New roots for ecological intensification
Publication: Crops, Soils, Agronomy, November 2014
To meet the global food challenge of 2050, and well beyond, there is a growing consensus that farmers will need to produce more food using fewer and fewer chemical, energy and machine inputs. In order to achieve this, numerous researchers have called for a transition from input intensification to ecological (or sustainable) intensification. Agroecosystem characteristics that have been targeted for improvements through ecological intensification include fertilizer and water uptake efficiencies, greenhouse gas emissions, soil quality including nutrient stocks and organic matter, and crop loss to insects and pathogens.