Summary
This paper by Kassam, Friedrich, and Derpsch — leading authorities on conservation agriculture — provides a comprehensive review of the global spread of CA practices as of 2019, documenting adoption across major agricultural regions. The authors compile evidence on the uptake of the three CA principles — minimum soil disturbance, permanent soil cover, and diversified crop rotations — and assess trajectories of adoption. The paper is likely to situate CA within broader debates on sustainable intensification and soil health, offering a reference baseline for policy and research communities.
UK applicability
Whilst the paper is global in scope, its findings are broadly applicable to UK arable systems, where adoption of no-till and reduced tillage has grown considerably; UK practitioners and policymakers can use the comparative international evidence to contextualise domestic progress and identify barriers to wider CA uptake.
Key measures
Area under conservation agriculture (million hectares); number of countries adopting CA; regional adoption rates; rate of spread over time
Outcomes reported
The paper reports on the extent and rate of adoption of conservation agriculture (CA) globally, documenting the area under CA practice across countries and regions. It likely analyses trends in no-till and minimum tillage adoption, crop residue retention, and crop rotation as the three defining CA principles.
Topic tags
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