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Suitability of vermicomposting for different varieties of organic waste: a

systematic literature review (2012–2021)

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DOI: 10.1007/s13165-022-00413-2

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Org. Agr.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s13165-022-00413-2
REVIEW
Suitability of vermicomposting for different varieties
of organic waste: a systematic literature review (2012–2021)
Kishor Kumar Maharjan · Prakrit Noppradit ·
Kuaanan Techato
Received: 1 June 2022 / Accepted: 20 October 2022
© The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature B.V. 2022
Abstract The aim of this study was to assess the
suitability of vermicomposting for various types
of organic waste based on earthworm growth and
reproduction as well as nutrient content in final ver-
micompost. The study was also focused on the kinds
of earthworms employed in the research, the coun-
tries where vermicomposting research was done, and
fundamental operating conditions. To fulfill these
aims, we developed research questions and used two
reputable databases, namely, SCOPUS and Science
Direct. We developed inclusion and exclusion crite-
ria and the papers were taken from the years between
2012 and 2021. This study identified the majority of
vermicomposting research related to waste manage-
ment was conducted in Asian countries (55%) where
India has the highest number of paper publications
(35%). Research in the field of vermicomposting
K. K. Maharjan (*) · P. Noppradit · K. Techato
Faculty of Environmental Management, Prince of Songkla
University, Hat Yai, Thailand
e-mail: env.kishor@gmail.com; kishor.maharjan@trc.
tu.edu.np
P. Noppradit
e-mail: prakrit.n@psu.ac.th
K. Techato
e-mail: kuaanan.t@psu.ac.th
K. K. Maharjan
Department of Environmental Science, Tri-Chandra
Multiple Campus, Tribhuvan University, Kathmandu,
Nepal
grew continuously from 2017. Furthermore, Eisenia
fetida is a commonly used species for vermicompost-
ing. The majority of vermicomposting experiments
were conducted on animal waste, followed by sewage
and industrial sludge. According to existing literature,
almost all organic wastes can be used for vermicom-
posting. However, before being used as earthworm
feed, these wastes should be pre-composted and
should mix with secondary waste in proper propor-
tions. Eighty percent of the papers suggested the
importance of pre-composting or treatment before the
actual vermicomposting starts.
Keywords Animal manure · Earthworm ·
Research questions · Systematic literature review ·
Vermicomposting
Introduction
Organic waste accounts for 44 to 46% (by mass) of
the total municipal solid waste generation worldwide
(ISWA 2020). Food and green waste are the major
waste categories of organic solid waste on a global
scale, accounting for 44% of total waste. Another 38%
of waste is dry recyclables such as plastic, paper and
cardboard, metal, and glass (Kaza et al. 2018). The
composition of waste differs significantly depend-
ing on the income level of people. As income levels
grow, the percentage of organic waste in solid waste
reduces. Higher-income countries use more materials
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like paper and plastic in their consumer goods than
low-income countries (Matheson 2022). Apart from
municipal solid waste, there are other waste streams
around the world, such as industrial waste and agri-
cultural waste. These wastes are generated in much
larger quantities than municipal waste. Compared to
municipal solid waste, the generation rate of indus-
trial and agricultural waste is 18 times and 4 times
higher on a global scale (Sharma and Jain 2020).
Agricultural waste especially crop residue burning
and industrial waste dumping in freshwater bodies are
common practices in the world. Crop residue burning
releases large amounts of gaseous and particulate pol-
lutants, particularly during and after harvest, which
frequently worsens pollution at the local and regional
levels (Wang et al. 2013). The direct disposal of
industrial waste including sludge pollutes water pol-
lution and affects aquatic creatures. Another impor-
tant organic waste is animal manure which is mostly
used as organic fertilizer in agricultural lands.
Organic waste is an important raw material in the
preparation of compost and vermicompost. However,
it is not managed in a sustainable way in many coun-
tries. Organic waste is disposed of at a landfill site
along with other kinds of solid waste. This practice
is very common in developing countries. Approxi-
mately 70% of solid waste is disposed into a landfill,
19% is recovered through recycling and composting,
and 11% is treated using modern incineration glob-
ally (Sharma and Jain 2020). The various options
which can be seen in the literature for organic waste
management are composting, vermicomposting, and
anaerobic digestion.
Vermicomposting is popular in many countries
including urban areas. It is simple and environment-
friendly technology where earthworm has a dominant
role in the conversion of organic waste into valuable
vermicompost. Vermicomposting is a technique that
involves earthworms and microorganisms working
together to stabilize organic matter (Adhikary 2012).
Earthworm is considered as mechanical blender and
its biological activities can change in increasing the
exposed surface area of the waste to microorganisms.
Due to increased surface area, the microorganisms
get favorable conditions for further decomposition
(Domínguez 2004).
Vermicomposting is important tool for the organic
agriculture (Crescent 2003). Organic farming
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Org. Agr.
systems can provide very high productivity with
much better nutritional quality while also enhanc-
ing the physical, chemical, and biological qualities
of the soil with the help of bio-fertilizers like ver-
micompost. Because vermicompost is rich in macro
(nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium) and micro-
nutrients (Orozco et al. 1996), application of ver-
micompost significantly increased nutrients in the
soil (Manivannan et al. 2009). Moreover, it has ben-
eficial microorganisms with enzymes and plant hor-
mones (Sinha et al. 2010). Due to such properties,
vermicompost has been used in many countries for
the purpose of organic farming. Asian countries like
India and Nepal have its own vermicompost standard
to make more secure for organic agriculture. In addi-
tion to this, compost standard is prepared by many
countries like Japan, USA, Thailand, Bangladesh, Sri
Lanka, China, India, Nepal, and European countries
(ADB 2012).
Many initiatives and regulations in the form of
government laws have been implemented globally
to improve the practice and the culture of organic
farming. Almost every country in the world is con-
centrating on the generation of organic food products.
According to FiBL and IFOAM reports, there has
been a significant increase in organic-based farm-
lands, and it will continue to expand at higher rates
with a good growth trend. Top ten countries with the
largest areas of organic agricultural land are Aus-
tralia, Argentina, China, Spain, USA, Italy, Uruguay,
India, France, and Germany (FIBL 2019). Global
policy initiatives are prepared in the organic farm-
ing sector such as China, India, Germany, Australia,
Denmark, and North America. China has the greatest
organic cultivated land, followed by India (Dhiman
2020). Government and non-government organiza-
tions have promoted organic agriculture for decades,
resulting in a worldwide expansion of organic farm-
ing (Behera et al. 2012). However, some developing
country like Nepal has the problem of organic farm-
ing practices due to contradictory government law,
insufficient budgets, and inappropriate policies.
There are various studies of vermicomposting
conducted in different countries on different aspects.
However, a systematic review regarding the role of
vermicomposting in waste management is lacking.
Thus, this study is aimed to summarize and record
primary studies conducted from 2012 to 2021 period.
Org. Agr.

