Towards Plant-Beneficiary Rhizobacteria and Agricultural Sustainability

Abstract

The increasing demand for crop production, given worldwide increases in the human population, puts pressure on moving natural resources towards sustainable development. This creates a big challenge for the upcoming generation. If improvement is not successful, there exists the unfortunate consequence that global food production may soon become insufficient to feed all of the world’s people. It is therefore essential that agricultural productivity be significantly increased in a more sustainable and environmentally friendly approach. Plant-beneficiary rhizobacteria (PBR) naturally activate microorganisms found in the soil. Because they are inexpensive, effective, and environmentally friendly, PBR are gaining importance for use in crop production by restoring the soil’s natural fertility and protecting it against drought and soil diseases, thereby stimulating plant growth. PBR decrease the use of chemical fertilisers, pesticides, and artificial growth regulators; the intensive use of these inputs has led to severe health and environmental hazards, such as soil erosion, water contamination, pesticide poisoning, decreased groundwater table, water logging, surface crusting and depletion of biodiversity. The use of PBR has been proven to be an environmentally sound way of increasing crop yields by facilitating plant growth through either a direct or indirect mechanism with the aim of sustaining soil health over the long term.