Nutrient Efficiency and Increased Agricultural Productivity

Submission Deadline: 31 July 2026 View: 231 Submit to Special Issue

Guest Editors

Prof. Penna Suprasanna

Email: psuprasanna@mum.amity.edu

Affiliation: Amity Institute of Biotechnology, Amity University Maharashtra, Mumbai, 410206, India

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Research Interests: food and nutritional security, plant biotechnology, nuclear agriculture, stress tolerance

Prof. Jameel M. Al-Khayri

Email: jkhayri@kfu.edu.sa

Affiliation: Department of Agricultural Biotechnology, College of Agriculture and Food Sciences, King Faisal University, Al-Ahsa, 31982, Saudi Arabia

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Research Interests: food security, biodiversity, plant breeding, genomics, and climate change

Prof. (adjunct) Shri Mohan Jain

Email: mohan.jain@helsinki.fi

Affiliation: Department of Agricultural Sciences, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, 00014, Finland

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Research Interests: genetic improvement, genetic diversity, conservation, climate change,  food and nutritional security

Summary

Improving nutrient efficiency directly enhances agricultural productivity by ensuring optimal plant growth, higher yields, and better quality produce. Nutrient efficiency refers to the ability of crops to acquire, utilize, and convert nutrients into biomass and yield with minimal losses to the environment. It is a critical factor in sustainable agriculture, as excessive or imbalanced fertilizer use not only raises production costs but also leads to soil degradation, water pollution, and greenhouse gas emissions. Practices such as balanced fertilizer application, integrated nutrient management (INM), site-specific nutrient management (SSNM), use of biofertilizers, nano fertilizers, and precision farming technologies contribute significantly to improving efficiency. Breeding nutrient-use-efficient crop varieties and leveraging molecular tools further support long-term gains. Nutrient efficiency is a cornerstone of modern agriculture, enabling farmers to achieve higher productivity while conserving resources and reducing environmental impact.

Understanding the mechanisms underlying plant nutrient efficiency requires comprehensive investigations at the genetic, molecular, and agronomic levels. Genomics, transcriptomics, and metabolomics have become valuable tools for enhancing and improving nutrient efficiency in plants. For this research topic, reviews, original research, and protocols to showcase the current advancements in management and improvement of nutrient efficiency for enhancing agricultural productivity are welcome.

Suggested themes:
• Nutrient efficiency for sustainable agriculture
• Agronomic practices for enhancing nutrient efficiency
• Role of major nutrients in crop productivity
• Nitrogen use efficiency (NUE)
• Phosphorus use efficiency (PUE)
• Potassium and micronutrient efficiency
• Technologies and Practices to Improve Nutrient Efficiency
• Integrated nutrient management (INM)
• Slow-release and nano-fertilizers
• Biofertilizers and microbial inoculants
• Breeding and biotechnology approaches
• Nutrient-efficient crop varieties
• Molecular and genomic tools for NUE improvement
• Contribution to climate-smart agriculture
• Integrating AI and remote sensing in nutrient management

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