This review focused on the use of the reliable source Table 1  Publication documents by years
of research evidence, analyzed, and made conclusion. Year of SCOPUS Science Direct Total number
In general, this study investigated the countries where publication of publica-
vermicomposting research was conducted; earthworm tions
species used for waste management; types of organic
2012 5 4 9
waste (including primary and secondary wastes) used
2013 4 2 8
for vermicomposting; fundamental operating condi-
2014 3 4 7
tions for vermicomposting (pre-composting time,
2015 7 3 10
temperature, moisture, and pH); worm’s suitability in 2016 6 17 23
terms of growth and reproduction and nutrient con- 2017 7 5 12
tent in vermicompost; and journal analysis (in terms 2018 6 10 16
of impact factor/CiteScore and scope). 2019 12 7 18
2020 18 8 27
2021 14 50 64
Methodology Total 82 110 192

A systematic literature review is a process of iden-

tifying, assessing, and interpreting all research find-
ings in order to answer research questions. It entails
several tasks including defining research questions,
selecting studies, extracting required data, synthesiz-
ing data, and describing the outcome.
To keep the review focused, the research questions
were developed. The research questions (RQ) defined
for this study were listed as follows:
Management” and yielded appropriate results as
listed in Table 1. Research in the field of vermicom-
posting grew continuously from 2017. The highest
number of publications was recorded in the year 2021
which had 64 papers.
Then we set inclusion and exclusion criteria to
select relevant articles (Table 2).

RQ 1. In which country and regions have maxi-

Screening process
mum number of studies related to vermicompost-
ing for waste management?
The screening process was conducted according to
RQ 2. Which earthworm species are mostly used
following chart (Fig. 1).
for research purposes?
After selecting inclusion and exclusion criteria, we
RQ 3. What types of organic waste are used (pri-
got 60 research papers (Table 3).
mary and secondary waste) as feeding material for
earthworm?
RQ 4. What are the fundamental operating condi-
tions for vermicomposting (pre-composting, tem-
perature, moisture, and pH control)? Table 2  Inclusion and exclusion criteria
RQ 5. What is the suitability of organic waste in
Inclusion and exclusion Criteria
terms of growth and reproduction of earthworm
and nutrient content in the vermicompost? Inclusion criteria Journal article/research paper
Papers written in English
Papers in open access
To answer each research question, 10 years of Peer review
data (2012–2021) was taken and tracked published Papers related to organic
research results in popular journal database using waste vermicomposting
specific keywords. The search keywords used to (content)
identify relevant literature were “Vermicomposting Exclusion criteria Thesis, book titles
Duplication
AND Waste Management, Earthworm and Waste

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Fig. 1  Outline of the

screening process to select Keywords search
60 papers used in this study
Papers found
192

By Abstract, Content

Papers filtered Papers discarded

64 128

By removal of Duplication

Papers selected for

analysis Papers discarded

60 4

Results and discussion

Table 3  Paper selected for analysis This section tried to answer every research question
Year of SCOPUS Science Direct Total number set in the methodology part, namely, territory/country
publication of publica- where research was carried out, worm species used,
tions types of waste used, and quality of vermicompost.
2012 2 1 3
2013 – 1 1
Countries where vermicomposting research was
2014 – – –
conducted
2015 4 4
2016 5 1 6
There are altogether 17 countries where research on
2017 4 1 5
vermicomposting for waste management was car-
2018 3 1 4
ried out (Table 4). The highest number of papers
2019 8 1 9
were found in India which covered 35%. During
2020 14 1 15
the British era, modern science arrived in India and
2021 9 4 13
newly formed academic institutions began publish-
Total 49 11 60
ing research paper. As a result, many of the scien-
tific journals that are being published in India have

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Org. Agr.

Table 4  List of countries where research papers were recorded co-associated with commercial publishers (Lakho-
Country Research paper % tia 2018). Similarly, research in China is also very
recorded high which ranks 2nd position on the expenditure
of research and development (463 billion dollars in
India 21 35.0
2018). China tried to lead in research and develop-
China 6 10.0
ment in every sector. About 14.1 billion dollars in
Poland 6 10.0
same date was spent by Poland in research (China
Iran 5 8.33
Power 2016).
Mexico 4 6.66
Asia is leading the way in undertaking vermicom-
Malaysia 3 5.0
posting research (55%) (Fig. 2). It was then followed
Brazil 2 3.33
by Africa (14%) and so on.
Uganda 2 3.33
Indonesia 2 3.33
Earthworm species used in research paper
South Africa 2 3.33
Pakistan 1 1.66
From this systematic review, it found that Eisenia
Algeria 1 1.66
fetida was a commonly used earthworm species for
Bolivia 1 1.66
preparation of the vermicompost and organic waste
Chile 1 1.66
management (Table 5). It shared around 78% of the
Ethiopia 1 1.66
total worm species studied. Eudrilus eugeniae belong
Kenya 1 1.66
to second position (10%), Perionyx excavatus (5%),
Namibia 1 1.66
Lumbricus rubellus (3.33%), and equal 1.66% for
Total country (17) 60
both Eisenia andrei and Dendrobaena veneta. Eisenia
fetida was selected by many researchers in their study.
It might be due to its short lifespan, ease of usage and
a rather long history. Commercial publishers have handling, wide temperature tolerance range, accept-
significantly aided the growth of research jour- ance of varied feeding materials, and high manure
nals as a global sector in recent years. Many aca- production capacity (Sahariah et al. 2015; Mago et al.
demic journals that are published in India are now 2021).

