Summary
This narrative review by B.J. Alloway synthesises the soil science literature on the principal edaphic factors — including high pH, calcareous conditions, low organic matter, sandy texture, and waterlogging — that reduce zinc bioavailability to crops. The paper draws a causal chain from soil zinc deficiency through crop zinc concentrations to human dietary deficiency, estimated to affect a substantial proportion of the global population. It is likely to discuss management and agronomic interventions, such as zinc fertilisation, as potential remedies.
UK applicability
Although the review is global in scope, findings are broadly applicable to UK arable systems, particularly on calcareous and chalk-derived soils in eastern England where zinc deficiency in cereals is a recognised agronomic concern. UK practitioners and policymakers addressing soil health and micronutrient strategies in staple crops would find the underpinning soil chemistry directly relevant.
Key measures
Soil zinc fractions; plant-available zinc concentrations; soil pH; organic matter content; calcareous and sandy soil characteristics; dietary zinc intake estimates
Outcomes reported
The paper examines the soil chemical and physical factors that reduce zinc availability to crops, and explores the consequent links between soil zinc deficiency and inadequate zinc intake in human populations dependent on those crops.
Topic tags
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