To reveal the relationship between rural development and ecosystem services and to assist in efforts to balance these factors, we used a coupling model to carry out a study of the relationship between rural development and ecosystem services in Fujian Province of China during the years 2000 to 2015. First, we characterized the degree of rural development for each county in the province by calculating its index of relative rurality (IRR) and classified the counties into rural development types. Second, we calculated the values of three ecosystem services (ES) and overlapped them to get the sum of ES for each county. Third, we calculated the coupling and coupling coordination degree and analyzed the correlation between IRR and ES in the study area. The results showed that the mean value of IRR declined over the study period, was positively correlated with ES, and the correlation degree increased year by year. Meanwhile the degree of coupling was in the antagonistic stage, but tended to run in stage with a highly coordinated stage coupling coordination degree, if the business services type-counties were excluded. Although the overall coupling coordination degree was high, it declined yearly, which meant that rural development and ecosystem services increasingly lacked coordination. This paper supports and verifies some achievements of rural development programs in the research area, provides theoretical and decision-making support for coordinated rural development and ecosystem services protection in China, and provides a regional case study that could assist with similar research in other countries.

We present a quantitative analysis of phosphorus (P) flows that characterize the food production-consumption system metabolism in a low-income, food, and phosphorus deficient country, using Comoros, a small African island state, as an example from the year 2000 to 2011. The data were interpreted in terms of the connections between crop production, livestock breeding, human consumption, and soil stock, using the substance flow analysis (SFA) model. We found that the total P input into Comoros totaled 132.37 t in 2000 and 270.60 t in 2011, whereas the total P output totaled 567.40 t in 2000 and 702.29 t in 2011. Farmers in Comoros are cropping with little or no P input, resulting in a soil P deficiency; it varied from 435.03 t in 2000 to 431.69 t in 2011. In addition, the Phosphorus Use Efficiencies (PUEs) of plant and animal production in Comoros were 131.80% and 14%, respectively, in 2011. This is the first SFA of a small island state, and the lack of a closed P loop is a major issue for the country in terms of P security and this has not changed between 2000 and 2011. This study proposes crucial solutions for improving the PUE through recycling and reusing animal manure, human excreta, and household solid organic waste.

The modern global food production system relies heavily on a considerable input of phosphorus. Sustainable food and agriculture need integrated phosphorus management, especially in phosphorus-scarce and food-deficient countries. This study aimed to investigate the phosphorus requirements to meet the future food demand for a phosphorus-scarce and food-deficient country, Comoros, as a case study. With its rapid population growth, domestic food production is far from meeting the food demand in Comoros, and the country relies on imported foods to satisfy the national needs; it is currently a net food importer, an import-dependent nation. We first calculated the virtual and embedded phosphorus flows through food trade in Comoros, from 1991 to 2013, and then estimated the phosphorus requirements for the future food demand under two scenarios. We found that the total virtual and embedded phosphorus through imported food increased from 163,313 to 493,190.97 kg and 53,190.12 to 143,009.62 kg in 1991 and 2013, respectively. Whereas, the embedded phosphorus through exported food shifted from 2548.75 to 1334.5 kg in 1991 and 2013, respectively. In addition, the Self-Sufficiency Ratio (SSR) analysis found that Comoros’s SSR is far below 100%; it varied from 46.27% in 1991 to 29.70% in 2013, indicating that the capacity of domestic production to cover domestic consumption fell by 16.57% during that period. In terms of phosphorus requirements, Comoros will require approximately 3,003,435.09 kg of phosphorus to reach 90% of the SSR or 3,337,150.10 kg to achieve 100% of the SSR, by 2030. These amounts could allow farmers to domestically produce the entire volume of food crops and livestock products that would otherwise be imported from trade.

Based on China’s potato staple food policy, we chose potatoes as a study case to analyze the following indicators—the virtual new nitrogen factor (VNNF), the virtual new phosphorus factor (VNPF), the virtual irrigation-water (IW) factor (VIWF), the virtual total water (IW + precipitation) factor (VTWF), and the virtual greenhouse gas (GHG) emission factor (VCF) of the potatoes consumed by households in the six potato cultivation regions—by reviewing 220 publications from 2000 to 2020. The results showed that the VNNF ranged between 17.8 ± 7.8 and 30.1 ± 17.0 kg N kg⁻¹ N in the consumed potato, the VNPF ranged between 8.4 ± 5.0 and 18.8 ± 11.3 kg P kg⁻¹ P in the consumed potato, the VIWF ranged between 0.3 ± 1.0 and 1.8 ± 1.4 m³ IW kg⁻¹ for the consumed standard yield (except in the three mainly rainfed potato regions), the VTWF ranged between 4.8 ± 2.2 and 9.3 ± 3.7 m³ total water kg⁻¹ for the consumed standard yield, and the VCF ranged between 3.4 ± 1.5 and 5.9 ± 2.4 kg CO₂ equivalent kg⁻¹ for the consumed standard yield, under the conventional practice in the six potato cultivation regions. The normalization score results indicate that the northeast, northwest, southwest, and south of China are relatively more suitable regions in which to plant potatoes, based on the VNNF, VNPF, VIWF or VTWF, and VCF indicators.