urban agriculture policies and practices towards water security. • Fruit trees and wild edible plants are water-saving options. Urban agriculture (UA) initiatives have been increasing in recent years as a nature-based solution for achieving many of the 2030 UN Sustainable Development Goals. However, climate change is expected to have effects on rainfall patterns, which are likely to impact urban food production. The main aim of this paper is to evaluate how issues related to water sources for UA have been addressed in the scientific literature from two different socioeconomic and environmental realities, Brazil and Italy. The method involved a systematic literature review, considering the PRISMA guidelines. The Web of Science database and papers' reference lists were used for retrieving original articles, published in 2000–2020 interval, indexed on scientific databases, and containing data on the typology and quality of water sources used in UA studies. After applying the eligibility criteria, 191 papers were selected – Brazil (108) and Italy (83). The last five years have seen an intensification of studies into issues involving water. Tap water has been identified as an important source of irrigation water for UA, if not the main one. No studies were found that addressed the impact of UA on public water supply systems. The findings point towards more sustainable practices involving the reuse of water and adaptive practices towards water security. We identified that innovative production systems like container farming, aquaponics and indoor agriculture, as well as cultivation of fruit trees, wild edible plants and varieties with low water requirements can represent water-saving options.

Urban agriculture in São Paulo: an analysis from the sociology of public action.

How can one analyze the public actions of organizations and actors from different sectors? Studies using a policy analysis perspective have shed light on the role of the state in making and implementing urban agriculture (UA) policy. However, this perspective has limitations when it comes to explaining the interactions between the state, civil society, and the business organizations that support it. This article provides an analytical framework derived from the sociology of public action (SPA) to understand how multiple organizations support UA. We have applied the SPA framework to the city of São Paulo and our analysis indicates that civil society has mobilized significant meanings, ideas, and networks to reinforce the importance of UA. As a result, there has been a paradigm shift in terms of UA: it has gone from a state of invisibility within an institutional void to an improved state of policy planning. However, civil society organizations still lead the delivery of services for farmers with intermittent state support, which indicates that there has been a paradigm shift in UA policy planning, but not in policy implementation.

"The highest and best use of land in the city": Valuing urban agriculture in Philadelphia and Chicago

United States cities have developed urban agri­culture support systems with different priorities and institutional structures, with significant impacts and implications for social equity and justice. Some treat farming and gardening as public goods, public spaces, valued for their community-building, environmental and public health promotion, and other social benefits. Others have sought to extract more economic and redevelopment gains from urban agriculture. These represent divergent, often opposing expectations of what urban agriculture can yield, and what it should be, often present in the same city. This article, a combination of mixed methods research and reflection, traces the evolution of urban agriculture practice, support, and policy in Philadelphia and Chicago since the 1990s. In both cities, community gardens first declined and then grew in number since the late 2000s; both cities became prominent centers of urban farming. The two cities’ policies and support systems started from a similar place in the 1990s, but Chicago increasingly treated urban agriculture a public good, while the place of agriculture in Philadelphia remained more contested and unstable. These histories reflect broader tensions and the diversity of approaches in governing, supporting, and practicing agriculture in cities.

Public action and policy implementation: a comparative analysis of Urban Agriculture in three regions of São Paulo

ABSTRACT This article presents an analysis of the municipal urban agriculture (UA) policy implementation at the local level, based on a comparison of three regions of the Municipality of São Paulo, Brazil—namely extreme south, east, and north. Our findings show that although UA policymaking of the past has led to successful improvements at the municipal level, implementation is carried out timidly. They also show that policy implementation is still more remarkable in the southern region, less so in the eastern region, and almost nonexistent in the northern region. Our analysis suggests that three factors explain local differences in policy implementation: (1) access to land, (2) farmers’ organisations, and (3) the actions of nongovernmental organisations. We conclude that these aspects are producing a vicious cycle of differences between the three regions. Regions that have greater access to land also have greater potential for food production and more support to assist farmers’ production and organisation. As a result of these conditions, they are benefited with more policy implementation that reinforces the conditions for accessing food markets and public interest in reinvesting in them, reproducing inequalities related to policy implementation between the regions.

