Social Sustainability

Urban Agriculture

Meaning statusEstablishedSource recordDirect document linkedWhy these are different

Definition

Urban agriculture is the cultivation of food within and on the fringes of cities: allotment and community gardens, rooftop and balcony production, school and institutional gardens, peri-urban market gardening, and controlled-environment forms such as hydroponic and vertical farms. An estimated substantial share of the world's urban population participates in some food production; in many cities of the global South urban and peri-urban agriculture supplies a significant fraction of fresh vegetables.

References

www.fao.orgBulk import source

Source imported for editorial provenance.

Source organisationSupporting reference

This reference provides supporting context for how “Urban Agriculture” is defined and used.

Overview

How it is used

The practice structures urban food strategies (Milan Urban Food Policy Pact), community programmes, green infrastructure planning and food resilience policy.

Why it matters

Urban agriculture reconnects cities to their food — modest in calories, large in everything else that food means.