Fig. 2  Region-wise study

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Table 5  Earthworm species used in article Carbon-rich waste such as crop residues, garden
Earthworm species Number of Percentage waste, and ash needs to mix with nitrogen-rich waste
papers for proper degradation by microorganisms. Second-
ary wastes used by researchers were animal dung
Eisenia fetida 47 78.33
(cow dung, sheep dung, horse dung), vegetable and
Eudrilus eugeniae 6 10.00
eggshell, rice straw, crop residues, biochar, anaerobic
Perionyx excavatus 3 5.00
digested liquid, cereal straw litter, fruit waste, paper
Lumbricus rubellus 2 3.33
board, saw dust, soil, palm press fiber, tea leaf resi-
Eisenia andrei 1 1.66
dues, fly ash, and food waste (Table 7). Animal dung
Dendrobaena veneta 1 1.66
was used in 33.33% of the total paper analyzed. The
Total number of species = 6 60
highest percent of use of animal dung as secondary
waste might be due to its easy availability and earth-
worm preferences.
Types of organic waste used (including primary and
secondary waste as feeding materials) Fundamental operating conditions for
vermicomposting (pre‑composting duration,
Most of the vermicomposting study was carried out temperature, moisture, and pH)
in animal waste/manure as primary waste (Table 6).
Out of 60 papers, animal manure was used in 13 Most researchers have focused on the control settings
papers (21.66%), 16.66% each paper was related to for vermicomposting. They adjusted pre-composting
sewage sludge/industrial sludge and industrial waste/ time, temperature, moisture, and pH to keep earth-
paper mill waste within 10-year duration. Animal worms in a healthy state. Out of 60 papers, 80% of
waste/manure is a good source of compost mate- the papers suggested the importance of the pre-com-
rial. It is easily available and can be used for feeding posting or treatment before the actual vermicompost-
materials. Sewage sludge/industrial sludge and paper ing starts (Table 8). Pre-composting was done in 14
mill waste are problematic issues all over the world. papers for 14 days (2 weeks), followed by 5 papers for
Thus, these wastes might be taken for experiment on 7 days. Pre-composting of waste can eliminate toxic
whether earthworms could manage them or not. In gasses which are harmful to earthworms (Sohal et al.
addition to these wastes, we found agricultural waste/ 2021; Bhat et al. 2015) and decompose into smaller
crop residues, weeds/plant residues/grasses, kitchen particles to make it more useable for earthworms
waste/food waste/fruit waste, biomedical waste ash, (Rameshwar and Argaw 2016). Air drying of animal
and baby diaper (Table 6) in 60 papers. Secondary waste such as cow dung can reduce unwanted gasses
wastes were almost used by all researchers in order and heat; otherwise, it can kill the earthworm (Wani
to make balance C/N ratio and moisture control. and Mamta 2013).
Most of the papers were kept in settings with a
temperature of around 25 °C and moisture content of
Table 6  Types of organic waste used in paper 60–70% (Table 8). Temperature records show a maxi-
Types of waste Number Percentage mum of 35 °C and a minimum of 15 °C. A similar
of articles adjustment was made to the moisture range, which
was set at 35 to 90%. In a few papers, pH was main-
Animal waste/manure 13 21.66
tained between 5 and 9.
Sewage/industrial sludge 10 16.66
Industrial waste/paper mill waste 10 16.66
Waste suitability in terms of worms’ survival and
Agricultural waste/crop residues 9 15.00
nutrient content in prepared vermicompost
Weeds/plant residues/grass 8 13.33
Kitchen waste/food waste/fruit waste 7 11.66
The suitability of waste for vermicomposting is
Biomedical waste ash 2 3.33
determined by the growth and reproduction of earth-
Baby diaper 1 1.66
worm and nutrient content of the final output, i.e.,
60
vermicompost. The nutrient of vermicompost is

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Table 7  Primary and secondary waste used as feeding materials for earthworm
Types of organic waste Secondary waste Worm species Country References
(primary waste)

Agricultural waste corn cob Vegetable waste and Eisenia fetida Mexico Castillo-González et al.
eggshell (2021)
Sewage sludge Organic waste Eisenia fetida Iran Ghorbani et al. (2021)
Biomedical waste ash Cow dung Eisenia fetida India Sohal et al. (2021)
Different types of organic Cow dung Eisenia fetida India Kapila et al. (2021)
waste (rice straw, grass,
saw dust, wheat straw,
sugarcane bagasse,
orange peel, and neem
leaves)
Animal manure (different Market organic waste, Eisenia fetida Indonesia Mashur et al. (2021)
animal manure) household organic waste
Sheep dung Rice straw Eisenia fetida Indonesia Hidayati et al. (2021)
Paper mill waste Cow dung and straw Eisenia fetida India Ganguly and Chakraborty
(2021)
Wastewater from dairy Cow manure and rice straw Eisenia fetida China Liu et al. (2021)
cattle
Animal manure (cow Crop residues, biochar Eisenia fetida China Raza et al. (2021)
manure, pig manure)
Plant residues (acacia Cow dung Perionyx excavatus India Debnath and Chaudhuri
litter, bamboo leaf litter, (2020)
terrestrial weed/Mikania
micrantha)
Cow manure – Eisenia fetida Iran Molavi et al. (2020)
Paper mill sludge and tea Cow dung Eisenia fetida India Kumar Badhwar et al. (2020)
waste
Market waste Liquid anaerobic digested Eisenia fetida Chile Crutchik et al. (2020)
Orange peels Vegetable waste and Eisenia fetida Mexico De Medina-Salas et al.
eggshells (2020)
Sheep dung Cereal straw litter Dendrobaena veneta Poland Garczyńska et al. (2020a)
Baby diapers Cow dung, activated Eisenia fetida Bolivia Ferronato et al. (2020)
bacteria
Dewatered sludge – Eisenia fetida China Zhang et al. (2020)
Agro-industrial waste cof- – Eisenia fetida Kenya Musyoka et al. (2020)
fee husks (CH), barley
wastes (BW), and kitchen
wastes (KW)
Biomethanation sludge Fruits and vegetable waste Eudrilus eugeniae India Mulla and Pathade (2020)
Grass and newspaper Cattle dung Eisenia fetida Iran Mousavi et al. (2020)
Kitchen waste (boiled Paper board/Owinema Eisenia fetida Poland Garczyńska et al. (2020b)
pasta, bread and potato, biopreparation
apple peelings)
Sludge Saw dust Eisenia fetida Poland Boruszko (2020)
Weed (Ipomoea) Moist jute cloth as bedding Eisenia fetida India Hussain et al. (2020)
Kitchen waste (meat, veg- Soil and salt (refined Eisenia fetida China Wu et al. (2019)
etables, and rice) iodized salt)
Paper mill solid waste Saw dust and cow dung Eisenia fetida India Mohapatra et al. (2019)
Cattle manure – Eudrilus eugeniae Uganda Jjagwe et al. (2019)

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Table 7  (continued)
Types of organic waste Secondary waste Worm species Country References
(primary waste)

