Summary
This literature review by Colombi, Martani, and Fornara, published in Ecosystem Services (2025), synthesises peer-reviewed evidence on the capacity of regenerative organic agriculture to deliver soil-based ecosystem services. The paper likely evaluates how core ROA principles — such as minimal tillage, cover cropping, composting, and livestock integration — influence soil function and ecosystem service outcomes relative to conventional systems. It is expected to highlight both the promising evidence base for ROA and the methodological inconsistencies and definitional ambiguities that constrain robust comparative assessment.
UK applicability
The findings are broadly applicable to UK farming policy and practice, particularly given current interest in regenerative approaches under the Sustainable Farming Incentive and ELMS frameworks; however, as a global literature review, practitioners should consider how specific ROA practices translate to UK soil types and climate conditions.
Key measures
Soil organic carbon; soil biodiversity indicators; nutrient cycling metrics; ecosystem service provision scores; comparison of ROA versus conventional or organic benchmarks
Outcomes reported
The review examines the extent to which regenerative organic agriculture (ROA) practices deliver soil ecosystem services, synthesising evidence across studies on soil health, carbon sequestration, nutrient cycling, and biodiversity. It likely assesses consistency of evidence and identifies knowledge gaps in the ROA literature.
Topic tags
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