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This presentation discusses the importance of urban and peri-urban agriculture in enhancing urban food security and poverty alleviation. It also addresses the positive impacts of urban farming on nutrition and health, as well as health concerns regarding urban food production. The presentation concludes with suggestions for action and the roles that municipalities, health authorities, agricultural research and extension organizations, and NGOs and CBOs can play in promoting safe and productive urban food production.
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Urban Food Production: a complementary strategy for urban food security and healthy cities Presentation 2003 Healthy Cities Conference Belfast, Session on “Urban Food and Agriculture”, October 20, 2003 Ir. Henk de Zeeuw, ETC-RUAF
Urban Agriculture • Worldwide about 800 million people are engaged in intra-urban and peri-urban agriculture (UNDP,1999). • It is an urban phenomenon and not a relict of rural habits of recent migrants, that will dwindle over time. • The importance of urban and peri-urban agriculture as a strategy for enhancing urban food security and poverty alleviation is increasingly recognised • Urban food insecurity is quickly growing a/o due to growing poverty, uneven distribution of access to food, social exclusion, HIV / AIDS and increasing market dominance of super markets.
Positive impacts of urban farming on nutrition and health • Enhanced food security: better access of the urban poor to food (at affordable prices, nearby) • Better nutrition: enhanced local availability of nutritious fresh food including organically grown food • Through savings on food costs and sales of surplus products more cash becomes available a/o for health care and education • Social inclusion of disadvantaged groups (female headed households, jobless youth, pensioners, families with HIV-AIDS) • Contributions to urban environmental management (urban greening, recycling of urban organic wastes) • Cleaning of risky derelict areas; community revitalisation • Physical exercise / psychological relaxationa. by urban gardeners b. by citizens on peri-urban farms as “hotel” or “nursing home”
Health concerns regarding urban food production • 1. Contamination of crops with: • pathogens (unhygienic handling of products, use of untreated wastewater • heavy metals (soils, water and air pollution by traffic and industry) • 2. Spread of diseases due to closeness of animals to human beings (zoonosis) • 3. Overuse of agrochemicals • 4. Disease vectors attracted by agriculture activity (especially irrigated and ridge cultivation)
Towards safe and productive urban food production: Some elements for action • Experience shows that purely restrictive policies regarding urban agriculture,as well as “laissez faire” policies, are contra-productive. Facilitating & guiding policies are needed. • Urban agriculture is a cross-sectoral issue that requires a multi-sectoral and interdisciplinary approach • Cooperation between local authorities and local farmer groups, NGO’s and community based organisations is crucial. • Land tenure and gender issues play an important role
>Creation of a multi-stakeholder urban food policy council for the development of adequate urban food policies and joint action planning • Integration of urban agriculture in urban land use plans and adaptation of existing norms and regulations • Leasing vacant municipal land to organised groups for food production and greening (purpose specific leaseholds) • Facilitating the creation of adequate infrastructure for input supply, processing and marketing of locally produced food • Promotion of safe re-use of urban organic solid waste and wastewater What Municipalities can do:
What Health authorities can do: • Conducting integrated health impact assessments on urban agriculture • Periodic monitoring of the quality of soils, irrigation water and crops in urban food producing areas • Adequate measures to prevent contamination of soils and streams by industry • Education of urban farmers and local food processors and vendors on the management of health risks associated with urban agriculture
What agricultural research and extension organisations can do: • > Developing adequate technologies for sustainable production under urban conditions (land scarcity, proximity to people, re-use of urban waste resources, cultural variation in food preferences) • > Training of urban farmers in ecological and safe farming practices • Assistance to cooperative and enterprise development • Enabling access to credit and market information
WhatNGO’s and CBO’s can do: • >Assisting urban farmers and local communities to analyse their food situation and the local food production and distribution system • >Developing plans for community supported activities regarding local food production and distribution • Guiding the implementation of backyard gardening projects, establishment of local garbage collection and composting systems, creation of farmers’ markets, etcetera • Lobbying for adequate policies and action plans regarding urban food production and distribution
Discussion on Urban Food and Agriculture • Potentials and risks of urban food production for urban health and nutrition • Adequate policies regarding urban agriculture; lessons learned
THANK YOUSEE THE DISPLAYS FOR MORE INFORMATION Further contacts E-mail: RUAF@etcnl.nl Phone: +31-33-4326039 Website: www.RUAF.org