Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development

Agricultural knowledge, place, and production in The Almond Paradox

2026-10-03T23:36:12+00:00

First paragraphs:

Almonds are a controversial crop in the U.S.; many decry the trees’ thirst in water-stressed California, where most global almond production occurs (Gonzales, 2015; Palmer et al., 2024; Pollan, 2007; Reisman, 2019). But this is only part of the story. Emily Reisman examines how different agricultural, political, place, and environmental contexts shape our understanding of what almond trees “need,” comparing intensive almond production in California with Spain’s traditional rainfed systems in her 2025 book, The Almond Paradox: Cracking Open the Politics of What Plants Need.

Dramatic increases in almond production have also led to steady, higher demand for the product, fueled by marketing investments from the grower association. Almonds are no longer a seasonal holiday food and instead are eaten year-round with many uses. These market demands have shaped almonds as a major agricultural crop in California’s Central Valley, creating new challenges for food and environmental systems. . . .

Africonnections: Seeds of memory, roots of survival

2026-10-02T23:50:35+00:00

First paragraphs:

Through Africulture: How the Principles, Practices, Plants, and People of African Descent Have Shaped American Agriculture, Michael Carter Jr. is building a bridge that many Black, African, and African American farmers, agriculturists, and future generations have long been waiting for—a bridge that makes it possible to see ourselves reflected in agricultural spaces. Myself included. This is not easy work. With the records of those kidnapped and enslaved in the Americas missing, fragmented, or deliberately erased, the work of reconnecting begins with the seeds that traveled here through the hands and knowledge of the enslaved.

The plants that grow in American soil tell a story of violence, but they also tell a story of resilience, fortitude, and deep agronomic knowledge. My ancestors, Carter Jr.’s ancestors, and the ancestors of countless Black Americans came here against their will and endured unimaginable suffering. Yet, through narratives like Carter Jr.’s, their stories live again. They reveal how the knowledge and labor of enslaved Africans shaped American agriculture, even as colonizers refused to acknowledge the depth of their expertise or the fullness of their humanity. . . .

From fields to markets: Diversification case studies in the U.S. Corn Belt via a social-ecological systems lens

2026-10-02T21:45:53+00:00

Agricultural diversification is increasingly recognized as a systems-level strategy that enhances sustainability, resilience, and adaptability of agricultural and food systems under global environmental and market pressures. This research delves into the dynamics, opportunities, challenges, and key success drivers associated with agricultural diversification in the U.S. Midwest—a region historically dominated by corn–soybean rotations—through the lens of the social-ecological systems (SES) framework. Focusing on the integration of oats, wheat, and peas into existing systems, we employed a case study methodology combining theoretical, empirical, and contextual inquiry. Data collection integrates primary and secondary sources, including semi-structured interviews and participation in field days, spanning October 2022 to February 2024. Interviews with 29 actors, including farmers, industry representatives, and members of agricultural cooperatives and nonprofits, provided insights into market opportunities for diversified agriculture systems. The findings highlight that diversification outcomes are co-shaped by ecological interactions, market dynamics, policy environments, and collaborative networks. The cross-case analysis demonstrates that farmer decision making, knowledge co-production, supply chain coordination, and farmer–Extension collaborations are central mechanisms that foster ecological resilience, expand market access, and stimulate innovation. Through the SES framework, this research provides a novel synthesis that advances understanding of agricultural diversification as a system-level transition pathway. Beyond the Midwestern U.S. context, this research contributes to the body of knowledge on how agricultural diversification is a system-level transformation process and to broader debates on agroecology, sustainability transitions, and food system resilience, offering insights to guide future research, policy, and practice.

Future-proofing the regional foodshed

2026-10-02T21:25:18+00:00

During the winter, in countries like Canada, there is growing reliance on fresh fruits and vegetables imported from more southerly bioregions. The transcontinental supply chains that carry these foods are vulnerable to stochastic shocks, one extreme weather event or tariff dispute away from slowing or stopping. This vulnerability raises pressing questions of national food and nutrition security. However, can countries where winter weather slows or even stops production supply their own fruits and vegetables during this season? A common assumption is that a re-localized food supply in such regions would mean a winter diet of rutabaga and potato. Thus, we investigated what regionally grown produce is available for sale during the off-season at Canada’s largest wholesale food market, the Ontario Food Terminal in Toronto. We conducted an interviewer-administered questionnaire with Ontario farmers and produce dealers to assess the social and environmental conditions that produce the current winter supply and the potential for scaling up local reliance on winter produce. From our findings, we argue that a winter supply can and does exist. We find that barriers that currently limit the off-season crop supply, and opportunities to expand it, are both ecological and economic. Factors influencing supply include crop varieties, storage technologies, and market characteristics. Our findings are pertinent to regions with an interest in future-proofing their food and nutrition security at a time of geopolitical realignment.

