Climate-Smart Agricultural Practices—Strategies to Conserve and Increase Soil Carbon in Hungary

Eszter Tóth, Marianna Magyar (), Imre Cseresnyés, Márton Dencső, Annamária Laborczi, Gábor Szatmári and Sándor Koós
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Eszter Tóth: Institute for Soil Sciences, HUN-REN Centre for Agricultural Research, Fehérvári út 132–144, 1116 Budapest, Hungary
Marianna Magyar: Institute for Soil Sciences, HUN-REN Centre for Agricultural Research, Fehérvári út 132–144, 1116 Budapest, Hungary
Imre Cseresnyés: Institute for Soil Sciences, HUN-REN Centre for Agricultural Research, Fehérvári út 132–144, 1116 Budapest, Hungary
Márton Dencső: Institute for Soil Sciences, HUN-REN Centre for Agricultural Research, Fehérvári út 132–144, 1116 Budapest, Hungary
Annamária Laborczi: Institute for Soil Sciences, HUN-REN Centre for Agricultural Research, Fehérvári út 132–144, 1116 Budapest, Hungary
Gábor Szatmári: Institute for Soil Sciences, HUN-REN Centre for Agricultural Research, Fehérvári út 132–144, 1116 Budapest, Hungary
Sándor Koós: Institute for Soil Sciences, HUN-REN Centre for Agricultural Research, Fehérvári út 132–144, 1116 Budapest, Hungary

Land, 2025, vol. 14, issue 6, 1-32

Abstract: This review summarizes the role of soil in climate change mitigation and highlights the potential of agricultural practices to support this effort. It provides an overview of methods that enhance soil carbon sequestration and reduce carbon dioxide emissions from soils. After presenting a brief global overview, we focus on how the organic carbon stocks of Hungarian agricultural areas have changed over the past decades, underscoring the importance of climate-smart agricultural practices. We examine how these practices—such as cover crops, conservation tillage, fertilization, crop rotation, regenerative agriculture, and agroforestry—affect soil carbon stocks. While the review draws on global research, its primary focus is on practices applicable in Hungary. The effectiveness and feasibility of these climate-smart agricultural practices depend significantly on local climate, geographical location, and soil conditions. Therefore, we thoroughly analyze the applicability and limitations of each practice within the Hungarian context. In addition, we explore temporal trends to assess how the adoption of certain climate-smart practices has evolved over the past one to two decades. Lastly, we discuss the challenges of implementing the presented practices from economic, policy, regulatory, and human perspectives.

Keywords: arable crop production; carbon sequestration; climate change mitigation and adaptation; climate-smart agriculture; CO 2 emission; conservation tillage; cover crop; regenerative agriculture; soil organic carbon (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q15 Q2 Q24 Q28 Q5 R14 R52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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