Pineapple waste (rinds Vegetable waste (lettuce, Eisenia fetida (California Mexico Castillo-González et al.
crowns and cores) spinach, cabbage, broc- red worm) (2019)
coli, celery, chard) and
eggshells
Palm oil mill effluents Palm press fiber Eudrilus eugeniae Malaysia Rupani et al. (2019)
Food industry sewage Biochar (pyrolysis of waste Eisenia fetida Poland Swiatek et al. (2019)
sludge woodchips)
Organic waste (crop Cattle dung and pig Eisenia fetida China Raza et al. (2019)
residues—wheat straw, manure, biochar
rapeseed residues)
Water-based drilling waste Soil, finely ground manure Eisenia fetida Poland Kujawska and Wojcik-
Oliveira (2019)
Cattle manure High Trichoderma doses Eisenia andrei Brazil Wiethan et al. (2018)
(liquid form)
Distillery sludge waste Tea leaf residues Eisenia fetida India Mahaly et al. (2018)
Sewage sludge with tetracy- – Eisenia fetida China Huang et al. (2018)
cline and fluoroquinolone
resistance genes
Weed (Parthenium leaves) – Eisenia fetida India Hussain et al. (2017)
Agricultural residues Saw dust Eisenia fetida Mexico Sanchez-Rosales et al.
(bovine manure) (2017)
Palm oil mill effluent Palm pressed fiber (PPF) Lumbricus rubellus Malaysia Rupani et al. (2017)
(POME)
Terrestrial weeds (Lantana Cow dung, sand, and gravel Eisenia fetida India Singh and Kumar (2017)
camara and Parthenium
hysterophorus)
Green weed (Salvinia Cattle manure and sawdust Eisenia fetida India Singh and Kalamdhad
natans) (2016)
Khat waste (Catha edulis) Crop residues and animal Eisenia fetida Ethiopia Rameshwar and Argaw
manure (2016)
Lignocellulosic solid waste Cow dung, sheep dung, Perionyx excavatus India Parthasarathi et al. (2016)
cashew leaf litters (CLL) horse dung (different
combinations)
Cow dung and paper waste Fly ash, EM (different Eisenia fetida South Africa Mupambwa et al. (2016)
combination)
Sewage sludge Mown grass, sawdust, Eisenia fetida and Eisenia Poland Sosnecka et al. (2016)
and organic fraction of andrei
municipal wastes
Fruit bunches from palm Cow dung Eudrilus eugeniae Malaysia Lim et al. (2015)
oil mill
Cow manure Food waste Eudrilus eugeniae Uganda Lalander et al. (2015)
Industrial organic waste Farm manure Lumbricus rubellus Pakistan Shah et al. (2015)
(sugarcane bagasse, sug-
arcane pressmud)
Fresh bagasse Cow dung Eisenia fetida India Bhat et al. (2015)
Food waste Vermicompost Eisenia fetida Iran Majlessi et al. (2012)
Organic waste: agricultural Cow dung Eisenia fetida, Eudrilus India Karmakar et al. (2012)
and domestic waste eugeniae, and Perionyx
excavatus

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Table 7  (continued)
Types of organic waste Secondary waste Worm species Country References
(primary waste)

Water hyacinth and paddy Rock phosphate, dolomite Eisenia fetida India Das et al. (2021)
straw and mica, microbial
inoculums
Paper mill waste Cow dung Eisenia fetida India Ganguly and Chakraborty
(2021)
Biomedical waste ash Cow dung Eisenia fetida India Sohal et al. (2021)
Goat manure Vegetable food waste (spin- Eisenia fetida Namibia Katakula et al. (2021)
ach, Irish potato, sweet
potato peels, pumpkin
peels, pineapple, and
lettuce)
Sewage sludge – Eisenia fetida Algeria Belmeskine et al. (2020)
Paper mill waste-primary Cow dung and straw Perionyx excavatus India Ganguly and Chakraborty
and secondary sludge (2019)
Manure-paper mixture Igneous rock phosphate Eisenia fetida South Africa Mupondi et al. (2018)
Crop residue (rice, corn, – Eisenia fetida Iran Aynehband et al. (2017)
wheat, and sugarcane)
Pressmud sludge Cattle dung Eisenia fetida India Bhat et al. (2016)
Garden waste, kitchen Separately used Eisenia fetida India Wani and Mamta (2013)
waste, and cow dung
Cattle manure and sun- Nitrogen-fixing bacteria, Eisenia fetida Brazil Busato et al. (2012)
flower cake rock phosphate, P-solubi-
lizing bacteria

dependent upon the waste types, used of bulking
agents, enriched materials used, and density of earth-
worm. From the review of 60 papers, it was found
that different organic wastes are suitable for ver-
micomposting. In this section, the paper was aimed to
describe and analyzed growth and reproduction and
nutrient content in final vermicompost.
Animal waste/manure
Animal waste is good feeding material for the earth-
worm. It is concluded by a number of researchers in
their studies. Mashur et al. (2021) conducted research
on different animal dung such as cow, horse, goat,
and broiler chicken and found that horse manure pro-
duced the greatest earthworm number and biomass
during vermicomposting. The nutrient in final ver-
micompost is also reported as good quality (Hidayati
et al. 2021). One important finding was obtained by
Molavi et al. (2020) in their study and reported that
there was significant reduction in fecal coliforms
and parasite eggs at the end of the vermicomposting.
Jjagwe et al. (2019) reported interesting results in
their article that 46% of materials used in vermicom-
posting system was converted to vermicompost, 2%
to earthworm, and 52% to the atmosphere. Lalander
et al. (2015) concluded that vermicomposting is
found to be feasible manure management technique
in small-scale urban animal agriculture. The study is
also supported by Wani and Mamta (2013) and con-
cluded that vermicomposting of cow dung is not only
producing nutrient-rich fertilizer but also reducing
waste volume.
Sewage and industrial sludge
Sewage sludge is noxious type of organic waste.
Many researchers conducted experiment and showed
that sewage sludge is good feeding material for the
earthworms. Earthworms were successfully used
for conversion of sewage sludge to nutrient-rich
vermicompost. Vermicomposting accelerates the
breakdown of organic matter, lowers the C/N ratio
and pH, and alters the availability and total content
of heavy metals in the substratum. The study con-
cluded that vermicomposting can be regarded as

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 Table 8  Operating parameters for vermicomposting
Organic waste Duration of pre-composting Duration of Total days Operating parameters (tem- References
process vermicomposting perature, moisture, and pH) for