Urban farms represent highly heterogeneous environments, complicating on-farm food safety efforts

2026-10-01T21:08:43+00:00

Urban agriculture is increasingly recognized for its capacity to mitigate food insecurity and to contribute to the development of more sustainable and equitable food systems, yet microbial and chemical pre-harvest food safety risks in urban farms remain underexplored in the United States. To address this gap, we surveyed 43 urban farms across 12 cities in three U.S. growing regions. Semi-structured interviews, field walk-throughs, and follow-up reviews of each farm’s social media presence were used to characterize farm practices and histories as well as grower perspectives on microbial and chemical hazards. Findings revealed substantial heterogeneity between and within farms. Many farms prioritized community empowerment, education, and food access. Growers frequently expressed concern about legacy chemical contamination but reported limited training or awareness of microbial hazards. Structural constraints, such as insecure land tenure, limited resources, reliance on volunteers and donated materials, and staff turnover, further complicated consistent implementation of food safety measures. Improving food safety outcomes in urban agriculture will require flexible, field-specific risk assessment, alongside policies and technical assistance that address both knowledge gaps and structural barriers facing urban growers.

Planning for the “new normal”: Farmworker support organizations’ experiences of climate change impacts and adaptation

2026-10-01T01:19:12+00:00

Farmworker support organizations (SOs) in central Washington state are experiencing climate change–related impacts. To understand the challenges these organizations are facing, how they observe tree-fruit farmworkers navigating these impacts, and what gaps exist in farmworker support, we carried out a multimethod qualitative case study, interviewing 24 staff from community health clinics and centers, community-based organizations, and research and training organizations. The analysis found that SOs are providing essential support related to climate change, and that need for these services in increasing. Several factors converge to make it challenging for SOs to effectively contribute to long-term, sustainable solutions: limited capacity, staff burnout and, in some cases, the fact that staff do not make the connection between increasing heat and smoke events and climate change. We propose that three principles could strengthen efforts to agree upon and implement long-term climate resilience strategies for the benefit of farmworkers’ health and safety and the sustainability of tree-fruit production: (1) addressing the systemic inequalities that contribute to farmworkers’ vulnerability, rather than focusing narrowly on individual preparedness and reducing exposure; (2) bringing together diverse players to propose solutions for protecting workers within the context of farm economic viability, so as to reduce the potential for unintended consequences to the tree-fruit production system; and (3) incorporating adaptive strategies that attend to how climate change impacts people differently, unevenly, and disproportionately.

Women as catalysts of rural transformation

2026-09-30T03:25:04+00:00

Women play a crucial role in rural transformation in developing countries, but they face significant socio-economic, cultural, and structural barriers that hinder their full participation. Despite their contributions to agriculture and rural development, systemic inequities in access to resources, education, and decision making limit their potential as agents of change. Our research aims to analyze the challenges women face in rural transformation, identify opportunities for their empowerment, and propose actionable policy recommendations for gender-inclusive rural development. A systematic literature review was conducted using the Scopus and Web of Science databases, focusing on peer-reviewed articles published between 2015 and 2025. Using the PRISMA framework, 166 studies were selected from 499 studies across South Asia, sub-Saharan Africa, and Latin America. These major developing regions have rural populations reliant on agriculture, in which women play crucial roles but face gender barriers. Women face obstacles such as limited access to land, technology, credit, and markets, hindering their full contribution to sustainable food systems. Enabling factors such as capacity building, digital literacy, cooperative farming, and gender-transformative policies enhance women’s agency in food production. Empowering women through training, inclusive financing, and land rights improves productivity, food security, and sustainability. The findings highlight the need for inclusive rural policies, interdisciplinary collaboration, and gender-sensitive infrastructure to support women in agriculture. Integrating women into rural and food strategies is key to long-term sustainability. Future research should evaluate the impact and scalability of gender-inclusive policies in diverse rural contexts.

