Social innovation in advancing urban farming practices: a systematic literature review and future research agenda

The increased global population and climate change have contributed to food shortages in several parts of the world, necessitating innovative approaches to address these challenges. Urban farming, combined with social innovation, has been recognized as a viable solution, particularly in urban settings. However, limited studies have explored the interplay between the two. This study aims to review the academic literature connecting social innovation and urban farming practices: the feasible initiatives to address the aforementioned issues. The Scopus database was selected for data retrieval, followed by document filtering in accordance with the PRISMA-style framework. Thematic and content analyses were used to synthesize the selected documents. The results show that prior literature employs multiple methods in investigating urban farming and social innovation. It is also documented that most studies were conducted in European countries. Four roles of social innovation in urban farming are revealed: 1) systemic transition and circularity, 2) social inclusion and well-being, 3) methodological and practical innovation, and 4) governance, collective action, and policy influence. This study proposes the framework of the roles of social innovation in urban farming as a synthesis of the literature. Eight topics and sixteen research questions are also provided as an agenda for future research, highlighting this study’s theoretical contribution.