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Paper short abstract

Social farming (SF) has the potential to stimulate the development of socio-environmentally regenerative agricultural infrastructures through human-non-human networks. Using Actor Network Theory and Italian SF case studies, this study shows determinants shaping SF-led agroecological transformation.

Paper long abstract

Social farming (SF) represents a novel approach to agriculture whereby social services, education, and health care are delivered through farm‑based activities for individuals experiencing life challenges. This paper positions SF at the intersection of agroecology and circular economy practices, showing that SF can generate socially regenerative outcomes - social inclusion, community resilience, food security - while reducing environmental impacts by promoting resource circulation across spaces of food production, processing, consumption, and waste management. Anchored in Actor‑Network Theory and Infrastructure Studies, this paper proposes a heuristic framework that conceptualizes social farms (SFs) as dynamic socio‑technical assemblages in which human actors (farmers, social‑care practitioners), non‑human actors (machinery, land, regulations), and organizations (welfare institutions) co‑create and negotiate complex material, immaterial, and commercial infrastructures.

Drawing on thirteen Italian SF case studies, it demonstrates how cross‑sectoral SF collaborations can repurpose, hybridize, or construct new care, market, regulatory, and knowledge infrastructures, fostering the development of agroecologically informed value chains. Doing so, the framework identifies key determinants shaping SF‑oriented agroecological development - infrastructural legacies, actor capacities, regulatory regimes, market conditions, resource interdependencies – and which reveal how SFs navigate infrastructural ambivalence: withdrawing from input‑intensive practices while negotiating compliance standards, redesigning farm architectures for accessibility and biodiversity, developing alternative marketing channels, and institutionalizing care arrangements.

The paper contends that scrutinizing the determinants underpinning the synergistic infrastructures upon which SFs depend is essential for understanding how the regenerative infrastructure of agriculture can be rebuilt. These insights inform scalable strategies and innovative policy interventions to advance SF across diverse contexts.