Urban agriculture: Planting the seed for future generations

Urban agriculture: Planting the seed for future generations

The announcements of national lockdowns as a result of Covid-19 prompted people worldwide to begin stocking-up on food, generating a shortage of numerous essential items. In this context, urban areas are particularly vulnerable due to their reliance on external sources and lengthy supply chains. This is the case for the UK, where only 16% of fruit sold during 2019 was grown domestically, according to the UK Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs. As a result, the coronavirus pandemic has inevitably reignited the debate on whether we should implement more local food production to achieve a more sustainable world.

Hannah Ritchie (2018) - "Urbanization". Published online at OurWorldInData.org. Retrieved from: 'https://ourworldindata.org/urbanization' [Online Resource]

The world is experiencing a sustained growth of urban populations. In 2018, the UN reported that 55% of the world’s population were residing in urban areas (UN, 2018). This figure has continued to grow annually alongside global population, demanding a reconsideration of our global agricultural system, a need that has been identified by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) since 2011. An increase in food production will be required to meet rising demand, but supply may falter due to climatic changes and finite land and water: resources that are already under pressure. It is evident that future agricultural methods must be more productive.

‘Urban agriculture’ (UA), defined by the UN FAO as “an industry that produces, processes and markets food…within a town, city or metropolis” (Smit et al. 2001), could be a remedy to these threats.

Whilst land scarcity is one of the biggest challenges faced by cities worldwide, this has not proven to be a hindrance for urban farmers, who have turned to creative spaces such as rooftops, terraces, roadsides and buffer zones to grow their crops. Vertical farming, where plants are grown hydroponically or aeroponically, is another solution to combat the limited space in urban zones. These systems are not only more water efficient and produce higher yields than soil-dependent farms (Marginson, 2010), but can also be designed to produce crops year-round (Brechner & Both, 2013). Some of the world’s largest vertical farms are already based in Europe, such as ‘Intelligent Growth Solutions’ in Dundee. Although this farm is strictly for research purposes, the Scottish company began donating its produce to vulnerable people during Covid-19 (Milne, 2020), demonstrating how local food production can benefit communities during volatile times.

Model of the ‘ReGen Villages’ vertical farm in the Netherlands (Source: EFFEKT, 2018).

UA has also been able to stimulate local economies via job creation and income generation, facilitated by the rising popularity of farmers markets and community-supported farming schemes (Halweil, 2002). These ventures can provide opportunities for vulnerable groups. For example, a project in Brisbane, Australia employs young people to collect food waste from restaurants surrounding the city’s urban farms. The waste is then used to make compost to grow more food, which is subsequently supplied back to the restaurants (Wilson, 2002). Through the reduction of waste, this initiative also lowers costs and logistical issues associated with waste disposal, a significant and growing concern for most cities.

Although this agricultural innovation seems to be a promising advance towards sustainable food production, we must still overcome the challenges related to the true environmental contribution of these alternative farming methods. Despite hopes that UA will reduce emissions linked to food transportation, the climate-controlling systems (LEDs, humidity detectors and heating/ cooling devices) that are required may negate the intended energy savings if fossil fuels are used (Goodman et al. 2019).

UA’s economic viability has also been questioned as bankruptcies across the industry are continuously announced, notably that of ‘FarmedHere’ in 2017, once the largest UA player in the U.S. Financing has been the major bottleneck for expanding the industry (Cabannes, 2012) and high production costs often force farmers to charge a price premium, making UA food inaccessible to low-income populations (Goodman et al., 2019).

The value of UA evidently goes beyond meeting a portion of rising food demand, but the present cost remains too great to provide a viable economic alternative to conventional farming. Renewable energy sources would need to be incorporated to make urban-grown food more accessible to a wider demographic.

Ultimately, if UA is to become a sustainable food source, governments and international institutions must support urban farmers along the value chain (Cabannes, 2012). Laws prohibiting UA must be reviewed and efforts should be made to engage local communities with relevant projects. These efforts will convert UA into a sustainable food source, rather than a recreational activity.

By Maxine Miller

Reference list

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