Diverse food in urban gardens in the promotion of food and nutrition security in Brazil: a review

Abstract

Food and nutrition security can be supported by an urban garden. The present study comprises a critical reflection on the difficulty of producing food in urban gardens in Brazil and shows the potential of food production and the obstacles to its expansion. In addition, issues related to the agroecological management of gardens are addressed and suggestions are made to improve the proposed public policies. Urban gardens are multifunctional and have social, economic and environmental impacts. They are strategically important for supporting low-income families and urban development. Through urban gardens, diverse foods and quality foods can be produced for self-consumption. This review highlights the importance of generating detailed information on urban gardens in Brazil to support policies aimed at this sector. Long-term and multidisciplinary studies are needed to evaluate the relationship between food production in urban gardens and household food and nutrition security. This approach revealed a lack of information on the amount of food produced by Brazilians in their gardens and consumed by the household. In addition, there is little information on the management of production. There is a gap relating to the impact of food produced in urban gardens and the prevalence of food and nutrition security.

Growth and Carotenoid Contents of Intercropped Vegetables in Building-Integrated Urban Agriculture

“…e current study reports the companion planting, which was originally used for disease management [28,29] and improving plant productivity [30], which can be utilized to improve plant growth and bioactive contents in buildingintegrated urban agriculture. We believe that increasing the availability of a nutritious food supplies through buildingintegrated urban agriculture can be a useful strategy to overcome food and nutrient instability caused by climate and environmental changes in modern society [31].…”

Backyards Are a Way to Promote Environmental Justice and Biodiversity Conservation in Brazilian Cities

“…Environmental injustice is also materialized in backyards: backyards in upper-middle-class families' homes have a larger number of plant species, individuals, plant habits and uses (for example, ornamental plants and fruit trees), as well as bigger areas than poor families' backyards [8]. The biodiversity of backyards is a theme that has been scarcely studied in Brazil [9], but some authors have pointed out that those differences in the vegetation of backyards of low-income and upper-middle-class Diversity 2023, 15, 815 2 of 8 families are, unfortunately, a common phenomenon [8,10]. Environmental injustice in Brazilian low-income families' backyards prevents them from accessing ecosystem services provided by trees, such as the removal of atmospheric pollutants, which are mainly absorbed by leaf stomata [11].…”