Abstract
This research article attempts a bibliometric analysis of global research on biofertilizers carried out from 2000 to 2019. The main purpose of this analysis is in technology foresight; to understand where the research interest lies within the domain of biofertilizer and also to identify the major research networks. The analysis is based on 344 research articles identified using the ISI Web of Science tool, which is processed further using VOSviewer. The results demonstrated that there is an increase in the number of articles, particularly from countries like Brazil, India China, the USA, and Iran. The research focus has been on the assessment of nitrogen fixation capacity of biofertilizers, and the yield improvement due to biofertilizers, and the economics of biofertilizer application. Our findings can act as a useful reference for the researchers, and provide insights for directing future research on biofertilizers.
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This research was funded by NAHEP, Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), New Delhi, Grant No. NAHEP/CAAST/2018-19/07.
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Conceptualization, K.V.P. and A.S.; methodology, K.V.P. and K.S.A.; software, K.V.P.; validation, K.V.P., A.S. and K.S.A.; formal analysis, K.V.P.; writing—original draft preparation, K.V.P.; writing—review and editing, K.S.A.; visualization, K.V.P.; supervision, A.S.; project. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.
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This paper is drawn from the first author’s PhD research work entitled “Estimating the effects of fertilizer use in agriculture: implications for crop response and environmental sustainability” conducted at the Division of Agricultural Economics, ICAR—Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi, India.
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Koovalamkadu Velayudhan, P., Singh, A. & Korekallu Srinivasa, A. Exploring the global research trends in biofertilizers: a bibliometric approach. 3 Biotech 11, 304 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13205-021-02794-9
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13205-021-02794-9