In France, urban local authorities are showing a growing interest in their neighbouring agricultural areas: to strengthen their local food system, they encourage farmers to farm land which they themselves own. How do they come to implement such actions? Which types of land, farmers and farming methods are targeted? Qualitative surveys were carried out in the urban agglomerations of Amiens (in Picardy) and in, Millau and Saint-Affrique (both in the southern Massif Central). These urban initiatives have little strategic direction. They target market gardening and short supply chains. This type of farming style is set up on farmlands which have a specific legal, physical and symbolical status. A diversity of land tenure forms is used by the local authorities indicating how conflicting legitimacies are assigned to farmland in relation to the local provision of food.