Assessment of periurban vegetable production in France
2010
Geoffriau, E.
“Green belts” were traditionally developed around cities in order to provide fresh vegetables to urban population. The situation has changed a lot with the development of exchange and transportation means, and with urban development. Periurban vegetable production in France is nowadays at crossing-roads between risks of disappearing and a need for a new recognition and new functions. In order to assess the various situations existing in France, the case of six cities was studied. Vegetable growers, land managers, marketing managers, city planners were interviewed in Lille, Orléans, Bordeaux, Toulouse, Perpignan and Lyon. These cities have in common an important history of periurban agriculture. However, the status of periurban vegetable area is very different from one city to another. The studied cases presented various degrees of urban pressure on periurban vegetable units, with natural constraints such as flooding risks as the only insurance against future urbanization of some areas. Depending both on the city’s interest and growers’ dynamism, various marketing strategies and actions were developed in order to maintain and possibly increase the vegetable production in periurban areas. Due to the food aspect of the product and the intensive production process, especially regarding labour and economic viability on a limited area, vegetable production was often considered as important to be maintained in periurban areas, but its sustainable development still needs collaborative actions.
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