13
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period vermicomposting

Agricultural waste (corn cob)
Sewage sludge
Biomedical waste Ash
Different types of organic
waste (rice straw, grass, saw
dust, wheat straw, sugarcane
bagasse, orange peel, and neem
leaves)
Animal manure (different animal 21 days
manure)
Sheep dung
Paper mill waste and cow dung
Wastewater from dairy cattle
Animal manure (cow manure,
pig manure)
Plant residues (acacia litter,
bamboo leaf litter, terrestrial
weed/Mikania micrantha)
Cow manure
42 days 49 days 91 Temperature was kept in range Castillo-González et al. (2021)
between 15 and 20 °C and
humidity was regulated by
using clean water in every
third day
14 days 60 days 74 STC-1000 digital temperature Ghorbani et al. (2021)
controller, fan, and heater to
make required temperature
for worms (25 °C and 65%
moisture)
15 days 105 days 120 Moisture (60 and 70%) through- Sohal et al. (2021)
out the period
– 60 days 60 Moisture was maintained by Kapila et al. (2021)
adding water and turning of
waste
40 days 61 0.3% lime was used to maintain Mashur et al. (2021)
pH
Temperature was maintained in
between 18 and 27 °C
14 days and air dried for several 14 days 28 Moisture (between 60 and 70%) Hidayati et al. (2021)
days
Sun-dried 60 days 60 Temperate was kept at 25 °C, Ganguly and Chakraborty (2021)
pH (7.4 to 7.6), and moisture
(60%)
Dairy farm waste water was 60 days 60 Temperature at 20 °C and mois- Liu et al. (2021)
diluted with aseptic water, cow ture at 60–80%
manure was air-dried
– 120 days 120 Moisture: 60–70% Raza et al. (2021)
21 days 45 days 66 Temperature—29–31 °C Debnath and Chaudhuri (2020)
Moisture—50–60%
Cow manure was washed to 72 days 72 Temperature: 23–25 °C Molavi et al. (2020)
minimize ammonia and urea Humidity: 60%
content
Org. Agr.
 Table 8  (continued)
Organic waste
Paper mill sludge and tea waste
Market waste
Orange peels
Sheep dung
Baby diapers
Dewatered sludge
Agro-industrial waste coffee
husks (CH), barley wastes
(BW), and kitchen wastes
(KW)
Biomethanation sludge
Grass and newspaper
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Duration of pre-composting
process
Cow dung was pre-composted
for 14 days and paper mill
sludge and tea waste were
treated with air-dried
No pre-composted
42 days
Dried at the temperature
(105 °C)
30 days old cow dung and 5 days 35 days
left in open air dried
The diapers were opened, and
the plastic part was separated
from the organic fraction
(fecal residues and cellulosic
polymers)
Removal of water
Fresh sludge
14 days
Biomethanation sludge mixed
with partially decomposed
fruits and vegetable waste
30 days for thermal stabiliza-
tion and removal of unwanted
gasses
Duration of Total days Operating parameters (tem- References
Org. Agr.
vermicomposting perature, moisture, and pH) for
period vermicomposting
90 days 104 Moisture: 75–85% Kumar Badhwar et al. (2020)
130 days 130 Moisture (55–60%) Crutchik et al. (2020)
Environmental temperature
(between 7.3 and 23.8 °C)
49 days 91 Kept in dark places at environ- De Medina-Salas et al. (2020)
mental temperature
– Not mentioned Temperature: 20 ± 0.5 °C Garczyńska et al. (2020a)
Humidity: 70%
70 Temperature: above 21 °C Ferronato et al. (2020)
Moisture: 80%
Covered by cardboard to main-
tain humidity, reduce light, and
avoid an attack from external
vectors
60 days 60 15, 20 25 °C were separately Zhang et al. (2020)
maintained
Moisture: 70–80%
70 days 84 days Temperature (20–30 °C) Musyoka et al. (2020)
Moisture (80–90%), cold lime
water was used to regulate pH
(5–9)
56 days 56 Temperature: 25–30 °C Mulla and Pathade (2020)
Moisture: 70–80% (manually
spraying water)
pH: around 7
90 days 120 Room temperature 23 ± 2 °C Mousavi et al. (2020)
Moisture: 60–70% (water
sprinkler)
 Table 8  (continued)
Organic waste
13
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Kitchen waste (boiled pasta,
bread and potato, apple peel-
ings)
Sludge
Weed (Ipomoea)
Kitchen waste (meat, vegetables, No pre-composted
and rice)
Paper mill solid waste
Cattle manure
Pineapple waste (rinds crowns
and cores)
Palm oil mill effluents
Food industry sewage sludge
Organic waste (crop residues—
wheat straw, rapeseed residues)
Water-based drilling waste
Cattle manure
Distillery sludge waste
Sewage sludge with tetracycline
and fluoroquinolone resistance
genes
Weed (Parthenium leaves)
Duration of pre-composting
process
No pre-composted
Sewage sludge is initially thick-
ened in the lagoons
No
14 days
Store under shade for 7 days
to reduce temperature and
ammonia
30 days
5 days (lab method)
Used of dried sewage sludge
15 days
– –
Manure was autoclaved twice at
121 °C in 24-h interval
40 days
Fresh sewage sludge was imme- 80 days
diately pelleted by squeezing it
No pre-composting
Duration of Total days Operating parameters (tem- References
vermicomposting perature, moisture, and pH) for
period vermicomposting
150 days 150 days Under controlled laboratory Garczyńska et al. (2020b)
conditions (20 ± 5 °C) and
constant humidity about 70%
100 mL of tap water was used
for maintenance of moisture of
waste in every 7 days
– – – Boruszko (2020)
40 days 40 Moisture: 65 ± 5% Hussain et al. (2020)
28 days 28 Environment with 22 ± 1 °C and Wu et al. (2019)
65 ± 5% moisture content by
injecting sterile water
30–55 days Moisture: 80% Mohapatra et al. (2019)
84 days 91 Moisture 60–70% Jjagwe et al. (2019)
63 days 93 Every 3 days the substrate was Castillo-Gonzalez et al. (2019)
manually mixed for aeration
10 days (petri plate) 15 Temperature: 25 ± 2 °C Rupani et al. (2019)
56 days 56 Temperature: 19–24 °C Swiatek et al. (2019)
60 days 75 Moisture: 60–70% Raza et al. (2019)
– Kujawska and Wojcik-Oliveira
(2019)
60 days 60 Temperature: 28 °C Wiethan et al. (2018)
Humidity: 60–70%
Absence of light
45 days 85 days Humid and dark place at room Mahaly et al. (2018)
temperature
Moisture: 35–40%
80 Temperature: 18–26 °C Huang et al. (2018)
Moisture was maintained by
sprinkling waster once in every
3 days
– – – Hussain et al. (2017)
Org. Agr.
 Table 8  (continued)
Organic waste Duration of pre-composting Duration of Total days Operating parameters (tem- References
Org. Agr.

