How to feed the world while reducing nitrogen pollution

Global Food and Nutrition Security

An analysis of more than 1,500 field observations has identified a collection of agricultural practices that can improve the use of nitrogen fertilizers - boosting crop yields while reducing environmental pollution.

Two of the greatest challenges that face society are finding a way to feed the world’s growing population and preventing environmental pollution. Nitrogen fertilizers are needed to produce enough food for the planet’s 8 billion people, but it’s possible to have too much of a good thing - overuse of these fertilizers results in substantial quantities of nitrogen being released into the environment, polluting the air and water. In a paper in Nature, Gu et al. investigate this apparent conflict in nitrogen-fertilizer use, and find that the adoption of advanced nitrogen-management practices could allow more food to be produced than is produced today, but with less nitrogen pollution. Moreover, the societal benefits of mitigating nitrogen pollution from agriculture far exceed the costs associated with implementing these practices.

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How to feed the world while reducing nitrogen pollution

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Authors	Longlong Xia & Xiaoyuan Yan
Publisher	Nature
Geographic coverage	Global
Available from	09 Jan 2023
Knowledge service \| Metadata	Global Food and Nutrition Security \| Sustainable Food Systems
Digital Europa Thesaurus (DET)	crop production fertiliser Crop yield nitrate pollution policymaking Aid to agriculture

How to feed the world while reducing nitrogen pollution

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