Circular Bioeconomy and Rural Ecosystems: A Systematic Review of Collaborative Innovation for Sustainable Agroindustry in Ecuador

The Ecuadorian agroindustrial sector continues to face persistent structural challenges, largely due to the predominance of linear production models characterized by intensive resource use, low waste recovery, and institutional fragmentation. This systematic review explores the potential of circular bioeconomy principles to support sustainable transformations in rural and agroindustrial ecosystems. A comprehensive literature search was conducted across Scopus, Web of Science, SciELO, and Google Scholar for the period 2000–2024, using Boolean operators and multilingual keywords. Eligibility criteria included peer-reviewed articles and technical documents addressing circular practices in rural or agro-industrial contexts within developing countries. From 145 identified records, 25 duplicates were removed and 84 studies were selected for full-text analysis and thematic synthesis. The findings reveal the emergence of circular initiatives in Ecuador’s coastal region—particularly in the banana, cocoa, and oil palm value chains—focusing on waste valorization, resource reuse, and collaborative innovation. These practices remain fragmented and face significant barriers, such as financial limitations, infrastructural gaps, and weak territorial governance. Nonetheless, industrial symbiosis, regenerative design, and adaptive circular ecosystems show strong potential to promote environmental sustainability, economic diversification, and social inclusion. The review was conducted in accordance with PRISMA 2020 guidelines. The review protocol was not registered.