process vermicomposting perature, moisture, and pH) for

period vermicomposting

Agricultural residues (bovine Composting and semi-compost- – – Moisture: 75–85% Sánchez-Rosales et al. (2017)
manure) ing
Palm oil mill effluent (POME) 15 days 30 days 45 Temperature: 26 ± 2 °C Rupani et al. (2017)
Moisture: daily sprinkled with
water
Terrestrial weeds (Lantana Left for 3 days 90 days 93 – Singh and Kumar (2017)
camara and Parthenium hys-
terophorus)
Green weed (Salvinia natans) Used of partially degraded cow 45 days 45 Temperature: 25 ± 3 °C Singh and Kalamdhad (2016)
dung as substrate Moisture: 50–60%
Khat waste (Catha edulis) 30 days 60 days 90 Moisture: 60–70% Rameshwar and Argaw (2016)
Lignocellulosic solid waste 7 days 60 days 67 – Parthasarathi et al. (2016)
cashew leaf litters (CLL)
Cow dung and paper waste 7 days 77 days 84 Enclosed room Mupambwa et al. (2016)
Sewage sludge 30 days 35 days 65 – Sosnecka et al. (2016)
Fruit bunches from palm oil mill 7 days (sun-dried) 84 days 91 Temperature: 25 ± 2 °C Lim et al. (2015)
Moisture: 60–80%
Cow manure – 172 days 172 – Lalander et al. (2015)
Industrial organic waste (sug- 21 days 45 days 66 Temperature: 25–35 °C Shah et al. (2015)
arcane bagasse, sugarcane Moisture: 60%
pressmud)
Fresh bagasse 14 days 135 days 149 Moisture: 60–70% Bhat et al. (2015)
Food waste 18 days 49 days 22 Moisture: 65–75% Majlessi et al. (2012)
Organic waste: agricultural and 25 days – 25 – Karmakar et al. (2012)
domestic waste
Water hyacinth and paddy straw 15 days 90 days 105 Temperature: 30–35 °C Das et al. (2021)
Paper mill waste Sun-dried paper mill waste and 60 days 60 Temperature: 25 °C Ganguly and Chakraborty (2021)
cow dung Moisture: 60%
pH: 7.4–7.6
Biomedical waste ash 15 days (mixture of ash and cow 105 days 120 Moisture: 60–70% Sohal et al. (2021)
dung)
Goat manure and food waste 14 days 84 days 98 Room temperature/shady place Katakula et al. (2021)
Moisture: 70–80%
Sewage sludge No – – Temperature: 22 ± 2 °C Belmeskine et al. (2020)

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 Org. Agr.

solid waste treatment option mainly used for small

Ganguly and Chakraborty (2019)

cities (Sosnecka et al. 2016). Earthworms were used
to successfully bio-convert paper mill sludge and tea
waste in combination with cow dung into valuable

Wani and Mamta (2013)

Aynehband et al. (2017)
Mupondi et al. (2018)
manure (Kumar Badhwar et al. 2020). The research

Busato et al. (2012)

concluded that using California earthworm (Eisenia

Bhat et al. (2016)

fetida) in the vermicomposting of municipal sew-
References

age sludge results in good mineralization and humi-

fication with final product potentially being a valu-
able mineral organic fertilizer (Boruszko 2020). Bhat
et al. (2016) showed that major nutrients such as
perature, moisture, and pH) for

nitrogen and phosphorus and sodium concentrations

Operating parameters (tem-

increased from the initial feed mixture of pressmud

Temperature: 25 ± 1 °C

sludge and cattle dung to the final products, whereas

Temperature: 25 °C

organic carbon, C/N ratio, and potassium concen-

Moisture: 60–70%

Moisture: 50–60%
vermicomposting

tration decreased. Except for zinc and manganese,

Moisture: 60%

Moisture: 80%

heavy metals such as copper, chromium, and iron

pH: 7.4–7.6

decreased significantly from the beginning process.

Many researchers showed in their papers that heavy
–

metals were significantly reduced during vermicom-

posting period (Ganguly & Chakraborty 2021; Bhat
et al. 2016; Yuvaraj et al. 2020). We found 5 papers in
Total days

which heavy metals were concerned and in cent per-

150

180

cent papers, it showed reduction of heavy metals dur-

60

63
90

ing vermicomposting. Studies have shown that many

toxic heavy metals (Cd, Cu, Pb, and Zn) are accu-
vermicomposting

mulated inside the earthworm’s body (Nannoni et al.

Duration of

2014; Wang et al. 2017). The reason for this bioac-

135 days

120 days
60 days

56 days
90 days

cumulation is due to presence of heavy metal-binding

period

protein called as metallothionein in the body of earth-

–

worm (Maity et al. 2009).

Duration of pre-composting

Industrial waste/paper mill waste

Industrial waste may contain significant amount plant

Cow dung-air dried

nutrients. According to Rupani et al. (2017), the mix-

ture of palm oil mill effluent and palm pressed fiber
Sun dried

can be used as food material for earthworm. The

15 days
15 days

60 days
process

7 days

results showed that there was considerable increase in

No

nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium content during

Garden waste, kitchen waste, and

vermicomposting. Similar results were also obtained

Pressmud sludge and cattle dung
Crop residue (rice, corn, wheat,
Paper mill waste-primary and

by Lim et al. (2015). Mahaly et al. (2018) concluded

Cattle manure and sunflower

distillery waste along with tea leaf residues can be

Manure-paper mixture

turned into nutrient-rich (major nutrients) vermicom-

Table 8  (continued)

secondary sludge

post. Swiatek et al. (2019) studied vermicomposting

and sugarcane)

in food industry sewage sludge using biochar. The

Organic waste

cow dung

research showed that suitable quantity of biochar

(10% doses) had given good results in terms of worm
cake

population and vermicompost quality.

