The Importance of Pesticides

The Worldwide Importance of Pesticides for Crop Production

Leonard P. Gianessi

CropLife Foundation

Tropical Export Crops

Bananas, cocoa, coffee, tea, rubber Perennial trees/bushes that cannot

survive freezes Diseases, insects, and weeds flourish in

the tropics Without pesticides, production would

decline significantly

Bananas

34 billion pounds exported annually

Most popular fruit in the world

Sigatoka fungal germ tube penetrating opening in banana leaf

Sigatoka-infected banana plants

Bananas: Sigatoka Disease

Present in all banana growing countries In 1934, destroyed 22,000 acres of

bananas in Central America Fungicide treatments began in 1936

Treated

Untreated

Banana Export Plantations: Today

Fungicides are applied 25‒35 times annually

Coffee

Americans drink 330 million cups a day

4 billion coffee trees in Brazil

Coffee Trees

Coffee Rust

Fungal spores penetrate coffee leaves

Coffee Rust

Destroyed Ceylon’s coffee plantations in 1860s (Sri Lanka)

Coffee production increased in Latin America (rust not present)

Coffee Rust: Today

1970: Coffee rust detected in Brazil

Spread throughout Latin America

Fungicides are sprayed 6-9 times per season

Pesticide Use Markets

Highly developed (>90% acres treated) US, Europe, Japan, Australia, Canada

Developing China, India

Not Developing (<5% acres treated) Sub-Saharan Africa

Pesticide Use Driver: Developed Countries

Consumer demand for picture-perfect produce

Consumers have zero tolerance for wormy apples

U.S. apples have been sprayed with insecticides for over 100 years

Cherry Fruit Fly

Cherry Fruit Fly Larvae

New Zealand: Kiwifruit

New Zealand accounts for 33% of world’s trade in kiwi

500 million pounds exported annually

Brownheaded Leafroller Caterpillar

Found only in New Zealand

Present in all kiwifruit regions

Growers advised to apply insecticides

Leafroller Damage to Kiwifruit

In untreated orchards, >50% of fruit can be damaged

Completely unacceptable for export markets

California: Avocados

380 million pounds $6000/acre All sold fresh

Avocado Thrip

First noted in California in 1996

Feeds on surface

Avocado Thrip: Fruit Scarring

40% Reduction in Value (- $2400/A)

Supermarket Shopping Survey

Two-thirds of respondents were willing to pay 5 ‒ 10% higher prices for certified pesticide-free produce, yet were unwilling to accept any cosmetic defects or insect damage.

ERS, USDA, 1990

Herbicide Use Driver: Developed Countries

Shortages of workers to weed fields starting around the 1950s-60s

Herbicides greatly reduced the need for weeding by hand

California: Weeding Vegetable Crops 1940s ‒ 1960s

Thousands of legal temporary workers from Mexico in the Bracero (Strong Arm) Program

Millions of people weeded U.S. cotton fields into the 1950s

Hand Weeding

Decline in Hand Weeding 1950s - 1960s

Millions of Workers Left Southern States for Urban Factory Jobs

The Bracero program ended in 1964

Hand Weeding Was Replaced with Herbicides

Japanese Rice Weeding: 1950s

500 Hand Weeding Hours/Ha : 1 Billion Hours Total

Herbicide Treated Rice: Japan

Untreated Treated

2 herbicide treatments give season-long weed control

Japan: Weed Control in Rice

Herbicides replace the need for 1.89 million people weeding every day for 60 days in the summer all over Japan

Matsunaka, 2001

EU Rice

Risotto Milanese Paella

90% Self sufficient in production 400,000 hectares

Le Mondine

Le Mondine Weeding

Le Mondine

Left Farmwork for Factory Jobs

EU Rice: Today

Two herbicide applications per hectare replace hundreds of hours of hand weeding.

Weed Control Research: EU

Help is on the Way!

Weed Control Research: EU

Pesticide Use Drivers: Developed Countries

Need to produce more food for growing populations

Pesticides have effectively controlled pests leading to yield increases

U.S. Population, 1900 - 2000

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

350

1900 1910 1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000

Millions

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

1910 1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010

1950 = 100

U.S. Farm Output

U.S. Aggregate Farm Input Use

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

350

400

450

500

550

1910 1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010

1950 = 100 Land

Labor

Machinery

U.S. Aggregate Farm Input Use

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

350

400

450

500

550

1910 1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010

1950 = 100Land

Labor

Machinery

Chemicals

0

5000

10000

15000

20000

25000

30000

35000

40000

45000

1900 1920 1940 1960 1980 2000

Lbs/ Acre

Potato Yield: US

Synthetic chemical pesticides introduced

U.S. Rice: Weeds Not Well Controlled Before Herbicides

Hand Weeders Not Used

Untreated HerbicideTreated

U.S. Rice Yields

0

2000

4000

6000

1899 1914 1929 1944 1959 1974 1989

Lbs./ Acre

Herbicides Introduced

Herbicide Adoption Complete

Herbicides

Contributed directly to improved yields due to increased efficacy

Facilitated the adoption of other yield-increasing practices

Herbicide Effectiveness Continuously Improved 1950s-Today

U.S. Corn Grain Yield

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

160

180

1865 1875 1885 1895 1905 1915 1925 1935 1945 1955 1965 1975 1985 1995 2005

BU/Acre

Hybrids introduced

Fertilizers Introduced

2,4-D Introduced

Atrazine Introduced

Alachlor/Metolachlor Introduced

Post-Emergence Grass Herbicides Introduced

Roundup Ready Varieties Introduced

Pesticides are used widely in agriculture in the United States. Their application has improved crop yields and increased the quantity of fresh fruits and vegetables in the diet, thereby contributing to improvements in public health.