Beyond backyard chickens: A framework for understanding municipal urban agriculture policies in the United States

The growth of interest in urban agriculture (UA) has paralleled an increase in municipal policy to enable, regulate, or otherwise support UA, particularly over the past decade. Yet, there has been no systematic documentation and characterization of the myriad UA public policies emerging across different cities within the United States (US). To address this gap, we developed a framework to understand the landscape of municipal UA policy, focusing on authority, policy instruments, and topic areas. We systematically compiled and catalogued policy recommendations, city plans and priorities, regulations, guidance, and city-operated programs from the 40 most populous US cities. The results demonstrate the wide variety of ways in which cities address UA through public policy, employing an array of policy instruments with different levels of authority and topics addressed, ranging from accessory structures and compost to public land access and soil safety. The growing frequency in which governments are engaging in public-private partnerships illustrates the increasing role of civil society groups as collaborators instead of stakeholders in municipal government processes. This shift towards a shared governance approach raises questions around who is leading the advocacy, creation, and enforcement of UA policies, and how that may affect concerns around equity and food justice. Furthermore, our results highlight the need for cities to more clearly synthesize their UA policies to assist practitioners in navigating a landscape of numerous policies stemming from different government departments and partnerships. Our findings lay the groundwork for expanding, refining, and adapting UA policymaking in varying governance contexts.

How Well Is Urban Agriculture Growing in the Southern United States? Trends and Issues from the Perspective of Urban Planners Regulating Urban Agriculture

In this study, we evaluate urban agriculture trends in 55 cities in the Southern United States. Our research is important for three reasons. First, as the geographic scope of urban agriculture research is limited mostly to Northeast and West Coast cities, we focus on the South, the fastest-growing U.S. Census region. Second, despite rapid growth, this region has also experienced the highest rate of poverty and food insecurity. Third, we surveyed urban planners who regulate and monitor urban agriculture sites, develop urban agriculture policies and programs, and advise local decision-makers. The study documents Southern urban agriculture changes between 2000 and 2010. It also considers types of projects, implementation barriers, and strategies used to promote urban agriculture. A survey questionnaire was mailed to planning offi­cials in 153 Southern cities; 55 cities responded. Among respondents, 87% reported the existence of urban agriculture in their jurisdiction. Most Southern cities reporting urban agriculture experi­enced urban agriculture growth (69%), 21% reported decline, and 10% did not report a change. The most common projects included neighbor­hood gardens, school gardens, and community supported and entrepreneurial agriculture. Irrespec­tive of urban agriculture growth or decline, the responding cities relied on the same types of regul­atory and policy approaches. Only cities reporting growth in urban agriculture implemented programs to promote urban agricul­ture, including land acqui­sition, trusts, and inter­jurisdictional coordination. Land conversion and lack of economic sustaina­bility were cited as main barriers to urban agricul­ture. The findings suggest the need to further explore the impact of external factors on the effec­tiveness of urban agriculture regulations, policies and programs, and solutions to urban agriculture barriers. See the press release for this article.

Urban agriculture, food security, and development policies in Jakarta: A case study of farming communities at Kalideres – Cengkareng district, West Jakarta

Currently, while urban agriculture occupies approximately 21% of total green space area in Jakarta, its potential contribution towards the city’s food security has not been acknowledged or realised by the government. This is evident from several issues raised within the local context, most notably government policies that lead to insecure land title and tenure for many farmers. The current approach to urban agriculture land use policy puts diverse production strategies all under the broad umbrella of urban agriculture, which ranges from community gardens, urban farms, edible school gardens; this singular one-size-fits-all policy is problematic. Thus, we argue that in order for the government to generate policies which support the continuity of diverse urban agriculture practices, there is a need to systematically understand different typologies of urban agriculture across form and function. This paper used a case study of typical undefined urban agriculture fields in Jakarta as the starting point to begin to systematically define diverse typologies of local urban agriculture. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews, field observations, and geographic information system (GIS) mapping. The results provide an in-depth characterization of one typology of urban agriculture in Jakarta, summarised as medium to highly commercialised domestically run small and medium scale farms, located primarily on private land, producing vegetables and livestock for local markets within the city. The farmers were a mix of locals and migrants of informal tenure status, who were highly dependent on their farms for income generation and household food security. We conclude with suggested strategies for policy improvement to accommodate diverse urban agriculture typologies. The case of Jakarta provides a proof of concept, and serves as a reference for other metropolitan areas in developing countries to develop policies to accommodate urban agriculture practices across a broad spectrum of typologies, particularly as a strategy for meeting urban food security goals.

