Organo-mineral fertilizer to sustain soil health and crop yield for reducing environmental impact: A comprehensive review

Intensive agricultural practices to meet the current world food demand are the main cause of degradation of soil health and environmental pollution. In traditional agriculture, synthetic fertilizers are used which can impact soil health and result in environmental pollution. So, agricultural production in a sustainable way becomes a current issue. Different agricultural inputs may improve soil health with the reduction of environmental pollution. A wide range of agricultural inputs are available, among these organo-mineral fertilizer (OMF) may be a suitable input for sustainable agriculture. Organo-mineral fertilizers make the nutrient released slowly and homogeneously throughout the growing season resulting in higher nutrient use efficiency and yield. Also, the organic portion is carbon sequester and thus improves soil health, enhances crop productivity, and mitigates environmental pollution. The primary objective of this review is to provide a comprehensive scientific analysis of what is now known about the impact of applying OMF on soil characteristics, emissions of greenhouse gases, and their effect on crops. This review seeks to provide a solid scientific foundation for policy decisions, highlight knowledge gaps, and suggest additional research on the application of OMFs to soils. • Application of organo-mineral fertilizer (OMF) improves soil health and builds up a favorable environment for better plant growth. • Organo-mineral fertilizer releases nutrients slowly, reduces leaching loss of nutrients and greenhouse gas emissions than chemical fertilizers. • Organo-mineral fertilizer enhances plant growth and yield compared to chemical fertilizer. • Organo-mineral fertilizer considerably increases nutrient use efficiency over chemical fertilizer application. • The efficacy of OMF depends on crop types, soil types and substrate used for the preparation of OMF.