Research

Social, Health, and Economic Impacts of Urban Agriculture

We conducted an extensive literature review on the health, social and economic impacts of urban agriculture. Also available are an annotated bibliography of the articles and reports we reviewed for the literature review, and an At-a-Glance spreadsheet that connects each article with the impact(s) discussed. There are other impacts, such as environmental impacts, which were beyond the scope of our literature review.

Learn More About our Urban Agriculture Needs Assessment

The literature review was part of a larger needs assessment on urban agriculture in California which included a UC ANR organizational survey and interviews with urban agriculture clientele. A full description can be found in this article.

KEY IMPACTS

Social Impacts

Creating Safe Places/Reducing Blight
Access to Land
Community Development/Building Social Capital
Education and Youth Development Opportunities
Cross-Generational and Cultural Integration

Health Impacts

Food Access and Security
Increased Fruit and Vegetable Consumption
Food and Health Literacy
General Well-Being (Mental Health and Physical Activity)

Economic Impacts

Job Creation, Training and Business Incubation
Market Expansion for Farmers
Economic Savings on Food
Savings for Municipal Agencies
Increased Home Values

This doesn’t mean that every urban agriculture project or urban farm offers all of these benefits! Every site is unique. Projects must be designed and implemented with their goals in mind.