Pulse Brain · Growing Health Evidence Index
Tier 4 — Narrative / commentaryPeer-reviewed

Exploring the nexus between regenerative agriculture and soil health: a special emphasis on semi-arid and arid agriculture

Jason Taylor Arp; Debankur Sanyal; Jashandeep Kaur; David Karki; Anthony Bly

Frontiers in Agronomy · 2026

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Summary

This review paper examines the intersection of regenerative agriculture and soil health, with a particular focus on semi-arid and arid production systems that are often underrepresented in the regenerative agriculture literature. Drawing on existing research, it likely synthesises evidence on which regenerative practices are most applicable and effective under low-rainfall, high-temperature, and drought-prone conditions. The paper appears to highlight the potential of regenerative approaches to restore degraded dryland soils whilst acknowledging the context-specific constraints of arid environments.

UK applicability

The direct applicability to the UK is limited given the focus on semi-arid and arid systems; however, findings relating to soil organic matter building, reduced tillage, and cover cropping may offer transferable insights for drier arable regions of eastern England, and for UK policy discussions on soil health resilience under climate change.

Key measures

Soil organic carbon; soil microbial biomass; water-holding capacity; aggregate stability; erosion indicators; potentially crop yield under water-limited conditions

Outcomes reported

The paper likely examines how regenerative agriculture principles — such as minimal tillage, cover cropping, and rotational grazing — influence soil health indicators in semi-arid and arid environments. It probably reports on metrics such as soil organic matter, microbial activity, water retention, and erosion resistance under water-limited conditions.

Theme
Farming systems, soils & land use
Subject
Soil health & regenerative farming systems
Study type
Narrative Review
Study design
Narrative review
Source type
Peer-reviewed study
Status
Published
Geography
International
System type
Dryland/arid arable and mixed systems
DOI
10.3389/fagro.2026.1666008
Catalogue ID
NRmo3f02hq-06m

Topic tags

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