Development policies and urban agriculture policies

Urban agriculture is an initiative that has been gaining ground in political and social debates. Many laws and public policies were created for their development, directly or indirectly. This work studied the space of urban agriculture in the development of policies and legislation for urban and regional planning. Through legal analysis of legislation at various scales, from supranational documents to regional and municipal legislation, the work showed that urban agriculture, in city planning, is an instrument that can be able to reduce the number of vacant lots and buildings that do not fulfill their social function. Nonetheless, the research showed that although there is a diverse range of legislation for the development of urban agriculture, they are not fully interconnected, often working as parallel initiatives.

Toronto Municipal Staff and Policy-makers' Views on Urban Agriculture and Health: A Qualitative Study

Municipal governments across the Global North are increasingly becoming key actors in shaping urban food and agriculture policy. In the City of Toronto, recent aspirational policies, such as the provincial Local Food Act and the municipal Toronto Agricultural Program, created new opportunities to shape a healthier food system. We sought municipal perspectives on the question of “How might urban agriculture policy and programs be better supported to promote equity and health?” Analysis of findings from semistructured key informant interviews with municipal staff and policy-makers (n=18) illustrated broad support for generating better quantifiable evidence of the impacts of urban agriculture on economic development and employment, health and health equity, land use and production, and partnerships and policies. Place-specific economic and equity data emerged as particularly pressing priorities. At the same time, they sought better approaches to the potential risks involved in urban agriculture. Key informants also shared their views on the use of health impact assessment research to make a case for urban agriculture to a range of stake­holders; to manage real and perceived risks; and to move beyond enabling policies to empower new investments and procedural changes that would facilitate urban agriculture expansion in the city. The results informed the evolving praxis agenda for urban agriculture at the intersections of population health, environmental sustainability, and urban governance.

Social acceptance and perceived ecosystem services of urban agriculture in Southern Europe: The case of Bologna, Italy.

Urban agriculture has become a common form of urban land use in European cities linked to multiple environmental, social and economic benefits, as well as to diversified forms (from self-production allotments to high-tech companies). Social acceptance will determine the development of urban agriculture and specific knowledge on citizens’ perception is required in order to set the basis for policy-making and planning. The ecosystem services provided by urban agriculture can be determinant in this process. The goal of this paper is to evaluate the social acceptance and the perceived ecosystem services of urban agriculture in the city of Bologna (Italy), as an example of a Southern European city. In particular, we evaluated the preferences for urban land uses, for different typologies of urban agriculture and for the resulting products, the perceived provision of ecosystem services and the willingness to engage in new initiatives. A survey that investigated these topics (including open questions, closed questions and Likert-scale evaluation) was performed on the citizens of Bologna (n = 380) between October and November 2016. Results showed that urban agriculture is widely accepted by the inhabitants of Bologna, particularly regarding vegetable production. Although intensive farming systems were the least preferred forms to be implemented in Bologna, citizens highly accepted a large variety of urban agriculture goods, with preference for those obtained from plants as compared to animal products. The willingness-to-pay for urban food products was mostly the same as for conventional ones, although the participants recognised the social values, proximity and quality of the former. Socio-cultural ecosystem services were perceived as more valuable than environmental ones. Policy-making recommendations can be extracted from the results to facilitate the development of urban agriculture plans and policies.