Challenges, Regulations and Future Actions in Biofertilizers in the European Agriculture: From the Lab to the Field

Plant Growth Promotion Abilities of Phylogenetically Diverse Mesorhizobium Strains: Effect in the Root Colonization and Development of Tomato Seedlings

“…The plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR), also named plant probiotic bacteria, are promising biofertilizers for sustainable and environmentally friendly agriculture since they allow the total or partial substitution of chemical fertilizers added to the crops alone or together with organic amendments [1][2][3]. These bacteria take part in the plant microbiome and can live in the rhizosphere or endosphere of plants [4,5].…”

Formulation of a Highly Effective Inoculant for Common Bean Based on an Autochthonous Elite Strain of Rhizobium leguminosarum bv. phaseoli, and Genomic-Based Insights Into Its Agronomic Performance

“…Despite the advantages of BNF and other microbial processes in agriculture, the use of bacterial inoculants to provide nutrients to crops or to promote their nutrient use efficiency, tolerance to abiotic stress, or crop quality, is increasing but still not a common practice (Bhardwaj et al, 2014). Especially in developed countries, the easy availability of N-containing mineral fertilizers and the perceived erratic field performance of inoculants, have discouraged farmers from using them (Stamenković et al, 2018;Barquero et al, 2019). In the case of Europe, new rules about fertilizers have been recently approved, such as Regulation (EU) 2019/1009 which pays special attention to the regulation of the use of microbial inoculants targeted to improve crop nutrition.…”

Is the Application of Plant Probiotic Bacterial Consortia Always Beneficial for Plants? Exploring Synergies between Rhizobial and Non-Rhizobial Bacteria and Their Effects on Agro-Economically Valuable Crops

“…Some countries are more permissive, some countries are very strict, and some of them do not have policies regulating these products yet. Big chemical fertilizer companies as well as new SMEs are now interested in the production and marketing of microbe-based products [127]. For example, the European Commission (EC) has approved regulations and policies governing the use of biofertilizers based on microorganisms; however, these policies are restrictive in terms of the permitted microorganisms, maybe due to the presence of strong fertilizer industries [127].…”

“…Big chemical fertilizer companies as well as new SMEs are now interested in the production and marketing of microbe-based products [127]. For example, the European Commission (EC) has approved regulations and policies governing the use of biofertilizers based on microorganisms; however, these policies are restrictive in terms of the permitted microorganisms, maybe due to the presence of strong fertilizer industries [127]. In June 2019, the EC enacted the "Regulation (EU) 2019/1009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 June 2019 laying down rules on the making available on the market of EU fertilizing products", which amended Regulations (EC) No 1069/2009 and (EC) No 1107/2009 and repealed Regulation (EC) No 2003/2003.…”