Sustainable crop management is being promoted more and more as a technical fix for problems like soil degradation, yield instability, and climate-related agricultural risk. The global shift towards “sustainable practices” is not just about farming; it also affects society, institutions, and politics. This article provides an academically rigorous, accessible examination of sustainable crop management practices—including crop diversification, cover cropping, reduced tillage, integrated nutrient management, and ecological pest control—situated within a critical sociology framework. Utilising Bourdieu’s notions of field and capital, the core–periphery dynamics of world-systems theory, and the concept of institutional isomorphism regarding organisational convergence, this paper elucidates the reasons behind the rapid dissemination of certain sustainability practices while others remain peripheral, disputed, or inconsistently implemented. The article contends that soil health and yield stability are influenced not solely by biophysical processes but also by disparities in access to resources, credibility, technology, markets, and institutional acknowledgement. Sustainable crop management should be viewed as a socio-technical transition, encompassing modifications in agricultural practices and soil ecology, alongside transformations in norms, measurement frameworks, educational pathways, and global supply chain expectations. The paper concludes that substantial advancement necessitates both superior agronomic practices and structural conditions that empower farmers—particularly in resource-limited settings—to translate sustainability principles into consistent yields and enduring soil restoration.