A City Nourished by Its Suburbs

Abstract The scholarship on peri-urban agriculture lacks historic analysis, making the history of Shanghai's vegetable supply system particularly useful. In the early 1950s, a substantial portion of Shanghai's vegetables came from distant rural areas. Although the municipality stimulated vegetable production in its suburbs, this reliance on rural areas remained unchanged for a time. However, in 1958, these rural sources of vegetables were abruptly cut off, compelling Shanghai to rely on suburban production. This transition led to the establishment of a suburban-centric system. Nevertheless, efforts to sustain the system encountered numerous challenges. The government tried to phase out the planned economy in vegetable production during the 1980s, although with limited effect. In the early 1990s authorities abandoned the suburban-centric system and introduced a reform strategy of “grand circulation,” once again leading to the predominance of nonlocal vegetables. The history of Shanghai's suburban vegetable supply system thus elucidates the limitations of peri-urban agriculture.