Peri-urban agriculture: an analysis of farm typologies in Italy

The article explores the role of peri-urban agriculture in Italy through a comparative analysis of seven metropolitan areas. The structural dynamics of farms are assessed through the micro-data from the sixth Italian agriculture census, identifying six typologies of market-oriented farms that face in different ways the pressures and opportunities of peri-urban environments. The article shows that, although in the main Italian urban poles there is a significant share of farms passively absorbed by the urban forwarding, the most reactive farms are supplying an increasing number and variety of social and economic services to the urban population. Since diversification is becoming a specific business strategy developed by the most structured and market-oriented peri-urban farms, it can turn out to be a relevant asset to enhance the resilience of metropolitan areas and, more generally, to improve the connections between urban and rural areas