Work

The development, regulation and use of biopesticides for integrated pest management

Year: 2011

Type: review

Abstract: Over the past 50 years, crop protection has relied heavily on synthetic chemical pesticides, but their availability is now declining as a result of new legislation and the evolution of resistance in pest populations. Therefore, alternative pest management tactics are needed. Biopesticides are pest management agents based on living micro-organisms or natural products. They have proven potential for pest management and they are being used across the world. However, they are regulated by systems designed originally for chemical pesticides that have created market entry barriers by imposing burdensome costs on the biopesticide industry. There are also significant technical barriers to making biopesticides more effective. In the European Union, a greater emphasis on Integrated Pest Management (IPM) as part of agricultural policy may lead to innovations in the way that biopesticides are regulated. There are also new opportunities for developing biopesticides in IPM by combining ecological science with post-genomics technologies. The new biopesticide products that will result from this research will bring with them new regulatory and economic challenges that must be addressed through joint working between social and natural scientists, policy makers and industry.

Source: Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences

DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2010.0390

Authors: David Chandler, Alastair S. Bailey, G. Mark Tatchell, Gill Davidson, Justin Greaves, Wyn P. Grant

Institutions: University of Warwick, University of Kent

Language: English

Topic: Agricultural safety and regulations

Subfield: Food Science

Field: Agricultural and Biological Sciences

Domain: Life Sciences

SDG: Zero hunger

Open Access status: green