title: Producing more grain with lower environmental costs.
abstract: Agriculture faces great challenges to ensure global food security by increasing yields while reducing environmental costs. Here we address this challenge by conducting a total of 153 site-year field experiments covering the main agro-ecological areas for rice, wheat and maize production in China. A set of integrated soil-crop system management practices based on a modern understanding of crop ecophysiology and soil biogeochemistry increases average yields for rice, wheat and maize from 7.2 million grams per hectare (Mg ha(-1)), 7.2 Mg ha(-1) and 10.5 Mg ha(-1) to 8.5 Mg ha(-1), 8.9 Mg ha(-1) and 14.2 Mg ha(-1), respectively, without any increase in nitrogen fertilizer. Model simulation and life-cycle assessment show that reactive nitrogen losses and greenhouse gas emissions are reduced substantially by integrated soil-crop system management. If farmers in China could achieve average grain yields equivalent to 80% of this treatment by 2030, over the same planting area as in 2012, total production of rice, wheat and maize in China would be more than enough to meet the demand for direct human consumption and a substantially increased demand for animal feed, while decreasing the environmental costs of intensive agriculture.
authors.affiliation: 1] College of Resources &Environmental Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China [2].
authors.forename: Xinping
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: 1] College of Resources &Environmental Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China [2].
authors.forename: Zhenling
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Cui
authors.affiliation: College of Resources &Environmental Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China.
authors.forename: Mingsheng
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fan
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, Stanford University, Stanford, California 94305, USA.
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Vitousek
authors.affiliation: Institute of Crop Science, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China.
authors.forename: Ming
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Zhao
authors.affiliation: College of Resources &Environmental Sciences, Agricultural University of Hebei, Baoding 071001, China.
authors.forename: Wenqi
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Ma
authors.affiliation: College of Agronomy, Shandong Agricultural University, Tai'an 271000, China.
authors.forename: Zhenlin
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Institute of Crop Science, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China.
authors.forename: Weijian
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Institute of Soil Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008, China.
authors.forename: Xiaoyuan
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Yan
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Crop Genetics and Physiology of Jiangsu Province, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou 225009, China.
authors.forename: Jianchang
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Soil Erosion and Dryland Farming on the Loess Plateau, Northwest Agriculture and Forestry University, Yangling 712100, China.
authors.forename: Xiping
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Deng
authors.affiliation: College of Resources &Environmental Sciences, Jilin Agricultural University, Changchun 130118, China.
authors.forename: Qiang
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Gao
authors.affiliation: Institute of Agricultural Environment and Resource, Shanxi Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Taiyuan 030031, China.
authors.forename: Qiang
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: College of Resources &Environmental Sciences, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing 210095, China.
authors.forename: Shiwei
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Guo
authors.affiliation: Research Center of Agricultural Environment &Resources, Jilin Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Changchun 130033, China.
authors.forename: Jun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ren
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Soil Erosion and Dryland Farming on the Loess Plateau, Northwest Agriculture and Forestry University, Yangling 712100, China.
authors.forename: Shiqing
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: College of Resources &Environmental Sciences, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou 450000, China.
authors.forename: Youliang
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Ye
authors.affiliation: Northwest Agriculture and Forestry University, Yangling 712100, China.
authors.forename: Zhaohui
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: College of Plant Science &Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China.
authors.forename: Jianliang
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.affiliation: Crop Physiology, Ecology &Production Center, Hunan Agricultural University, Changsha 410128, China.
authors.forename: Qiyuan
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Tang
authors.affiliation: Soil &Fertilizer Research Institute, Anhui Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hefei 230031, China.
authors.forename: Yixiang
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.affiliation: College of Resources &Environmental Sciences, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin 150030, China.
authors.forename: Xianlong
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Peng
authors.affiliation: College of Agronomy, Shandong Agricultural University, Tai'an 271000, China.
authors.forename: Jiwang
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: College of Agronomy, Shandong Agricultural University, Tai'an 271000, China.
authors.forename: Mingrong
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: He
authors.affiliation: College of Resources &Environmental Sciences, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou 450000, China.
authors.forename: Yunji
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zhu
authors.affiliation: Northwest Agriculture and Forestry University, Yangling 712100, China.
authors.forename: Jiquan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Xue
authors.affiliation: College of Resources &Environmental Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China.
authors.forename: Guiliang
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: College of Resources &Environmental Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China.
authors.forename: Liang
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.affiliation: College of Resources &Environmental Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China.
authors.forename: Ning
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: An
authors.affiliation: College of Resources &Environmental Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China.
authors.forename: Liangquan
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.affiliation: College of Resources &Environmental Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China.
authors.forename: Lin
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Ma
authors.affiliation: College of Resources &Environmental Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China.
authors.forename: Weifeng
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: College of Resources &Environmental Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China.
authors.forename: Fusuo
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Zhang
mesh_terms: D000383:Agriculture / Q000379:methods*; D000821:Animal Feed; D002681:China; D002523:Edible Grain / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000600:supply & distribution*; D004777:Environment; D005308:Fertilizers / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D017752:Greenhouse Effect / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D009584:Nitrogen / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D005308:Fertilizers; D009584:Nitrogen