Nexus of Urbanization, Land Degradation, and Agricultural Sustainability: A Global Bibliometric Review

Abstract

Rapid urban expansion has become a global concern that increasingly encroaches on agricultural land and threatens food security, environmental sustainability, and rural livelihoods. This study offers a comprehensive bibliometric review of global research at the crossroads of urbanization, agricultural land degradation, and food security. We analyzed 585 peer‐reviewed documents from the Scopus database, which is based on the R‐based Bibliometrix package. The Results show that scientific interest has grown notably, especially since the implementation of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), with key themes including land use change, urban sprawl, and agricultural land degradation. Despite substantial global growth in publication output and international collaboration, research remains highly fragmented and geographically biased, with contributions primarily from China and the United States. A few studies directly link urban development with agricultural sustainability or explore how governance frameworks address land‐use trade‐offs. Additionally, emerging thematic clusters highlight new or growing research areas around topics such as food security, urban sprawl, climate smart agriculture, and land fragmentation. This study identifies critical research gaps, particularly the lack of integrated approaches linking urban development with agricultural sustainability and governance frameworks. These findings provide valuable insights for researchers and policymakers to develop strategies to address the challenges of urban expansion.