{rfName}
Co

Indexed in

APC

2 200,00 Others

License and Use

Icono OpenAccess

Altmetrics

Analysis of institutional authors

Yague-Blanco, Jose LuisAuthor

Share

November 25, 2025
Publications
>
Article
Sí

Complementary Agriculture (AgriCom): A Low-Cost Strategy to Improve Profitability and Sustainability in Rural Communities in Semi-Arid Regions

Publicated to: Sustainability. 17 (21): 9481-9481 - 2025-10-24 17(21), DOI: 10.3390/su17219481

Authors:

Díaz-Sánchez, F; Cadena-Iñiguez, J; Ruiz-Vera, VM; Silos-Espino, H; Trejo-Téllez, BI; García-Reyes, A; Yagüe-Blanco, JL; Sánchez-Escudero, J
[+]

Affiliations

Colegio Postgrad, Campus Montecillo,Km 36-5 Carretera Mexico Texcoco, Montecillo 56264, Texcoco, Mexico - Author
Colegio Postgrad, Campus San Luis Potosi,Iturbide 73, San Luis Potosi 78600, Mexico - Author
Tecnol Nacl Mexico, Inst Tecnol El Llano Aguascalientes, Km 18 Carretera Ags SLP, El Llano 20330, Mexico - Author
Univ Politecn Madrid, Escuela Tecn Super Ingn Agron Alimentaria & Biosis, Campus Ciudad Univ,Ave Puerta Hierro 2-4, Madrid 28040, Spain - Author
See more

Abstract

The rural population in semi-arid areas of Mexico suffers from poverty levels that hinder a dignified life, leading to migration and abandonment of their resources. This is exacerbated by climate change (droughts and high temperatures), which negatively impacts crops. While farmers attempt to adapt, their strategies are insufficient. A low-cost Complementary Agriculture (AgriCom) model was designed, using local resources to produce prickly pear (Opuntia ficus-indica Mill.) and corn (Zea mays L.), while simultaneously conserving regional germplasm of Opuntia spp. A randomized block design with three replications was used. Each block included seven varieties, with 125 plants per variety. Corn was grown as a monocrop in the same experimental site. Graphical analysis, analysis of variance with mean comparison test in RStudio, a profitability analysis, and a Land Equivalent (ELU) analysis were performed. The varieties Verdura, Atlixco, and Rojo Liso showed higher yield, internal rate of return, and net present value; their benefit-cost ratios were 7.97, 6.35, and 6.82, respectively. The ELU was greater than 1.0 when combining the prickly pear varieties. Agroclimatic conditions did not allow the corn to complete its phenological cycle, and its ELU was zero. Seventy prickly pear genotypes, with three replicates each, representing eight Opuntia species, were collected and integrated into the periphery of the production unit. This model was accepted by the Climate Action Platform for Agriculture in Latin America and the Caribbean (PLACA) for implementation in other communities.
[+]

Keywords

AgricomAgricultural modelingAgricultural productionAgricultural profitabilityEluFruitGermplasmLatin americaMaizeMexico [north america]ProfitabilityRural communitiesRural populationSustainabilitySustainable production

Quality index

Bibliometric impact. Analysis of the contribution and dissemination channel

The work has been published in the journal Sustainability due to its progression and the good impact it has achieved in recent years, according to the agency Scopus (SJR), it has become a reference in its field. In the year of publication of the work, 2025, it was in position , thus managing to position itself as a Q1 (Primer Cuartil), in the category Geography, Planning and Development.

[+]

Impact and social visibility

From the perspective of influence or social adoption, and based on metrics associated with mentions and interactions provided by agencies specializing in calculating the so-called "Alternative or Social Metrics," we can highlight as of 2026-04-09:

  • The use of this contribution in bookmarks, code forks, additions to favorite lists for recurrent reading, as well as general views, indicates that someone is using the publication as a basis for their current work. This may be a notable indicator of future more formal and academic citations. This claim is supported by the result of the "Capture" indicator, which yields a total of: 2 (PlumX).

With a more dissemination-oriented intent and targeting more general audiences, we can observe other more global scores such as:

    It is essential to present evidence supporting full alignment with institutional principles and guidelines on Open Science and the Conservation and Dissemination of Intellectual Heritage. A clear example of this is:

    • The work has been submitted to a journal whose editorial policy allows open Open Access publication.
    • Assignment of a Handle/URN as an identifier within the deposit in the Institutional Repository: https://oa.upm.es/94852/

    As a result of the publication of the work in the institutional repository, statistical usage data has been obtained that reflects its impact. In terms of dissemination, we can state that, as of

    • Views: 28
    • Downloads: 6
    [+]

    Leadership analysis of institutional authors

    This work has been carried out with international collaboration, specifically with researchers from: Mexico.

    [+]

    Awards linked to the item

    This research was partially funded by the CONV_RGAA_2022_13 fund of the College of Postgraduates in Agricultural Sciences.
    [+]