The adoption of sustainable farming practices will improve food security around the world. The evidence that food is produced sustainably has become important for maintaining access to global markets and is influencing commodity marketing and pricing. This paper explores the current state of global sustainability reporting and examines whether yield data could improve the sustainability of farming by adding more rigour and transparency to the evidential basis of sustainability. The Australian grains and oilseeds industry is used as a case study with most of the Australian grain and oilseed crop grown for export markets. Sustainability policies in the European Union, United States of America and Australia are contrasted, with a focus on the improved management of nitrogenous fertiliser, which is viewed as the most efficient way to reduce the environmental impact of agriculture. Generally, sustainability reporting is based on a suite of indicators that are easy to measure and interpret, sensitive to change, technically sound and cost-effective. These indicators serve as a mechanism to quantify and document the practices used to produce crops but some of the current measures are relatively coarse and lack transparency. The time and cost incurred to collect these measurements could be reduced by using secondary data to report on sustainability. Yield data are already collected by many grain, and oilseed growers, and provide a transparent, evidence-based way to optimise and report on fertiliser application at fine scale. Yield data can help to maintain soil health and farm profit, reduce environmental damage and generate quantitative data for reporting on agricultural sustainability, but some challenges remain before it could be implemented as a universal reporting measure.

Arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi are important plant symbionts that provide plants with nutrients and water as well as support plant defences against pests and disease. Consequently, they present a promising alternative to using environmentally damaging and costly fertilisers and pesticides in agricultural systems. However, our limited understanding of how agricultural practices impact AM fungal diversity and functions is a key impediment to using them effectively in agriculture. We assessed how organic and conventional agricultural management systems shaped AM fungal communities. We also investigated how AM fungal communities derived from these agricultural management systems affected crop biomass and development. Six soil samples from five organically and five conventionally managed agricultural sites were used to cultivate Sorghum bicolor. Plant growth, plant nutrient concentrations and AM fungal colonisation rates were analysed alongside DNA metabarcoding of community composition. We observed that soil from conventional agricultural fields resulted in a pronounced reduction in sorghum biomass (-53.6%) and a significant delay in flowering compared to plants grown without AM fungi. Sorghum biomass was also reduced with soil from the organic system, but to a lesser extent (-30%) and without a delay in flowering. Organic systems were associated with a large proportion of AM fungal taxa (50.5% of VTs) not found in conventional systems, including Diversispora (r(2) = 0.09, p < 0.001), Archaeospora (r(2) = 0.07, p < 0.001) and Glomus (r(2) = 0.25, p < 0.001) spp., but also shared a large proportion of taxa with conventional systems (42.3% of VTs). Conventional systems had relatively few unique taxa (7.2% of VTs). Our results suggest that conventional agricultural practices selected against AM fungi that were, in this context, more beneficial for host plants. In contrast, organic management practices mitigate this negative effect, likely due to the presence of specific key AM fungal taxa. However, this mitigation is only partial, as less beneficial AM fungal taxa still persist, probably due to abiotic factors associated with agricultural management and the sensitivity of AM fungi to these factors. This persistence explains why the effect is not entirely eradicated. Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog.

Climate change will create significant challenges to agriculture. The effects on livestock productivity and crop production are highly dependent on weather conditions with consequences for food security. If agriculture is to remain a viable industry and to maintain future food security, the adaptations and the ideal timeframes for their implementation to mitigate against climate change impacts will be essential knowledge. This study aims to show how farms will be affected and will need to adapt to climate change, based on a holistic examination of the entire farming process. A modified Bayesian belief network (BBN) was used to investigate climate change impacts on livestock, crops, soil, water use, disease, and pesticide use through the use of 48 indicators (comprising climate, agricultural, and environmental). The seasonal impact of climate change on all aspects of farming was investigated for three different climate forcing scenarios (RCPs 2.6, 4.5, and 8.5) for four timeframes (2030, 2050, 2080, and 2099). The results suggest that heat stress and disease in both livestock and crops will require adaptations (e.g., shelter infrastructure being built, new crops, or cultivators grown). Pest intensity is expected to rise, leading to increased pesticide use and greater damage to crops and livestock. Higher temperatures will likely cause increased drought and irrigation needs, while increasing rain intensity might lead to winter flooding. Soil quality maintenance will rely increasingly on fertilisers, with significant decreases in quality if unsustainable. Crop yield will be dependent on new crops or cultivators that can cope with a changing climate being successful and market access; failure to do so could lead to substantial decrease, in food security. Impacts are more significant from 2080 onwards, with the severity of impacts dependent on season.

