The increasing global demand for food, combined with rising climate extremes, is driving agricultural expansion—often without sufficient consideration for sustainability. Greenhouse agriculture presents a promising solution to address the dual challenges of food security and climate change mitigation. This study models potential scenarios for the expansion of greenhouse agriculture in Imbabura Province, Ecuador, while adhering to sustainability criteria. Two widely used methods were compared: the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) integrated with Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and the Maximum Entropy (MaxEnt) model. The GIS-AHP method relies on expert-defined weights, whereas the MaxEnt model utilizes the probabilistic distribution of presence-only data, enabling a complementary evaluation of both subjective and data-driven approaches. Both models incorporated various factors, including topographic, climatic, hydrological, ecological, infrastructural, agricultural, and soil-related variables. The results classified the territory into five levels of suitability for greenhouse expansion. The GIS-AHP model identified 20,761.64 hectares as highly suitable, while the MaxEnt model identified only 5618.15 hectares. This discrepancy highlights the differing influences of various factors: In the GIS-AHP, land cover/use, irrigation availability, and proximity to existing greenhouses were the most influential. In contrast, in the MaxEnt model, proximity to greenhouses was the dominant factor. These findings not only provide a spatially explicit foundation for sustainable territorial planning but also contribute methodologically by integrating both data-driven and expert-driven approaches. This supports evidence-based policy-making in fragile Andean ecosystems.

Greenhouse agriculture is experiencing global expansion; however, in Andean countries such as Ecuador, its development is constrained by low-tech infrastructure, limited automation, and insufficient environmental monitoring, all of which negatively affect productivity and fruit quality. This study characterized the microclimate of a low-tech greenhouse in Chaltura, Imbabura Province, during a complete production cycle of tomato crop (Solanum lycopersicum L.). Microclimatic conditions were analyzed during three phenological stages (vegetative, reproductive, and harvest). Temperature and relative humidity were recorded at 5 min intervals using sensors placed in the greenhouse quadrants, while an external weather station provided daily outdoor climate data. Statistical analyses were performed in R software (version 4.4.x). The results revealed marked internal microclimatic heterogeneity and showed that the crop remained outside the optimal ranges of temperature, relative humidity, and vapor pressure deficit (VPD) for over 50% of the time across all phenological stages and greenhouse quadrants. These findings underscore the urgent need for cost-effective climate-control strategies adapted to local conditions and provide a scientific basis for future research aimed at improving climatic and productive efficiency, as well as the resilience and sustainability of protected agriculture in Andean regions.

Protected agriculture in Ecuador began in the 1990s and has expanded due to its comparative advantages over open field production. However, there are no statistics on this sector, which limits decision-making. The aim of this research was to provide a baseline of greenhouse agriculture in Imbabura. Sentinel-2 satellite imagery was used to estimate the spatial distribution of plastic-covered surface area in 2016 and 2023. To minimize biases in estimation, manual verification was also conducted. Based on population data, a structured survey was administered to a probabilistic sample of 234 greenhouses. The results highlight the presence of 1958 greenhouses that cover 527 hectares, with an average of 0.26 hectares. The greenhouses were characterized in terms of their design, construction materials and equipment. The main crop under plastic is tomato, with 76.9%, of which the management characteristics and the productive and economic results obtained in 2023 were identified. The findings could inform the formulation of public policies or specific interventions to strengthen protected agriculture in the region; however, support mechanisms are needed to fully exploit its potential. Among these, producer organization could be a viable strategy to address food security challenges in the context of climate change.

The white peach scale, Pseudaulacaspis pentagona (Targioni-Tozzetti) (Hemiptera: Diaspididae), is a highly polyphagous insect pest of global phytosanitary relevance affecting fruit trees, perennial crops, and ornamental plants in temperate and subtropical regions. Its invasive success is largely driven by high thermal tolerance, a wide host range, and strong survival capacity under postharvest handling and cold-chain storage, which greatly enhances its potential for long-distance dispersal through international trade of fresh fruit and plant material. A systematic review and meta-synthesis of 105 scientific studies published between 1958 and 2026 identified key research areas, including geographic distribution and invasion pathways, host plants and varietal susceptibility, temperature-dependent life history, agricultural impact and quarantine risk, chemical and biological control strategies, and the development of phenology-based monitoring and prediction tools using thermal models and pheromones. Although recent official reports do not confirm the presence of P. pentagona in Ecuador, climate suitability modeling and evidence of long-term survival during cold storage indicate a high risk of introduction and establishment, particularly in inter-Andean valleys. Consequently, preventive phytosanitary surveillance and integrated pest management strategies tailored to Ecuadorian Andean fruit production are proposed, emphasizing phenological monitoring, nursery and agro-urban inspections, and the conservation of natural enemies as a foundation for sustainable management of this emerging pest.

El objetivo de la investigación fue analizar el grado de diversificación de ingreso de los hogares y proponer estrategias que disminuyan los niveles de pobreza. Para ello, se encuestó a 184 personas, se complementó con información bibliográfica, se aplicó la herramienta DAFO y la matriz CAME para el planteamiento de estrategias. Del estudio, se determinó que existen siete fuentes de ingreso en la parroquia, la principal es la agricultura con el 44% y el cultivo de papa es el rubro principal; el 54% de productores han diversificado sus fuentes de ingresos, sin embargo el 56% del ingreso total del hogar lo generan las actividades fuera de finca. Como estrategias se propuso la comercialización asociativa y la creación de una ruta agroturística que contribuyan a incrementar los ingresos y mejorar la calidad de vida de los pequeños productores de la parroquia. Se concluye que, si los ingresos de las actividades agropecuarias no incrementan, las actividades fuera de finca seguirán ganando espacio lo que podría conllevar a pérdidas de producción de alimentos y migración del campo a la ciudad.

La aplicación excesiva de químicos en la agricultura y el uso de maquinaria en estos procesos incrementan los factores para el aceleramiento del cambio climático. El estudio pretende recabar información bibliográfica en varios países acerca de la agricultura y su incidencia en el cambio climático. Para lo cual es necesario conocer las actividades realizadas en el campo para producir alimentos; y, determinar características de cómo estas actividades impactan en el ambiente. Es fundamental identificar sistemas de producción agrícola empleados y su ocurrencia en el cambio climático.