Title: Biostimulants: Advances toward more efficient and sustainable agriculture
Abstract:
The concept of biostimulants has become firmly established worldwide as a key strategy in modern, sustainable agriculture, aimed at enhancing crop yield and resilience. These tools act as a complement that potentiates natural physiological processes, improving nutrient-use efficiency and productivity under conditions of climatic stress, and helping to increase tolerance to both biotic and abiotic stresses. Biostimulants include humic and fulvic substances, protein hydrolysates and amino acids, seaweed extracts, microbial compounds, phosphites, silicon, and other components, and they are used in field crops, vegetables, fruit trees, and ornamentals. Among the agronomic benefits observed are enhanced root growth; increased nutrient uptake and use efficiency, with the potential to reduce chemical fertilization; improved tolerance to abiotic stress (drought, salinity, cold, heat); and improved physiological parameters (seedling vigor, mitigation of crop damage), among others. Improvements have also been observed in raw-material quality (the chemical composition of grains or fruits) and in soil health, through the stimulation of beneficial microbiota. The existence of yield gaps in agricultural systems highlights the potential to increase productivity, and biostimulants emerge as a complementary tool to help close these gaps. This remains an ongoing challenge for agriculture, and the goal for the coming years is to narrow these gaps by approximately 20%, approaching yield potential at a lower cost per unit area, in a manner that is both economically viable and environmentally sustainable. Application technology and timing are of great importance in determining the expression of the beneficial effects of biostimulants. Beyond their effects on the crop, they can be applied together with fertilizers and/or crop protection products, reducing operating costs, machinery traffic, and potential soil compaction. Taken together, the international evidence shows that biostimulants are already widely used across diverse crops and environments, with average yield increases of between 10 and 20% (depending on conditions), quality improvements, and greater stress tolerance. In maize, yield increases of around 20% have been documented under water-stress conditions. These technologies also help mitigate early establishment problems and damage caused by biotic factors, such as pest damage. In soybean, during the pase when roots and nodules begin to lose efficiency in capturing soil nutrients, products enriched with micronutrients and amino acids minimize the impact of stress and improve grain quality. A key benefit observed with these products is their capacity to mitigate the phytotoxicity and carryover caused by herbicides, favouring crop recovery, which is reflected in the improvement of certain yield components. Among the global challenges and prospects, the world market is worth several billion dollars and is growing at more than 10% per year; however, variability in efficacy, a lack of standardization, and disparate regulatory frameworks persist. Despite consistently positive trends, statistical significance often depends on environmental conditions and the prior nutritional status of the field. Effective use requires local trials and careful selection of both the biostimulant and the application strategy. In conclusion, biostimulants represent a promising tool for more sustainable and productive agriculture—a key factor for maximizing productivity and resilience in modern agricultural systems.