Despite being a world-class tourist destination, the U.S. Virgin Islands (USVI-St. Thomas, St. Croix, and St. John) face significant challenges related to diversified crop production, food distribution, and food security. High poverty rates among islanders perpetuated by historical iniquities, frequent hurri cane damage, drought, poor soil quality, high food production costs, and limited food distribution networks are just a few of the challenges residents face. Consequently, 97% of the food consumed in the USVI is imported. Frequent hurricane damage, such as the recent damage from Irma and Maria (back-to-back Category 5 storms that hit the islands in 2017) complicated these challenges even more and disrupted food import processes. This manuscript focuses on a case study involving a literature review, participant observation, and a series of semi-structured, face-to-face interviews with key informants about issues related to food insecurity, resilience, and farmer needs regarding business sustainability. The results highlight how the political, economic, and cultural complexities of the USVI stymie efforts to lower barriers related to food accessibility and affordability. The results also reveal a new and vibrant entrepreneurial spirit among native islanders and transplants alike, providing novel entryways into food system change and development. Finally, we share policy implica- tions and next steps toward building agriculture and food system resiliency.

Agriculture, including horticulture, can support and provide food for the global population, meeting both nutritional and economic needs. However, plant diseases induced by phytopathogens result in enormous losses in horticultural crop production through decreasing yields and the quality of crops. Notably, fungal phytopathogens are responsible for over 40% of these diseases. Among them, Fusarium represents a significant group of pathogenic fungi that inflict damage and reduce crop yields, thereby contributing to declines in food supplies. Conventional approaches to addressing these issues involve methods such as intercropping, crop rotation, soil solarization, and the use of synthetic fungicides. However, these methods may cause environmental problems, increase disease resistance, and result in the emergence of new pathogens with elevated resistance levels. Furthermore, the use of gene editing technology to prevent Fusarium diseases faces regulatory approval challenges and health risks. Biological control is recognized as an efficient strategy for managing a wide array of plant diseases by employing bacteria and fungi as agents to combat phytopathogens. Trichoderma is a widely recognized fungal genus employed as a biological control agent, with the potential to be a commercial biological control agent to suppress the growth of Fusarium. This article explores Trichoderma's role in managing Fusarium-related diseases in horticultural crops, highlighting its potential as a biocontrol agent and the challenges in scaling up its utilization.

To feed the nearly 10 billion people by the year 2050, agricultural activities and yield must be enhanced substantially, maintaining soil health and overpowering the expected adverse effects of climate change. High soil salinity is one of the major concerns in future farming, as salinity is a prominent abiotic stress that significantly impacts plants inhabiting arid and semiarid environments worldwide. The increasing levels of soil salinity are proving detrimental to agriculture, the general productivity of the ecosystem, and the economy at large. Excessive salt accumulation in plants leads to an osmotic imbalance, resulting in a decrease in photosynthesis, formation of reactive oxygen species, DNA damage, hormonal instability, and decreased water and mineral uptake. To mitigate the adverse impacts of salt stress, along with diverse physiological mechanisms, plants have developed symbiotic associations with endophytic microorganisms that reside within the plant tissues and help the plants in many ways. Endophytes have been found to alleviate the effects of salinity stress by diverse mechanisms-synthesis of osmolytes, and antioxidant enzymes such as catalase, superoxide dismutase, and peroxidase; synthesis and modulation of phytohormones such as ethylene, indole-3-acetic acid, gibberellin, abscisic acid, etc.; promotion of siderophore production and exopolysaccharide formation; carrying out nitrogen fixation, and increasing phosphate solubilization. In this review, the effects of salinity stress on plants, and the mechanisms by which endophytic microorganisms help the plants to withstand such stress are discussed at length. The application of tailored endophytic microbial consortia holds the key to future food security through sustainable agriculture.

Cadmium (Cd) and other heavy metals are significant micropollutants originating from excessive industrial activities, inappropriate fertilizer use, and atmospheric deposition. The availability and movement of Cd can be minimized through adsorption using potential adsorbents like sugarcane bagasse (SB) and sugarcane bagassederived biochar (SB-BC). It has been reported that organic amendments such as SB and SB-BC affect the bioavailability of heavy metals. A field study assessed the impact of SB and SB-BC on the physiological and biochemical properties of maize plants grown in Cd-contaminated soil. Compared with High Stress Cadmium (HSCd), in No Stress Cadmium (NS-Cd), the combined application of 1% SB and 1% SB-BC displayed maximum response in plant physiological and biochemical properties; improved the performance of IRGA traits, chlorophyll content (CHL), relative water content (RWC) get increased as leaf chlorophyll (52%), RWC (29%), A (11%), E (57%), Gs (41%) and Ci (24%)a marked decrease in shoot (15%) and root (27%) Cd concentration, enhanced antioxidant enzymatic and non-enzymatic response: Up-regulated the superoxidase (SOD) by 34%, peroxidase (POD) by 44%, catalase (CAT) by 29%, ascorbate peroxidase (APX) by 22%, and total phenolics (TP) by 55%, ascorbic acid (ASA) by 33%, glutathione (GSH) by 34%, glutathione reductase (GR) by 19%; the decreased lipid peroxidation and membrane damage: rebated the level of H2O2 2 O 2 (55%), O2 2 (43%), content which alleviated the malondialdehyde (MDA) content by 46% and electrolyte leakage (EL) by 53% in maize plant; aggravated the profiling of compatible solutes: 18% proline content (PC), 43% soluble sugars (SS), 31% soluble proteins (SP), and 26% glycine betaine (GB) accumulation amplified, relative to their respective treatments of control and LS-Cd and HS-Cd groups. The combined application of SB and SB-BC (each at 1%) can be an eco-friendly and cost-effective approach to stabilize the Cd within the contaminated soils.

