Producing more food in a sustainable way is possible biotechnological and sustainable fertilisation as a way to face population growth

Abstract

The dramatic increase in the world’s population expected in this century will force a proportional increase in agricultural production in order to ensure the food supply. However, society is now demanding new, more sustainable, and environmentally friendly production methods. In order to achieve this sustainable increase, new biotechnological tools such as gene editing or synthetic biology will have to be used, leveraging the knowledge generated by researchers over decades. The soil microbiome is emerging as a powerful biotechnological tool. The beneficial microorganisms harboured in soils promote plant growth by supplying nutrients and producing hormones and secondary metabolites. Thus, these microorganisms will likely be able to help increase agricultural production in a sustainable way.