Shashi Sharma

The 21st century calls for a paradigm shift in agricultural practices to address the pressing issues of regeneration of soil health, climate change, environmental degradation, sustainability under growing population pressures, and food security challenges. This article reviews the potential of the plant-microbiome approach as a key driver for eco-conscious green farming. The focus is on the diverse roles of microbial communities in close association with plants in improving plant health, crop productivity, and soil ecosystem functions, and in enhancing environmental sustainability, with focus on four key areas: (1) Soil health and fertility through microbial partnerships; (2) Ecosystem sustainability through microbial functions; (3) Plant health, productivity and food security through microbial innovations emphasising the potential of microbial applications (biofertilisers, bioprotectants, and biostimulants) in sustainable agriculture; (4) Standardisation and stewardship in microbial agriculture highlighting the need for standardisation and quality control in microbial product development and use, and the concept of microbial stewardship and its importance in long-term agricultural sustainability. By synthesising current knowledge and identifying future challenges, this review underscores the transformative potential of the plant-associated microbiome approach in creating resilient, productive, and environmentally harmonious agricultural systems. We highlight current research gaps and future directions, arguing that embracing microbial solutions is not just an option but a necessity for ensuring food security and environmentally benign sustainability in the face of global challenges.

Global plant health management needs serious attention. Through globalisation and the facilitated migration of harmful organisms, humans have exposed global plant resources to a wide range of pests and diseases that are harming their health and well-being. There are rapid increases in the incidence, geographical distribution, and damage-causing ability of harmful organisms on plants. New disease-causing organisms, together with their known and new vectors, are being found in different countries. Implementation of options for plant disease management, a subset of plant health management, has helped to safeguard plant health by managing harmful organisms after they have established themselves in a new environment. This approach of living with the harmful organisms and keeping them under control, while realistic, is resource-intensive and necessitates ongoing expenditure to apply management strategies. Regardless of these management efforts, harmful organisms are reported to cost us over US $1.4 trillion per annum. These economic impacts are intergenerational and increasingly unaffordable. The approach of 'living with harmful organisms and managing them' must change to 'preventing dispersal of potentially harmful organisms and confining them to their native endemic regions' as much as possible. There is a need for a prevention strategy and framework, underpinned by the capacity to eradicate any likely invasions of these organisms. Eradication should be the preferred option if it is technically and operationally feasible, keeping in view the long-term intergenerational economic impacts of the invading organisms. A global plant health management system is needed that promotes and coordinates actions to contain potentially harmful organisms in plants in their native regions. A global organisation that enables worldwide implementation of a biosecurity continuum of risk prevention and preparedness is needed. This should comprise an integrated framework of risk management policies and operations to reduce exposure of global plant resources to the risk of harmful organisms, such as disease-causing organisms. Presently, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), together with the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC), which is considered to have a global plant health mandate, has limited scope and inadequate capacity to lead and coordinate global plant health matters. It is time to review the specialised agencies of the United Nations that are engaged in plant health management to strengthen and empower them to safeguard the health and well-being of global plant resources. This proposed renewal is crucial to sustainably hosting the anticipated 7-12 billion humans on this planet throughout this century.