NAS, 1993

Canada Wheat Yields

0

1

2

3

1910 1935 1960 1985 2010

MT/Ha

Herbicides Introduced

Grass Control Herbicides Introduced

Australian Grain Belt

Tillage: Australia

Dries out the soil and delays planting

Australian Wheat Yield1930-2010 (Trendlines)

T/Ha

Herbicides introduced

10% No-till

78% No-till

44% No-till

0

0.5

1

1.5

2

1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010

44% No-Till

Herbicides Introduced

10% No-Till

78% No-Till

Japanese Rice

Japan is self-sufficient in rice

Average person eats 5 kg of rice/month

Japanese Rice

Famines due to rice blast

1695, 1783, 1833‒1837

Last major rice blast Outbreak : 1953

Fungicides have prevented outbreaks since then

Rice blast

Monument to fungicidal rice blast control in Nankoku, Japan

Norway

5 million people Short growing season Imports 50% of food

supply Pesticides used on

>90% of crop acres

Norwegian Government Questions

What if food imports are cut off? Could a basic diet support the

Norwegian population?

Norwegian Government Questions

What if food imports are cut off? Could a basic diet support the

Norwegian population? Yes – with pesticides

Norwegian Government Questions

What if food imports are cut off? Could a basic diet support the

Norwegian population? Yes – with pesticides Without pesticides – 20% of the population

could not be fed

Pesticide Use Drivers: Developing Markets

Shortages of workers to hand weed fields

Need to produce more food for growing population

China Weed/Crop Status: 1980s

43 million hectares heavily infested 17.5 million tons of grain lost

Weedy maize field in China

Hand Weeding in China

Millions of Farm Workers are Moving to Urban Areas

Herbicide Use: China

Million Hectares

China Wheat (#1 in World)

Wheat losses due to rust (million tonnes)

1950 – 6.0 1964 – 3.2 1990 – 1.8 2002 – 1.3

Now: Treat 6 million hectares with fungicides

Wheat rust

Crop Yields : China

0

2

4

6

8

1978 1984 1990 1996 2002 2008

Rice Wheat Maize

Ton/Ha

India’s Economy

8% annual growth in GDP 500 million skilled laborers need to

be trained by 2022

Rice in India

Hand weeding

India: Soybeans

Herbicide treated plot Untreated plot

India: Crop Herbicide Market

217

416

0

100

200

300

400

500

2005 2010

MillionUS$

Phillips McDougal

Brazil: Soybean Production

0

15

30

45

60

75

1952 1962 1972 1982 1992 2002

MillionTons

Soybean Rust Pustules

Brazil: First appeared 2001

By 2003: Spread to entire country

Yield losses up to 75%

Brazil: Spraying Soybeans

Fungicides increase yields by 43%

Brazil: Soybean Fungicide Market

25

200

600 600

800

0

200

400

600

800

1000

2001 2003 2005 2007 2009

MillionUS$

Sub-Saharan Africa

43 Countries 700 Million People 180 Million Farms

African Yields (Tons/hectare)

Experimental Plots

Average Farmer

Maize

8

1-2

Rice

4

1

Optimal Yields on Experimental Plots

Plant at Right Time

Weed at Right Time

Fertilize at Right Time

Hand Weeding is the Predominant Weed Control Practice in Sub-Saharan Africa

50-70% of the labor in crop production is spent weeding

Constraints on Timely Hand Weeding

Women can be too tired or sick (malaria)

Fields can be muddy Competing time

demands: child care Pregnancy

In Africa, yield losses due to weeds range from 20% to total crop failure.

The majority of farmers in Africa identify weeding as the major constraint in their farming systems.

The Spraying of Chemical Herbicides is an Alternative to Hand Weeding

Herbicide Experiment: Kenya

Weedy Herbicide Treated

Maize Yields +53%

Bean Yields +94%

Herbicide Use: Smallholder Farms

1-5% use herbicides Lack of training of farmers Lack of training of Extension Service

workers Lack of spray services

Herbicide Use: Lack of Interest

Weeds are seen as “women’s work” Governments don’t take seriously International development agencies are

reluctant to support pesticide strategies

Regional Crop Pesticide Markets

Phillips McDougal

Regional Crop Pesticide Markets

Phillips McDougal

Regional Crop Pesticide Markets

Phillips McDougal

Regional Crop Pesticide Markets

Phillips McDougal

Cereal Yields by Region

0

1

2

3

4

1960 1970 1980 1990 2000

MT/Ha

LatinAmerica

Asia

Africa

FAO

Conclusions

Pesticide use increases crop production Freeing labor from the drudgery of

hand weeding is central to economic growth

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