Stopping pests without pollution
During the green revolution, pesticides were considered a necessary part of crop intensification. A number of initiatives were established to make such pesticides affordable to farmers. Pesticide use was also encouraged through loan packages and extension messages, often resulting in their misuse or overuse.
But such methods of plant protection have proven to be increasingly unsustainable due to rising costs, the development of pest resistance and the harmful effects of pesticides on human health and the environment. Responding to these problems, FAO began advocating Integrated Pest Management as the preferred pest control strategy in the mid-1960s.
Integrated Pest Management is the careful integration of several pest control techniques that discourage the development of pest populations and keep pesticide use to levels that are economically justified and safe for human health and the environment. IPM also emphasizes the growth of a healthy crop with the least possible disruption of agro-ecosystems, thereby encouraging natural pest control mechanisms.
Related links
- Article: The ticking time bomb: toxic pesticide waste dumps
- Article: Obsolete pesticides threaten communities in Ethiopia
- Preliminary list of countries with known obsolete pesticide stocks
- FAO's Pesticide Management project: Prevention and Disposal of Obsolete Pesticides
- FAO's Integrated Pest Management
- News & Highlights archive