Navigating the nexus of food, energy, and ecology

2026-09-30T02:39:24+00:00

Increasing competition for land among food and feed production, renewable energy, settlement expansion, and ecological restoration creates a pressing policy challenge in many regions. Diets, farming practices, and food loss and waste jointly shape land demand and greenhouse gas emissions, while decisions on bioenergy versus wind and photovoltaic deployment affect both land availability and climate outcomes. Yet existing foodshed frameworks rarely integrate energy system alternatives and carbon sequestration potentials into a single scenario-based assessment. This study addresses that gap by extending the Metropolitan Foodshed and Self-sufficiency Scenario (MFSS) framework to quantify trade-offs across the food-energy-ecology nexus. The MFSS’s primary contribution lies in embedding renewable energy land-use modeling, greenhouse gas accounting, and carbon sequestration estimation into a single comparative scenario framework, moving beyond self-sufficiency assessment toward integrated analysis.

We apply this extended MFSS framework to the governmental district of Lower Franconia (Bavaria, Germany). Building on region-specific yield data and consumption patterns, we quantify per-capita and aggregate land footprints, theoretical self-sufficiency rates, and surplus land available after meeting a 100% regional food supply threshold. Beyond prior MFSS applications, we allocate remaining land to renewable energy production (bioenergy crops, photovoltaic, wind) and carbon sequestration via conversion to potential natural vegetation, while estimating greenhouse gas emissions across diets and farming systems.

Across 24 scenarios combining four dietary patterns (baseline omnivorous, flexitarian, vegetarian, vegan), two production systems (conventional, organic), and food loss and waste assumptions, dietary shifts and waste reduction strongly reduce land footprints and expand surplus land for renewable energy and ecological restoration. Organic scenarios require more land due to lower yields but exhibit lower management-related emissions per hectare. Bioenergy crops cannot meet regional primary energy needs with available land, whereas wind and photovoltaic can satisfy regional energy demand while preserving substantial areas for carbon sequestration and biodiversity.

The framework offers governance-relevant opportunities for municipalities and food system actors seeking integrated, place-based land-use strategies that align food self-sufficiency, energy transitions, and climate performance.

A food policy council primer: How food policy councils can be a catalyst for change

2026-09-27T02:59:55+00:00

First paragraph:

Although food policy councils are not always well understood or appreciated, they can be pivotal tools to improve local and regional food systems. Strengthening local food systems is critical right now, when so many issues can interrupt broader food supply chains and, in the U.S., national support for important systemic issues is in jeopardy. Nessa J. Richman’s Food Policy Councils: Building Civic Engagement and Community Well-Being is a timely and necessary primer for food systems participants about the creation and running of a food policy council (FPC), and for existing FPCs on how to be more equitable, effective, and even more ambitious in their work transforming local food systems. . . .

Student voices: A mixed-method approach to understanding the quality of life of students living with food access barriers

2026-09-27T02:06:57+00:00

Grounded in Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, this mixed-methods study examined how food access influences the quality of life (QoL) among college agriculture students. Because food is a fundamental physiological need, inadequate access can impede students’ physical, psychological, and social well-being, as well as their academic success. This study aimed to identify barriers to food access and determine the factors most strongly associated with students’ QoL.

A concurrent and sequential mixed-methods design was utilized. Phase 1 consisted of a cross-sectional online survey distributed to 3,336 undergraduate students, resulting in 809 responses (24% response rate). Multiple linear regression analysis revealed a statistically significant model (p = .017) explaining 27.7% of the variance in QoL. Significant predictors included food access, first-generation status, senior classification, and Asian ethnicity. Phase 2 consisted of 19 semi-structured interviews that explored the lived experiences underlying the survey findings. Thematic analysis identified nine key themes: barriers to food access, unawareness of resources, financial strain, lack of meal plan funds, limited food options, and the effects of food insecurity on physical health, psychological well-being, social relationships, and academic performance.

Students reported that demanding schedules, transportation challenges, and limited institutional support constrained their ability to access nutritious food. The results highlight food access as a central determinant of students’ QoL and educational persistence. Institutions should enhance awareness of available resources, provide financial and meal plan assistance, and ensure inclusive dining options to promote student well-being and academic success.