Nematodes are soil -dwelling organisms that inflict substantial damage to crops, resulting in significant declines in agricultural productivity. Consequently, they are recognized as one of the primary contributors to global crop damage, with profound implications for food security. Nematology research assumes a pivotal role in tackling this issue and safeguarding food security. The pursuit of nematology research focused on mitigating nematode -induced crop damage and promoting sustainable agriculture represents a fundamental strategy for enhancing food security. Investment in nematology research is crucial to advance food security objectives by identifying and managing nematode species, developing novel technologies, comprehending nematode ecology, and strengthening the capabilities of researchers and farmers. This endeavor constitutes an indispensable step toward addressing one of the most pressing challenges in achieving global food security and promoting sustainable agricultural practices. Primarily, research endeavors facilitate the identification of nematode species responsible for crop damage, leading to the development of effective management strategies. These strategies encompass the utilization of resistant crop varieties, implementation of cultural practices, biological control, and chemical interventions. Secondly, research efforts contribute to the development of innovative technologies aimed at managing nematode populations, such as gene editing techniques that confer resistance to nematode infestations in crops. Additionally, the exploration of beneficial microbes, such as certain fungi and bacteria, as potential biocontrol agents against nematodes, holds promise. The study of nematode ecology represents a foundational research domain that fosters a deeper comprehension of nematode biology and ecological interactions. This knowledge is instrumental in devising precise and efficacious management strategies.

Key MessageIn this review, we made an attempt to create a holistic picture of plant response to a rising temperature environment and its impact by covering all aspects from temperature perception to thermotolerance. This comprehensive account describing the molecular mechanisms orchestrating these responses and potential mitigation strategies will be helpful for understanding the impact of global warming on plant life.AbstractOrganisms need to constantly recalibrate development and physiology in response to changes in their environment. Climate change-associated global warming is amplifying the intensity and periodicity of these changes. Being sessile, plants are particularly vulnerable to variations happening around them. These changes can cause structural, metabolomic, and physiological perturbations, leading to alterations in the growth program and in extreme cases, plant death. In general, plants have a remarkable ability to respond to these challenges, supported by an elaborate mechanism to sense and respond to external changes. Once perceived, plants integrate these signals into the growth program so that their development and physiology can be modulated befittingly. This multifaceted signaling network, which helps plants to establish acclimation and survival responses enabled their extensive geographical distribution. Temperature is one of the key environmental variables that affect all aspects of plant life. Over the years, our knowledge of how plants perceive temperature and how they respond to heat stress has improved significantly. However, a comprehensive mechanistic understanding of the process still largely elusive. This review explores how an increase in the global surface temperature detrimentally affects plant survival and productivity and discusses current understanding of plant responses to high temperature (HT) and underlying mechanisms. We also highlighted potential resilience attributes that can be utilized to mitigate the impact of global warming.

The study was conducted on ambient ozone (O-3), the most phyto-toxic air pollutant, and its effects on the growth and quality of okra (Abelmoschus esculentus) and peas (Pisum sativaum) grown in Northern Pakistan during the summer and winter of 2018. Okra was subjected to ambient O-3 levels ranging from 43 to 63 ppb during the summer, with a mean O-3 concentration of 55 ppb, while peas experienced lower winter concentrations of 15-25 ppb, with a mean O-3 concentration of 19 ppb. The results indicated significant impacts on the growth and nutritional quality of crops, especially okra. Anti-ozonant ethylene diurea (EDU) was used for soil drenching to protect okra and green peas from O-3 damage. Okra showed notable enhancements of 20%, 20%, 29%, and 13% in ash, protein, fiber, and non-fiber carbohydrates (NFE), respectively. Increase in plant height, leaf numbers, pod length, and dry weight was observed in EDU-treated okra plants. Conversely, peas exhibited less variation, although melioration was observed in plant height, pod numbers, length, and weight with EDU treatment. It was concluded that the concentration of ambient O-3 in Peshawar is toxic enough to cause significant damage to crop growth and production. The stark difference in O-3 impact during different seasons suggests that higher summer concentrations could for summer crops that can jeopardize future food security. It is recommended that further research be conducted on the effects of O-3 on other regional crops to assess fully its implications for agricultural sustainability in the area.