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Org. Agr.
Agricultural waste/crop residues
Agricultural wastes are the largest component of
organic waste mostly produced during cultivation,
harvesting, and storing food. Various researchers
concluded that vermicomposting is a viable solution
for the degradation of agricultural waste. Castillo-
Gonzalez et al. (2021) reported that corn cob waste
was a good raw material for vermicomposting and
use for soil improver. The nutrient content of the ver-
micompost demonstrated that khat leaf waste is good
substrate for vermicomposting, enabling for more
effective waste management (Rameshwar and Argaw
2016). Bhat et al. (2015) revealed that bagasse waste
can be easily converted to nutrient-rich manure and
so play an important role in the waste management.
They found that 50% of bagasse waste ratio had low-
est mortality and largest population size of earth-
worms. Aynehband et al. (2017) conducted experi-
ment on crop residue vermicomposting and showed
30% of rice residue gave the highest number of
earthworms.
Weeds/plant residues/grass
Weeds and other plants residues can be used as ver-
miculture substrate for varieties of earthworm. The
study conducted by Debnath and Chaudhuri (2020)
found that plant residues (acacia litter, bamboo leaf
litter, terrestrial weed/Mikania micrantha with cow
dung mixture) for Perionyx excavatus are good
feeding material for its growth. Similar result was
obtained by Singh and Kalamdhad (2016) in the mix-
ture of green weed (Salvinia natans) and cow dung
waste (40%) for the maximum growth of earthworm
and all nutrients were significantly increased. Study
conducted by Singh and Kumar (2017) on Parthe-
nium and Lantana with cow dung revealed that con-
centration of total nitrogen, potassium, and phospho-
rus was rich in final vermicompost. Another study
conducted by Hussain et al. (2017) showed that when
Parthenium is vermicomposted, it loses all its harm-
ful and allelopathic properties.
Kitchen waste/food waste/fruit waste
Food waste includes leftovers, vegetable, and fruit
waste produced mostly from residential environ-
ment. Various researchers carried out food waste
vermicomposting successfully. Pineapple waste is
good feeding material for the quality vermicompost
(Castillo-Gonzalez et al. 2019). The result is also
favored by Majlessi et al. (2012) in food waste ver-
micomposting. However, there may be the problem of
salinity which affects the earthworm health. Wu et al.
(2019) made some findings and suggest that high
salinity (> 0.2%) inhibited earthworm growth and had
harmful effect on compost quality. The salinity which
is equal to 0.2% had highest average body weight of
earthworm and maximum nitrate-nitrogen and avail-
able phosphorus. It is recommended that before ver-
micomposting the salinity of kitchen waste should be
reduced to less than 0.2%.
Biomedical waste ash
In this review, we found only 2 papers of same author
which were related to biomedical waste. Even in
hazardous waste, researchers were success to do ver-
micomposting along with other organic waste. Earth-
worm growth was assessed by Sohal et al. (2021) to
test whether biomedical waste is useful or not. They
reported that earthworm growth and fecundity were
found to be best in the vermireactors holding 10–25%
biomedical ash. In another paper, Sohal et al. (2021)
studied physical and chemical quality in the ver-
micompost prepared from biomedical ash along with
cow dung. They found that the physico-chemical
parameter was changed with decreased heavy metals
in final products within allowable levels.
Baby diaper
We found only one paper related to vermicompost-
ing on baby diaper. The research was conducted by
Ferronato et al. (2020). It was reported that biomass
decomposition with cow dung, activated bacteria, and
earthworm took around 60 days on average and more
than 70 days for the treatment of the substrate mixed
only with manure. However, it revealed that diaper
hydrogel did not degrade without cow dung. Moreo-
ver, cow manure mixed with earthworms produced
excellent compost, with increase in the number of
earthworms.
The type of organic waste utilized in vermicom-
posting affects the nutrient content of the finished
products. The three major nutrients—nitrogen, phos-
phorus, and potassium as well as other factors—pH,
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Table 9  Kind of journal with impact factors and CiteScore

Kind of journal Scope Impact factor (IF) Number of downloads
CiteScore (CS)

Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety Environmental safety IF: 6.291 –

(Elsevier) CS: 10.1
Universal Journal of Agricultural Research Agronomy and crop science CS: 0.6 –
(Horizon Research Publishing)
Agriculture (Switzerland) (MDPI) Crop production IF: 2.925 –
Rural management and agricultural devel- CS: 3.1
opment
Waste and Biomass Valorization (Springer Environmental engineering CS: 5.1
Nature) Waste management and disposal
Agricultural Science Digest (Agricultural Environmental sciences CS: 0.1 –
Research Communication Center)
Sustainability (MDPI) Sustainable utilization of resources such IF: 3.251 –
as land, water, atmosphere, and other CS: 5.0
biological resources
International Journal of Environmental Environmental science: pollution CS: 4.5 –
Research and Public Health (MDPI)
Applied Sciences (Switzerland) (MDPI) Biological science and engineering IF: 2.679 –
CS: 3.7
Cleaner Engineering and Technology Circular economy, pollution reduction, CS: 0.9 –
waste elimination
Biodiversitas (Biology Department, Seb- Agricultural and biological sciences: ani- CS: 1.7 –
elas Maret University Surakarta) mal science and zoology, plant science,
molecular biology
Agronomy (MDPI) Organic farming, agroecosystems, and the 3.417 –
environment CS: 3.9
PeerJ (PeerJ Publishing) Agricultural and biological sciences CS: 4.7 –
Nature Environment and Pollution Tech- General environmental science CS: 0.7 –
nology (Technoscience Publications)
Journal of Environmental Health Science Wastewater treatment and reuse, environ- IF: 2.130 268,422 (2021)
and Engineering (Springer Nature) mental biotechnology CS: 3.0
Bioresource Technology (Elsevier) Biomass and feedstock utilization: biocon- IF: 9.642 –
version of agro-industrial residues CS: 17.4
Water Science and Technology (IWA Resource recovery and residuals manage- IF: 1.915 –
Publishing) ment CS: 3.4
Anaerobic digestion, solid and hazardous
waste management
Heliyon (Elsevier) Multidisciplinary: any paper reporting sci- CS: 4.0 –
entifically accurate and valuable research
Journal of Environmental Biology (Triveni Environmental science: environmental CS: 1.3 –
Enterprises) engineering
BioResources (North Carolina University) Publishes original research and reviews IF: 1.614 –
about lignocellulosic materials, chemi- CS: 17.4
cals, and their applications
Global Nest Journal (Global Nest) General environmental science CS: 2 –
Journal of Ecological Engineering Publishes original research and review CS: 2.4 –
articles in the areas of the protection and
restoration of the natural environment
Journal of the Saudi Society of Agricultural General agricultural and biological sci- CS: 11.4 –
Sciences (King Saud University) ences

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Org. Agr.

Table 9  (continued)
Kind of journal Scope Impact factor (IF) Number of downloads
CiteScore (CS)

