The quality of meta-analyses in agricultural sustainability has been increasing, but weaknesses persist
Abstract Meta-analyses (MAs) are needed to inform agricultural policies on sustainable farming practices (FPs). This study assesses the quality against established criteria of 570 MAs published from 2000-2023 and included in the recently published “JRC-Farming Practices Evidence Library”. We find that average MA quality significantly improved ( p < 0.001) over time. However, about two-thirds of the assessments showed deficiencies in at least four areas, notably study selection and publication bias reporting. MAs related to animal husbandry, manure management, and those synthesizing modelling-derived outcomes demonstrated particularly low quality. Less than 40% of MAs provided accessible original data, limiting reproducibility and re-use. These shortcomings may hinder the full potential of MAs to support evidence-based policy. We propose recommendations to promote FAIR data sharing, enhance awareness, and encourage greater transparency in reporting, which a needed to strengthen the role of MAs in agricultural sustainability.
Authors
- Rui Catarino (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7181-6187)
- Simona Bosco (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9388-6087)
- Marta Pérez‐Soba (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7413-9385)
- Beatrice Landoni (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3815-5011)
- Irene Guerrero (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5025-2025)
- Marijn van der Velde (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9103-7081)
- Ana Montero‐Castaño (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2631-0085)
- Carlo Rega (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3238-6185)
- Otho Mantegazza
- Mathilde Chen (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5982-2143)
- Andrea Schievano (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3458-2654)
- María Bielza
- Giovanni Tamburini (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7546-8183)
- Jean‐Michel Terres
- Maria Luisa Paracchini
- Linda See
- David Makowski
Institutions
- Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement (FR)
- International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (AT)
- United Nations Industrial Development Organization (AT)
- University of Milan (IT)
- Université de Montpellier (FR)
- AgroParisTech (FR)
- Institut Agro Montpellier (FR)
- Institut National de Recherche pour l'Agriculture, l'Alimentation et l'Environnement (FR)
- Joint Research Centre (IT)
- Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (FR)
- Plant Health Institute de Montpellier (FR)
- L'Institut Agro (FR)
- University of Bari Aldo Moro (IT)
- Wageningen University & Research (NL)
Publication Details
- Journal
- npj Sustainable Agriculture
- Published
- 2026-06-09
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1038/s44264-026-00148-7
- Primary Topic
- Sustainable Agricultural Systems Analysis
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00
Funders
- European Commission
- Agence Nationale de la Recherche
- Joint Research Centre