Potential regenerative agricultural practices for different ecosystems to rebuild soil health and ensure food security: A comprehensive review

Abstract Regenerative agriculture (RA) offers a holistic approach to restore soil health, enhance crop productivity and mitigate climate change impacts. This review compiles evidence from 120 empirical studies published between 2000 and 2025 to evaluate the effectiveness of eight major RA practices. It includes no‐tillage, organic amendments, biochar application, residue retention, cover cropping, crop rotation, agroforestry and crop–livestock integration across tropical ( n = 73) and temperate ( n = 47) agroecosystems. In tropical systems, 21 studies reported soil organic carbon (SOC) increases of 10–15% following biochar application and organic amendments, while 9 temperate studies documented improved SOC stabilization under no‐tillage and diversified crop rotations. Improvements in soil quality indicators, including aggregation, nutrient availability and microbial activity, ranged from 7 to 13%, supported by 15 tropical and 6 temperate studies. Crop yield enhancement of 10–18% was observed in 24 tropical studies under residue retention and organic amendment practices, whereas 11 temperate studies reported sustained productivity gains under crop rotation and crop–livestock integration. Additionally, 18 studies across both climatic regions documented greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reductions of 3–5%, particularly in agroforestry and conservation‐based systems. Agroforestry systems offered multiple co‐benefits, particularly in humid and sub‐humid regions because of their higher carbon sequestration potential. Unlike previous reviews that primarily focused on individual regenerative practices or isolated soil carbon responses, this review provides a climate‐stratified comparative synthesis integrating soil health, crop productivity and GHG mitigation across multiple RA practices. These insights emphasize the need for region‐specific RA strategies supported by long‐term research, incentives and policies to achieve sustainable and climate‐resilient food systems.