San Antonio-based study highlights effectiveness of urban farms

In recent years, there’s been increased investment by American metro centers in natural floodwater management solutions like rain gardens and green spaces. Not only do trees absorb access runoff, they also provide shade—combatting the urban heat island effect—and provide recreational spaces for residents to enjoy. They’re also far less expensive than other water management solutions.

A new study from Stanford University highlights another possible benefit: food production.

“Urban agriculture offers an opportunity to provide cross-cutting benefits to alleviate effects of food insecurity, urban heat, and flooding all at once,” reads the report “Vibrant Land: The Benefits of Food Forests and Urban Farms in San Antonio,” published last month by Stanford University’s Natural Capital Project. The report, which was created through a year-long collaboration with the Food Policy Council of San Antonio, notes food insecurity is most prevalent in under-resourced neighborhoods. 

Bringing fresh produce to these areas by opening up underutilized plots to farming is an equitable solution. To that end, researchers analyzed existing urban farms and ‘food forests’ (a no-till, self-sustaining system of growing edible perennial crops) in San Antonio. Using the food data they gleaned, researchers estimated production yields in other vacant plots in the city.

“San Antonio has a total of 16,800 acres of publicly owned natural areas that could be converted to urban agriculture,” the report says. “Urban food forests and farms are extremely productive. Even in areas of the city that are very highly developed and thus have relatively little underutilized land (such as District 5), there is still ample opportunity to address local demand for food with very local production of food.”

And they can do so while providing other benefits, like carbon storage, floodwater retention, and recreational opportunities. Notably, food forests provide more of these secondary benefits than urban farms, which are precisely designed to maximize food production.

In San Antonio, if all publically owned and underutilized land was converted into space for urban food farms, the report estimates they could produce $1.1 billion annually in yield (926 million pounds), enough to feed 1.27 million households. Conversely, food forests could provide $995 million worth of food (192 million pounds) annually, enough to feed about 315,000 households. 

“Linking supply (underutilized publicly owned land for urban agriculture) with demand (households facing food insecurity) can help to guide decision-makers in an effort to implement urban agriculture where it will be most beneficial to vulnerable communities and continue building equity in the city,” the report says.

The report recommends considering the neighborhood impacts of food farms and forests, including who will benefit and bear the cost, and investments in opening more green spaces. Reducing compost application when farming in urban areas can also cut down on nutrient pollution, making the plots more sustainable. 

“Expanding the existing ‘community toolshed’ to include agricultural equipment like trenchers, tillers, tree augers, broadforks, and walk-behind tractors” could further promote urban farming,  the report says. “Making certain public lots available under a long-term lease for urban farmers, and Integrating the installation and maintenance of food forests into land management plans for public space by the parks and public works departments” could also spark growth.