The agricultural sector is a vital source of human well-being that provides the necessities of daily life. A variety of farming systems are utilized in agriculture, such as a wide range of tillage options, no-till, agroforestry, precision farming, organic farming, cover cropping, crop rotations, etc. Each of these farming systems has unique challenges, and nanotechnology has successfully improved on many of them. Agricultural applications of nanotechnology include nanofertilizers, nanopesticides, nanosensors, nanobiotechnology, and nanoremediation. This study focuses on the application of nano-farming technologies to different farming systems. Suggested practices include nano improvement of soil quality, crop nano-protection under biotic stress, nanoremediation of polluted soil and water environments, nanomanagement of agro-wastes, nano-agrochemicals, nano-precision farming, and nanobiotechnology for modern farming. This review also addresses expected problems that may occur due to over application of nanomaterials to farming systems, such as nanopollution and nanotoxicity of agroecosystem compartments. Several dimensions are emphasized in this study, such as green energy, sustainable development, the circular bioeconomy, land biodegradation, pollution, and the one health approach, as essential for the global goals of sustainable development. Nanofarming presents both benefits and obstacles to human life. The exact balance between these benefits and challenges needs more study.

The global food industry is facing growing pressure to enhance food safety, extend shelf life, minimize waste, and adopt environmentally sustainable packaging solution. Nanotechnology offers innovative ways to meet these demands by enabling the creation of smart and sustainable food packaging systems. Due to their unique properties, nanomaterials can significantly enhance the functional performance of packaging by boosting mechanical strength, barrier efficiency, antimicrobial activity, and responsiveness to environmental stimuli. This review provides a comprehensive overview of nanomaterials used as smart and sustainable food packaging, focusing on their role in active and intelligent packaging systems. By integrating nanomaterials like metal and metal oxide nanoparticles, carbon-based nanostructures, and nano-biopolymers, packaging can now perform real-time sensing, spoilage detection, and traceability. These systems improve food quality management and supply chain transparency while supporting global sustainability goals. The review also discusses potential risks related to nanomaterials’ migration, environmental impact, and consumer safety, as well as the current regulatory landscape and limitations in industrial scalability. Emphasis is placed on the importance of standardized safety assessments and eco-friendly design to support responsible innovation. Overall, nano-enabled smart packaging represents a promising strategy for advancing food safety and sustainability. Future developments will require collaboration across disciplines and robust regulatory frameworks to ensure the safe and practical application of nanotechnology in food systems.

Soil salinity is a serious global problem that threatens a high percentage of the global soils. Salinity stress can create ionic, oxidative, and osmotic stress, along with hormonal imbalances, in stressful plants. This kind of stress was investigated on agricultural productivity at different levels, starting in vitro (plant tissue culture), through hydroponics, pots, and field conditions. Several approaches were studied for managing salinity stress, including using traditional materials (e.g., gypsum, sulfur), organic amendments (e.g., compost, biochar, chitosan), and applied manufactured or engineered nanomaterials (NMs). Application of nanomaterials for ameliorating salinity stress has gained great attention due to their high efficiency, eco-friendliness, and non-toxicity, especially biological nanomaterials. The application of NMs did not only support growing stressful plants under salinity stress but also increased the yield of crops, provided an economically feasible nutrient management approach, and was environmentally robust for sustainable crop productivity. Nano-management of salinity may involve applying traditional nano-amendments, biological nanomaterials, nano-enabled nutrients, nano-organic amendments, derived smart nanostructures, and nano-tolerant plant cultivars. Producing different plant cultivars that are tolerant to salinity can be achieved using conventional breeding and plantomics technologies. In addition to the large-scale use of nanomaterials, there is an urgent need to address and treat nanotoxicity. This study aims to contribute to this growing area of research by exploring different approaches for nano-management of current practices under salinity stress under field and in vitro conditions. This study also raises many questions regarding the expected interaction between the toxic effects of salinity and NMs under such conditions. This includes whether this interaction acts positively or negatively on the cultivated plants and soil biological activity, or what regulatory ecotoxicity tests and protocols should be used in research.

Tellurium (Te) is the heaviest stable chalcogen and is a rare element in Earth’s crust (one to five ppb). It was discovered in gold ore from mines in Kleinschlatten near the present-day city of Zlatna, Romania. Industrial and other applications of Te focus on its inorganic forms. Tellurium can be toxic to animals and humans at low doses. Chronic tellurium poisoning endangers the kidney, liver, and nervous system. However, Te can be effective against bacteria and is able to destroy cancer cells. Tellurium can also be used to develop redox modulators and enzyme inhibitors. Soluble salts that contain Te had a role as therapeutic and antimicrobial agents before the advent of antibiotics. The pharmaceutical use of Te is not widespread due to the narrow margin between beneficial and toxic doses, but there are differences between the measure of toxicity based on the Te form. Nano-tellurium (Te-NPs) has several applications: it can act as an adsorptive agent to remove pollutants, and it can be used in antibacterial coating, photo-catalysis for the degradation of dyes, and conductive electronic materials. Nano-sized Te particles are the most promising and can be produced in both chemical and biological ways. Safety assessments are essential to determine the potential risks and benefits of using Te compounds in various applications. Future challenges and directions in developing nano-materials, nano-alloys, and nano-structures based on Te are still open to debate.

The intensive applications of nanomaterials in the agroecosystem led to the creation of several environmental problems. More efforts are needed to discover new insights in the nanomaterial–microbe–plant nexus. This relationship has several dimensions, which may include the transport of nanomaterials to different plant organs, the nanotoxicity to soil microbes and plants, and different possible regulations. This review focuses on the challenges and prospects of the nanomaterial–microbe–plant nexus under agroecosystem conditions. The previous nano-forms were selected in this study because of the rare, published articles on such nanomaterials. Under the study’s nexus, more insights on the carbon nanodot–microbe–plant nexus were discussed along with the role of the new frontier in nano-tellurium–microbe nexus. Transport of nanomaterials to different plant organs under possible applications, and translocation of these nanoparticles besides their expected nanotoxicity to soil microbes will be also reported in the current study. Nanotoxicity to soil microbes and plants was investigated by taking account of morpho-physiological, molecular, and biochemical concerns. This study highlights the regulations of nanotoxicity with a focus on risk and challenges at the ecological level and their risks to human health, along with the scientific and organizational levels. This study opens many windows in such studies nexus which are needed in the near future.

The relationship between agriculture and food is very close. It is impossible to produce adequate crops for global food security without proper farm management. Farming practices represent direct and indirect controlling factors in terms of global food security. Farming management practices influence agro-food production from seed germination through to the post-harvest treatments. Nano-farming utilizes nanotechnologies for agricultural food production. This review covers four key components of nano-farming: nano-mushroom production, protein-based nanoparticles, nano-nutrients, and nanofibers. This provides a comprehensive overview of the potential applications of nanotechnology in agriculture. The role of these components will be discussed in relation to the challenges faced and solutions required to achieve sustainable agricultural production. Edible mushrooms are important to food security because they are a nutritious food source and can produce nanoparticles that can be used in the production of other food sources. Protein-based nanoparticles have considerable potential in the delivery of bioactives as carriers and other applications. Nano-nutrients (mainly nano-selenium, nano-tellurium and carbon nanodots) have crucial impacts on the nutrient status of plant-based foods. Carbon nanodots and other carbon-based nanomaterials have the potential to influence agricultural crops positively. There are promising applications of nanofibers in food packaging, safety and processing. However, further research is needed to understand the impacts and potential risks of nanomaterials in the food production system.