Biopesticides: Nature's Pest Control
Synthetic chemical pesticides have been traditionally used in order to help feed the growing population. However, using these conventional pesticides causes controversy because of concerns about toxicity and pests’ ability to develop resistance.
Biopesticides provide an alternative.
Biopesticides are “certain types of pesticides derived from such natural materials as animals, plants, bacteria, and certain minerals” (EPA). Biopesticides often consist of living microorganisms. They provide several distinct benefits in that they are inherently less toxic than conventional pesticides and they generally only impact the target organism. Conventional pesticides often affect neighboring birds and insects. Learn more about the benefits of biopesticides at: http://www.biopesticideindustryalliance.org/whitepapers/.
What Are Biopesticides?
A farmer sprays conventional pesticides on his crops to prevent pests from destroying the crop (Citation 1)
There are three primary categories of biopesticides.
· Microbial pesticides are made up of microorganisms. These microorganisms can be either alive, dead, naturally occurring, or genetically engineered. Bacillus thuringiensis is a frequently used microbial biopesticide that kills insect larvae.
· Biochemical pesticides are naturally occurring, nontoxic substances used to control pests. They differ from conventional pesticides in that they are safe and not synthetically produced. Conventional pesticides generally kill the pest directly. Biochemical pesticides repel insects or kill pests with methods such as starvation,
suffocation, or disrupting their mating.
· Plant-Incorporated-Protectants (PIPs) are substances produced by plants from added genetic material providing a built-in pest control. Genes from bacillus thuringiensis are frequently used to create PIPs.
Some of the earliest known biopesticides used were plant extracts. In the 1600s, nicotine was used to control plum beetles. Some of the earliest recorded biopesticide research was done in 1835 by Italian Agostine Bassi, who noted that a fungus could cause disease in silkworms. In 1901, Japanese Shigitane Ishitawa isolated Bacillus thuringiensis from a silkworm. In 1911, German Ernst Berliner also found it on a moth.
Bacillus thuringiensis (Citation 2)
Agostine Bassi (Citation 3)
How Bt works (Citation 27)
Bacillus thuringiensis, or Bt, was first used as a biopesticide in the 1920s in France. American farmers began to use Bt in the 1950’s. Biopesticide research and production became a low priority, however, as synthetic chemical pesticides became widespread. In recent years, a resurgence in research in the area of biopesticides has occurred in fear of the potential dangers of conventional pesticides. Since 1995, over 100 biopesticides have been registered with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Currently, biopesticides are becoming a higher priority as people become concerned with the toxicity of conventional pesticides. Also, with the growing popularity of organic foods, farmers look towards biopesticides as a way to meet the organic standard while also managing pests effectively. Researchers studying biopesticides hope that they can supply a safe and nontoxic means of providing food for the growing population.
Over 100 biopesticides have been registered with the EPA. (Citation 26)
Biopesticides are organic! (Citation 11.5)