International Journal of Recycling of Agricultural and biological sciences (mis- CS: 5.1
Organic Waste in Agriculture (Islamic cellaneous)
Azad University) Environmental science: waste management
and disposal
Ornamental Horticulture (Brazilian Agricultural and biological sciences: horti- CS: 1.5 –
Society of Floriculture and Ornamental culture and plant science
Plants)
Pakistan Journal of Zoology (Zoological Agricultural and biological sciences CS: 1.5 –
Society of Pakistan)
Bioscience Journal Agricultural and biological sciences: gen- CS: 0.8 –
eral agricultural and biological sciences
Sustainable Environment Research Waste management and disposal, sustain- CS: 10.2 –
ability, and the environment
Chemosphere (Elsevier) Environmental chemistry, toxicology and IF: 7.086 –
risk assessment, treatment, and remedia- CS: 11.7
tion
Science Progress (Science Reviews Ltd.) Multidisciplinary CS: 1.2 –
Bioresources and Bioprocessing (Springer Sustainability and the environment CS: 5.8 –
Nature)
Journal of Cleaner Production (Elsevier) Sustainable products and services IF: 9.297 –
CS: 15.8
Water, Air, and Soil Pollution (Springer Environmental engineering, pollution CS: 3.8 –
Nature)
Chilean Journal of Agricultural Research Agricultural and biological sciences: ani- CS: 3.1 –
mal science and zoology, agronomy, and
crop science
3 Biotech (Springer Nature) Biotechnology CS: 4.3 –
Science of the Total Environment (Elsevier) Environmental impacts of waste or waste- IF: 7.963 –
water treatment CS: 14.1
Ecological Questions (Nicolaus Coperni- Environmental science: ecology CS: 1.9 –
cus University)
Waste Management (Elsevier) Waste minimization; recycling and reuse IF: 7.145 –
CS: 13.5
International Journal of Environmen- Solid and hazardous waste management IF: 2.860 (2020) 744,410 (2021)
tal Science and Technology (Springer CS: 5.6
Nature)
SpringerPlus (Springer Nature) Multidisciplinary CS: 3.4 –
International Journal of Environment Water and municipal/agricultural/industrial CS: 0.9 –
and Waste Management (Inderscience wastewater and waste treatment
Publishers) Pollution prevention, clean technologies,
conservation/recycling/reuse
Revista Brasileira de Engenharia Agricola Environmental engineering CS: 2.1 –
e Ambiental
WIT Transactions on Ecology and the Environmental science CS: 0.8 –
Environment (WIT Press)
Spanish Journal of Agricultural Research Agronomy and crop science CS: 1.9 –
Iranian Journal of Environmental Health Waste management and disposal NA –
Science and Engineering (Tehran Univer-
sity of Medical Sciences)
E-Journal of Chemistry (Hindawi) Chemistry: general chemistry NA –

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 Org. Agr.

Table 9  (continued)
Kind of journal Scope Impact factor (IF) Number of downloads
CiteScore (CS)

Journal of Urban and Environmental Environmental science: environmental CS: 1.2 –

Engineering engineering
Resources, Conservation and Recycling Improved recovery and reuse of materials IF: 10.204 –
(Elsevier) and energy from domestic, commercial, CS: 17.9
or industrial waste streams
International Journal of Engineering and Engineering: general engineering NA –
Advanced Technology Environmental science: environmental
engineering
Journal of Integrative Agriculture Agro-ecosystem and environment IF: 2.848 –
CS: 5.6
Environmental Challenges Waste management CS: 0.9 –
Energy Procedia Field of energy science, technology, and CS: 4.4 –
engineering
Journal of Environmental Management Management and valorization of waste IF: 6.789 –
CS: 11.4
Saudi Journal of Biological Sciences Biology, ecology, and ecosystems IF: 4.219 –
CS: 5.0
Scientific African Agriculture and food security CS: 2.4 –
Conservation and sustainability studies
Current Research in Environmental Sus- Allows for a flexible integration of natural IF: 6.984 –
tainability sciences with the social sciences, human- CS: 11.9
ities, and engineering disciplines
Journal of the Saudi Society of Agricultural Management of soil CS: 11.4 –
Sciences
Biotechnology Reports Environmental biotechnology CS: 8.0 –
Case Studies in Chemical and Environmen- Resource recovery CS: 4.5 –
tal Engineering
Energy Biomass and bioenergy IF: 7.147 –
CS: 13.4
Design Studies Including engineering and product design IF: 3.09 –
CS: 6.7
Agricultural System Agroecology and the sustainable intensifi- IF: 5.370 –
cation of agriculture
Soil Biology & Biochemistry Publishes scientific research articles of IF: 7.609 –
international significance which describe
and explain fundamental biological
and biochemical features and processes
occurring in soil systems
Aquacultural Engineering Engineering and design of aquaculture IF: 3.281
facilities CS: 5.4
Engineering-based research studies

electrical conductivity, organic carbon, and C/N ratio
during vermicomposting process were the main sub-
jects of this review. We observed less or more similar
findings in 60 papers that were thoroughly reviewed.
Nitrogen and phosphorus were increased in final
vermicompost which was documented in 100% of
papers. Similarly, 90% of the papers revealed a rise
in potassium, while 100% of the papers observed
decreases in organic carbon, C/N ratio, and heavy
metals.

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Org. Agr.
Kind of journal and their scopes, impact factors/
CiteScore analysis
Each journal has its own aim and scope. A journal’s
aim is the objective or purpose of what the journal
is trying to accomplish and scope is how the journal
will accomplish this. The scope of each journal which
is relevant to vermicomposting was listed in Table 9.
Journals are normally evaluated using citation
matrices. Journal impact factor and CiteScore are
most important based indicators. The present review
articles listed all journals where paper related to ver-
micomposting was published (Table 9) and impact
factors and CiteScore were also analyzed. The high
impact factor (10.204) and high CiteScore (17.9)
were found in journal of Resources, Conservation
and Recycling which is published by Elsevier. The
second high impact factor and CiteScore journal was
Bioresource Technology which was 9.642 and 17.4,
respectively.
Conclusion
The study reviewed the suitability of organic waste
in terms of growth and reproduction of earthworms
and fundamental operating conditions of vermicom-
posting. Earthworms were successfully used for the
conversion of different kinds of organic waste. Pre-
composting is essential for converting organic waste
into nutrient-rich vermicompost. In order to keep
earthworm in a healthy state, moisture, temperature,
and pH should be maintained during vermicompost-
ing period. High salinity, presence of toxic chemicals,
a large amount of moisture, and wide C/N ratio in
primary waste are influencing factors that affect the
growth and reproduction of earthworms. Mixing of
secondary waste is necessary for balancing C/N ratio
and moisture. The practice and culture of organic
agriculture have been improved through the imple-
mentation of numerous initiatives and rules in the
form of government laws. Almost every nation in the
world is focusing on producing organic food items.
Further research needs to focus on fresh organic
wastes directly used as feeding materials which are
produced at household levels. It could help urban
residents to encourage vermicomposting without
pre-composting.
Acknowledgements This research was supported by Gradu-
ate School, Prince of Songkla University, Thailand, for which
the authors highly acknowledge. Authors are grateful to Prince
of Songkla University for necessary library facilities.
Author contribution All authors had contributed to the
study. The contributions were as follows:
Kishor Kumar Maharjan: conceptualization, methodology,
writing—original draft, data curation, formal analysis. Prakrit
Noppradit: review and editing, supervision. Kuaanan Techato:
review and editing, supervision. All authors read and approved
the final manuscript.
Funding Financial support was received from Graduate
School, Prince of Songkla University, Thailand.
Declarations
Ethical approval Not applicable.
Consent to participate Not applicable.
Competing interests The authors declare no competing inter-
ests.
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