Toxicological risks of industrial waste in agricultural soils for food safety and environmental sustainability

Abstract

Industrialization has significantly increased the productivity of agriculture but industrial wastes have also increased the contamination of agricultural soils. This is an increasing threat to the food safety, the stability of ecosystems and human health. Certain industrial by-products can provide short-term benefits to soil fertility and crop yields but can also introduce hazardous contaminants to agroecosystems, including heavy metals, persistent organic pollutants (POPs), microplastics, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), and engineered nanoparticles. This review critically synthesizes the global evidence of sources, transport pathways, environmental fate and transfer to the food chain of industrial contaminants in agricultural soils. It emphasizes the paradox of high crop yields in spite of the clandestine build-up of toxic substances that deteriorate soil health, microbial diversity, crop safety and the long term sustainability of agriculture. The major challenges are poor management of industrial waste, lack of monitoring systems, interactions among pollutants, weak regulatory frameworks and limited knowledge about emerging contaminants under changing climatic conditions. The review also includes integrated mitigation measures such as sustainable waste management, innovative soil remediation techniques, phytoremediation, biochar use, precision agriculture and other stronger environmental policies to reduce the accumulation of contaminants and human exposure. Future perspectives emphasize the need for high-throughput monitoring tools, remote sensing, biosensors, digital soil mapping, improved risk assessment frameworks, and interdisciplinary research to better understand contaminant dynamics and develop resilient soil management strategies. In summary, the review emphasizes that sustainable agriculture should be assessed not only by crop productivity but also by soil health, environmental integrity and food safety. In the context of an increasingly industrialized world it is crucial to take a holistic and integrated approach combining scientific innovation with efficient policy implementation and continuous environmental surveillance for the protection of agricultural ecosystems and sustainable food production.