Plagiarism Policy

CULTIVATE : Journal Of Agriculture Science is committed to maintaining originality, academic integrity, and responsible scholarly communication. Plagiarism, data fabrication, falsification, and other forms of research misconduct are not permitted.

1. Definition of Plagiarism

Plagiarism includes, but is not limited to:

  1. Copying text, ideas, data, images, or other intellectual work without appropriate acknowledgment.

  2. Presenting another person's research, analysis, or findings as one's own.

  3. Paraphrasing source material without proper citation.

  4. Reusing substantial portions of previously published work without appropriate disclosure or citation.

  5. Submitting manuscripts containing unattributed material obtained from other sources.

2. Similarity Screening and Threshold

All submitted manuscripts may be screened using plagiarism-detection or text-similarity software before proceeding to the peer-review process.

CULTIVATE : Journal Of Agriculture Science establishes a maximum overall similarity index of 30% for submitted manuscripts. Manuscripts with a similarity index exceeding 30% may be returned to the authors for revision or rejected, depending on the nature and extent of the similarities identified.

The similarity index is used as an initial screening indicator and does not, by itself, establish whether plagiarism has occurred. Editors will assess the similarity report by examining the sources, context, and distribution of matching text, including quotations, references, standard methodological expressions, and other legitimate similarities.

Meeting the 30% threshold does not automatically guarantee acceptance or establish that a manuscript is free from plagiarism. A manuscript with a similarity index below 30% may still be rejected if substantial plagiarism or other ethical violations are identified.

3. Editorial Action

When potential plagiarism or inappropriate text reuse is identified, CULTIVATE may take one or more of the following actions:

  • Request an explanation or clarification from the authors.

  • Return the manuscript for revision and proper attribution.

  • Reject the manuscript if the similarity exceeds the journal's threshold or if serious ethical concerns are identified.

  • Refer serious cases to the relevant institution or organization, where appropriate.

  • Issue a correction, expression of concern, or retraction for a published article when warranted.

The action taken will depend on the seriousness of the concern, the available evidence, and the journal's publication ethics procedures.

4. Author Responsibility

Authors are responsible for ensuring that their manuscripts are original, properly cited, and compliant with the journal's similarity requirements. All sources must be acknowledged accurately, and permissions for copyrighted material must be obtained when required.

Authors may be asked to revise passages that are excessively similar to existing publications, even when the similarity index is within the permitted threshold.

5. Use of Generative Artificial Intelligence

The use of generative artificial intelligence does not exempt authors from their responsibilities regarding originality, accuracy, proper citation, and research ethics. AI-generated content must not be used to fabricate data, evidence, references, or research findings.

Authors remain fully accountable for the content, integrity, and originality of their submitted manuscripts.

6. Final Editorial Decision

The editorial team reserves the right to determine whether a manuscript satisfies CULTIVATE's originality and publication ethics requirements. The final decision will be based on the similarity report, editorial assessment, and applicable publication ethics standards rather than the similarity percentage alone.