Abstract
Globally, decline of soil organic carbon (SOC) is a major threat for agricultural systems, especially in tropical environments. Intensive agriculture has reduced SOC levels (25–30 % in some regions), leading to poor soil health, lower crop yields (up to 30 %), and increased emission of carbon dioxide (CO2) and other greenhouse gases (10–20 % ). Carbon (C) farming, which involves sustainable practices such as no-till farming, cover cropping with legumes, agroforestry, recycling of crop residues, and improved grazing regimes, is a sustainable approach to capturing atmospheric CO2 and storing it in the soil and in the case of agroforestry in plant biomass. This review is predominantly concentrated on the soil component. Carbon (C) farming increases SOC by 0.4–1.2 Mg C ha–1 yr–1and can offer ecosystem benefits such as enhanced soil health and increased biodiversity by 15–30 %, improvement in soil water-holding capacity (10–25 %) leading to more sustainable and resilient agricultural systems. Therefore, incentivizing farmers through C credits or payment for ecosystem services (PES) are recommended to support C farming as they directly contribute to improved livelihoods , increased income by 20 % especially in small holder farming systems, and achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) related to eliminating poverty (SDG 1), zero hunger (SDG 2), promoting good health and well-being (SDG 3) and climate action (SDG 13). Furthermore, cropping systems involving bioenergy crops may contribute to SDG 7 (affordable and clean energy) and SDG 12 (responsible consumption and production), with potential to produce 10–50 GJ ha–1 of renewable energy annually and making it a promising option for sustainable agricultural production and environmental protection.
