Emerging global trends in urban agriculture research: A scientometric analysis of peer-reviewed journals

Abstract

Urban agriculture is the practice of production of food and non-food items in and around the urban area. This study aims to explore emerging global research trends, topical focus and gaps in peer-reviewed urban agriculture research for fifteen years (2004-2018). Bibliometric methods were used to analyse the research articles on urban agriculture extracted from SCOPUS database. The study shows that urban agriculture has been increasingly gaining attention in the research agenda with a sudden rise in research articles from 2013 onwards. The research on urban agriculture is largely centred in the Global North with minimal representation from institutions of the Global South. Major reasons for increased urban agriculture research in the Global North could be historical factors, grassroots community gardening initiatives and an increased demand for local food. Most of the research in urban agriculture is carried out in the subject area of Social Sciences. Main emphasis within urban agriculture research is given to food security, sustainability and community gardening. Keyword analysis indicates a recent shift in the research focus towards exploring socio-environmental sustainability potential of urban agriculture. Our findings show very little research in the areas of policy and governance related to urban agriculture.