Peri-urban agriculture

Peri-urban agriculture is generally defined as agriculture undertaken in places on the fringes of urban areas. There is no universally agreed definition, and usage of the term generally depends on context and operational variables. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations defines peri-urban agriculture as "agriculture practices within and around cities which compete for resources (land, water, energy, labour) that could also serve other purposes to satisfy the requirements of the urban population."

The term “peri-urban” used to describe agriculture, while difficult to define in terms of geography, population density, percentage of labor force in agriculture, or any other variable, often serves the purpose of indicating areas along the urban-rural continuum. These are places with dynamic landscape and social change and are often invoked in conversations about growth of cities.

The concept of peri-urban has become prevalent as a result of limitations in the dichotomy between rural areas and urban areas. Historically, rural and urban land have been viewed as two separate economic systems with few interactions. Often, these arguments refer to the disappearance and urbanization of rural land. Peri-urban land falls along the continuum of urban to rural land and recognizes links between the two.

Urban and peri-urban agriculture is expected to become increasingly important for food security and nutrition as rural land is built up. It is predicted to be particularly key for growing perishable produce accessible to the approximately 700 million urban residents already living in developing countries, especially because most growth is expected to take place in urban areas of developing countries.

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