What is Social Farming?
Social farming (also referred to as care farming or green care, depending on the project typologies, main objectives, and welfare systems in which farms operate) valorises working farms and agricultural activities to provide diverse services and to reinforce the social protection net for vulnerable people and communities in rural and peri-urban areas.
Social farms can provide therapeutic, rehabilitative, educational, or social-support services to people facing disadvantage, illness, or social exclusion, but also to wider communities such as families, elders, children, and community-based initiatives. Job inclusion is also part of social farming initiatives, taking advantage of natural resources—plants and animals—managed by farms in everyday productive processes and offering a relational environment able to facilitate personal and social dialogue.
Through activities such as planting, harvesting, animal care, and food processing, participants engage in meaningful work alongside farmers and practitioners. Farms become “living classrooms,” real and protected environments where agricultural routines support learning, well-being, societal dialogue, innovative services, and social inclusion.
Interaction with nature-based resources has the potential to stimulate meaningful, flexible, and adaptable on-farm activities without stigma, while promoting the individual expectations, needs, and capabilities of vulnerable people. Participation in the everyday life of a small group engaged in farm activities, within a real environment open to society, supports the development of personal relational skills and social dialogue.
Unlike traditional farming, which focuses primarily on food production, social farming blends agriculture with social care. It creates opportunities for people who may otherwise be excluded from mainstream employment or social participation—such as individuals with mental or physical disabilities, people recovering from addiction, migrants, older adults at risk of isolation, and the long-term unemployed.
Often located in rural or semi-rural areas, social farms create spaces where people can reconnect with nature, build skills, and develop a sense of belonging through practical, community-based activities. In peri-urban areas, social farming initiatives may provide meaningful activities for people in need while also revitalising rural–urban relationships from a perspective of shared prosperity.
The History of Social Farming
The concept of social farming is not new. Variations of farming-based care have existed for centuries, from medieval practices of therapeutic agriculture to the development of structured care farms in the mid-20th century.
The concept began to take clearer shape in the 1960s in many European countries, particularly in the Netherlands and Belgium, where farmers and social-care providers started intentionally linking agriculture with social services. In Italy, the process evolved alongside counter-urbanisation movements and social contestation, as well as campaigns against psychiatric hospitals and their eventual closure. During this time, rural areas were experiencing depopulation and economic change, while institutional approaches to mental health care were increasingly criticised, and some groups of young people began exploring new ways of farming.
In response, some small farms and community farming groups began welcoming people with disabilities, mental health challenges, or other social disadvantages. These farms transformed unused agricultural capacity into spaces for care, rehabilitation, and training.
From the 1990s onward, social farming expanded rapidly, particularly in the Netherlands, where the Ministry of Agriculture supported on-farm diversification and the development of care farms as service providers funded through public and private resources. In the United Kingdom, green care activities also began to spread and gain recognition. National networks, quality standards, and new funding mechanisms—such as personal care budgets and municipal contracts—supported this growth within northern European welfare systems.
In Mediterranean countries, operating under a different welfare model, social farming first emerged in the 1960s and began to be rediscovered in the late 1990s as part of broader processes of rural service innovation. In these contexts, initiatives were mainly voluntary and organised in cooperation with local health authorities, with productive farms actively participating in community life.
At the EU level, a first Community of Practice, Farming for Health, was established in 2003. Several spin-off initiatives followed, including the SOFAR project funded by the EU’s Sixth Framework Programme and COST Action 866 on Green Care. These initiatives contributed to the first shared understanding of both commonalities and differences in the use of agricultural resources across diverse welfare systems and national contexts.
Today, social farming is increasingly recognised across Europe as a multifunctional rural development strategy. EU-funded initiatives, research projects, training programmes, and cross-border collaborations have helped highlight both the richness and diversity of the phenomenon across EU countries—from Ireland, Italy, and France to Slovenia and Germany—supporting rural regeneration, innovative services, job opportunities, and social inclusion.
Social Farming in Italy
In Italy, social farming refers to the use of agricultural activities to deliver social, health, and educational services alongside food production.
Regional laws introduced since 2010, together with the national law on social farming (Law 114/2015), established a common framework for organising and recognising these practices at regional and local levels. However, there are currently no dedicated national policies fully regulating the sector, although specific funds from the EAFRD, the ESF, and national social policies support projects and activities on the ground.
Most farms rely on their economic sustainability through food production but may also participate in the development of local social, health, and community services in collaboration with both public authorities and NGOs. In the Italian case, an innovative mix of public support, private economic sustainability, voluntary participation in local community life, farm reputation, and local food markets creates a new frontier for the co-production of public and private goods—namely social and economic value.
Responsibilities are distributed across different levels of governance. Regional institutions oversee agricultural and health aspects, while municipalities or Unions of Municipalities manage the social components. As a result, the development of social farming initiatives often depends on local regulations, networks, and the level of awareness and engagement among regional actors.
This decentralised structure means that the organisation, legal frameworks, and support systems for social farming vary across Italian regions. In Tuscany, where the EU-funded UPFARM programme is active, ongoing efforts to strengthen the legal framework (with a recent law reorganised in 2023 with clearer procedures) are expected to stabilise the system and reduce barriers for farms interested in developing social farming activities.
Why Social Farming Matters
Social farming can play a useful role in revitalising rural and peripheral areas, particularly those experiencing depopulation or economic decline, while also generating new links and dialogue between rural and urban areas. By creating employment opportunities, reactivating underused land, attracting new activities to rural areas, and generating innovative local food markets, it helps reconnect communities with the countryside.
At the same time, social farms help address gaps in welfare services, especially in regions where public resources are limited. Farms provide community-based spaces where care, training, and social participation can take place in an accessible and supportive environment.
For farmers, social farming offers a sustainable way to re-embed their activities in local communities, gain greater visibility, diversify their interests beyond purely economic aspects, and strengthen their recognition. In some cases—such as providing services like kindergartens or participating in specific projects—farms can also generate additional income. Economic benefits may come from public funding, tax incentives, direct service payments, increased agricultural production, and growing consumer interest in ethically and socially responsible food systems. Alongside productive activities, farmers also increase their participation in community life and strengthen their role as active members of local society.
Beyond economic value, social farms often become safe and inclusive environments where people are recognised for their contributions rather than defined by their challenges. Participants gain practical skills, build confidence, and experience a sense of purpose and belonging through nature-based resources—plants and animals—the guidance of farmers, and the professional support of social workers from both public institutions and NGOs.
Many social farming initiatives also serve as therapeutic spaces, vocational training sites, and centres for environmental education. By combining social care with sustainable agriculture, social farming contributes to more resilient food systems that prioritise both human wellbeing and planetary health.
In conclusion
As societies face growing social inequalities, increasing pressure on welfare systems, and the need for more sustainable food production, social farming offers a compelling model that connects these challenges. In regions like Tuscany, social farming has the potential to strengthen both people and places.
With the right support, policies, and collaboration between farmers, social services, and local authorities, initiatives like UPFARM can continue to grow—creating farms that nourish both land and lives, promote social justice, and help reduce inequalities.