Mapping Sweet Potato Global Research for Sustainable Food Systems: A Bibliometric Perspective

TL;DR

This paper maps global sweet potato research, showing how it connects to sustainability and food innovation.

Contribution

It provides a novel bibliometric analysis linking sweet potato's biochemistry to sustainability innovation.

Findings

Sweet potato research is growing rapidly, connecting phytochemistry to health and sustainability.

Biology, Chemistry, and Food Science are the most interconnected research areas.

Collaboration networks are fragmented, with high-income countries dominating citations.

Abstract

Sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas L.) has become a relevant crop in global research due to its remarkable resilience to abiotic stress, richness in bioactive compounds, nutritional relevance, and growing importance within sustainability and circular economy frameworks. This study conducted a comprehensive bibliometric analysis of scientific production indexed in Web of Science, Scopus, and PubMed, mapping how research links the crop’s biochemical properties with sustainability-oriented innovation. Literature on bioactive compounds, food waste management, circular economy strategies, and by-product valorization was examined through keyword co-occurrence, authorship networks, citation patterns, and thematic clustering. Results reveal a rapidly expanding research landscape over the past decade, with strong connections between phytochemical composition, health benefits, sustainable cultivation, and industrial applications. Biology, Chemistry, and Food Science emerged as the most interconnected areas. Collaboration networks remain fragmented, and high-income countries achieve disproportionate citation impact, underscoring structural inequalities. Theoretically, this study contributes to understanding how sweet potato research consolidates as a multidisciplinary field aligned with global sustainability goals. Practically, it highlights opportunities to strengthen equitable international collaboration, advance circular economy approaches, and integrate biotechnology with environmental sustainability to support more resilient food systems.

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