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The emerging environmental markets have been adopted by various sectors and industries worldwide, with regulations being implemented to make it compulsory to protect against environmental degradation through emission reduction. Thus, understanding the framework of environmental markets and their implications in mitigating climate change and addressing challenges is crucial. Following the updated PRISMA guidelines, a systematic review was conducted to provide important insights into environmental labels and their values in reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Their potential for investments in emerging business opportunities was also explored. The literature search was limited to the past 20 years and focused on peer-reviewed journal articles in the agricultural sector, using databases such as CAB Abstract, Business Sources Ultimate, Scopus, and ProQuest between March and May 2022. It is worth noting that this study did not use other popular databases (e.g. Web of Science), which might result in the omission of some relevant studies in the environmental market domain, potentially introducing some imprecisions to the findings. Based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria, 51 articles were finally selected for the study. Thematic content analysis was conducted using Nvivo software, and the results were synthesized and presented in different themes. The findings indicate that carbon, environmental, and eco-labels are among the seven identified labels, wherein environmental and carbon markets, among the four identified markets, were found in new emerging and popular markets in most countries. There has been substantial growth in the value of environmental goods and services due to increasing demand from different stakeholders seeking environmental protection, as mandated by regulations. Overall, consumers have a positive response to the willingness to pay (WTP) premium prices, particularly for environmentally friendly labels and products (eco-label and environmental labels) than conventional ones (carbon and organic labels). Further, there is huge potential for investments in the newly emerging environmental markets, e.g., the carbon market through carbon/greenhouse gas emission reduction and carbon offset/credit market by soil carbon sequestration and carbon neutral products. This study contributes to the understanding of the market structure, the main drivers influencing new environmental markets, its advantages, and co-benefits for the various stakeholders in the value chain. Overall, the adoption of environmental strategies and practices can contribute to the socio-economic and environmental benefits, as well as lead to environment-friendly sustainable production.

Abstract Pulses are essential components of vegetarian diet and play a pivotal role in addressing malnutrition by providing a vital source of dietary protein. However, weed competition remains as a significant obstacle to blackgram (Vigna mungo L) production, resulting in 25 to 35% yield losses. A field experiment was carried out at the National Pulses Research Centre, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Vamban, Pudukkottai, India during Kharif seasons of 2020 and 2021, to assess the suitable post-emergence herbicides for appropriate weed control in blackgram grown under irrigated conditions. The experimental field was observed to contain notable grass weed flora, specifically Dactyloctenium aegyptium and Chloris barbata, as well as broadleaved weeds, such as Flaveria australica, Cleome gynandra, Eclipta alba, Convolvulus arvensis, Digera arvensis, Vicia spp., and Celosia argentea. The results demonstrated that among the chemical weed management methods, spraying of Fomesafen @ 220 g + Fluzifop p-butyl @ 220 g ha−1 at 20 days after sowing (DAS) as a post-emergence herbicide treatment exhibited superior weed control efficiency, recording 66.80% and 68.53% at 30 and 45 DAS, respectively and recorded higher seed yield of 1088 kg ha−1. Additionally, this method generated 8.1% higher net income and 12.5% more benefit–cost ratio than hand weeding, making it an economically profitable strategy for maximizing blackgram yield and effective labour management.

IntroductionRedgram (Cajanus cajan L. Mill sp.), a leguminous crop commonly grown in tropical and subtropical climates, is highly valued for its high protein content (21%), which contributes significantly to food and nutritional security. However, its production faces challenges primarily due to terminal dryness experienced during critical growth stages because of changing rainfall patterns. To overcome this, adaptive techniques become imperative as the productivity of this crop is intricately linked to environmental factors and the crop’s growth cycle.MethodsHence, the field experiment was conducted at the National Pulses Research Centre, Vamban, Pudukkottai, Tamil Nadu, in South India under rainfed condition, during the kharif (monsoon) seasons of 2017–18 and 2018–19. The primary objectives were to determine the optimal sowing time and identify suitable redgram cultivars, especially in the context of the late onset of the monsoon in Tamil Nadu, a common issue under changing climate conditions. The experiments tested six different sowing dates with three redgram cultivars.Results and discussionThe findings highlighted the substantial influence of different redgram cultivars and sowing times on the crop’s growth characteristics and yield. Among the six sowing dates tested, planting in later half of June (S6) resulted in notably higher plant height (201 cm), a greater number of pods per plant (287), a seed yield of 1,112 kg ha−1, and a benefit-cost ratio of 2.61 Notably, this sowing period (S6) demonstrated comparable performance with the treatment of redgram sowing in the latter part of September (S4). CO 6 (V1) is the most productive of the three redgram cultivars, with the highest mean pant height (200 cm), number of pods per plant (237), grain yield (1,017 kg ha−1), and benefit cost ratio (2.38). Extended phenological phases along with extra days to reach phenological stages could account for the increased yield in comparison to the other cultivars. Among the two short-duration cultivars, VBN (Rg) 3 (V3) had a significantly higher mean grain yield of 958 kg ha−1 with the benefit-cost ratio of 2.24. Even though CO 6 (V1) obtained a higher yield due to its long duration nature, it matured in 187 days whereas VBN (Rg) 3 (V3) matured within 129 days. Consequently, the short-duration redgram cultivars emerge as highly suitable choices for integrating into crop sequences, thereby augmenting farm cropping intensity.

Abstract Agroforestry is a management strategy for mitigating the negative impacts of climate and adapting to sustainable farming systems. The successful implementation of agroforestry strategies requires that climate risks are appropriately assessed. The spatial scale, a critical determinant influencing climate impact assessments and, subsequently, agroforestry strategies, has been an overlooked dimension in the literature. In this study, climate risk impacts on robusta coffee production were investigated at different spatial scales in coffee-based agroforestry systems across India. Data from 314 coffee farms distributed across the districts of Chikmagalur and Coorg (Karnataka state) and Wayanad (Kerala state) were collected during the 2015/2016 to 2017/2018 coffee seasons and were used to quantify the key climate drivers of coffee yield. Projected climate data for two scenarios of change in global climate corresponding to (1) current baseline conditions (1985–2015) and (2) global mean temperatures 2 °C above preindustrial levels were then used to assess impacts on robusta coffee yield. Results indicated that at the district scale rainfall variability predominantly constrained coffee productivity, while at a broader regional scale, maximum temperature was the most important factor. Under a 2 °C global warming scenario relative to the baseline (1985–2015) climatic conditions, the changes in coffee yield exhibited spatial-scale dependent disparities. Whilst modest increases in yield (up to 5%) were projected from district-scale models, at the regional scale, reductions in coffee yield by 10–20% on average were found. These divergent impacts of climate risks underscore the imperative for coffee-based agroforestry systems to develop strategies that operate effectively at various scales to ensure better resilience to the changing climate.