Bibliometrics of the nexus between food security and carbon emissions: hotspots and trends

With the growth of global food demand, agricultural carbon emissions caused by agricultural production have become a major challenge in controlling global warming. However, a systematic and visual literature review of food security and carbon emissions (FSCE) is still lacking, and there is a lack of exploration on the balanced path between ensuring food security and realizing carbon emission reduction. Based on 872 articles related to FSCE in the Web of Science (WOS) core database, this paper used CiteSpace and VOSviewer bibliometric software to analyze the relevant research focus and trends. This study found that developed countries dominated the research in this field, and the quantity, quality, and intensity of their authors, institutions, and cooperation among countries are higher than those of developing countries. Although the intensity of interdisciplinary cooperation has increased, it remains at a low level. Since 2007, the number of papers published in this field has increased significantly, and the research perspectives have diversified. Moreover, the research theme continues to expand with the core of “food security,” involving the impact of climate change, crop production and food security, soil carbon sequestration, and farmers’ livelihood sustainability. In addition, food production, food transportation, and food loss reduction are key paths that need to be balanced to ensure global food security and realize carbon emission reduction, and how to promote “economic growth” under the constraints of FSCE will be a future research hotspot.