worldwide importance of pesticides

7/31/2019 Worldwide Importance of Pesticides

1/90

The Worldwide Importance of

Pesticides for Crop Production

Leonard P. Gianessi

CropLife Foundation


2/90

Tropical Export Crops Bananas, cocoa, coffee, tea, rubber

Perennial trees/bushes that cannotsurvive freezes

Diseases, insects, and weeds flourish in

the tropics

Without pesticides, production woulddecline significantly


3/90

Bananas 34 billion pounds

exported annually

Most popular fruit in

the world


4/90

Sigatoka fungal

germ tubepenetrating

opening in

banana leaf


5/90

Sigatoka-infected banana plants


6/90

Bananas: Sigatoka Disease Present in all banana growing countries

In 1934, destroyed 22,000 acres ofbananas in Central America

Fungicide treatments began in 1936

Treated

Untreated


7/90

Banana Export Plantations:

Today

Fungicides are applied 2535 times annually


8/90

Coffee

Americans drink 330 million cups a day

Average consumer drinks 3 cups a day


9/904 billion coffee trees in Brazil

Coffee Trees


10/90


11/90

Coffee Rust Destroyed Ceylons coffee

plantations in 1860s

(Sri Lanka)

Coffee production increased

in Latin America (rust not

present)


12/90

Coffee Rust: Today 1970: Coffee rust detected in

Brazil Spread throughout Latin

America

Fungicides used to prevent rustfrom destroying coffee trees


13/90

Pesticide Use Markets Highly developed (>90% acres treated)

US, Europe, Japan, Australia, Canada

Developing

China, India

Not Developing (


14/90

Pesticide Use Driver:

Developed Countries Consumer demand for picture-perfect

produce


15/90

Consumers have

zero tolerance for

wormy apples


16/90

U.S. apples have been sprayed with insecticides for

over 100 years


17/90

Cherry Fruit Fly


18/90

Cherry Fruit Fly Larvae


19/90

New Zealand: Kiwifruit New Zealand accounts

for 33% of worlds

trade in kiwi

500 million pounds

exported annually


20/90

Brownheaded Leafroller

Caterpillar

Found only in New

Zealand Present in all kiwifruit

regions

Growers advised to

apply insecticides


21/90

Leafroller Damage to Kiwifruit In untreated

orchards, >50% of

fruit can bedamaged

Completely

unacceptable for

export markets


22/90

California: Avocados

380 million pounds

$6000/acre

All sold fresh


23/90

Avocado Thrip

First noted in

California in 1996 Feeds on surface


24/90

Avocado Thrip: Fruit Scarring

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


25/90

Supermarket Shopping Survey Two-thirds of respondents were

willing to pay 510% higher prices

for certified pesticide-free produce,yet were unwilling to accept any

cosmetic defects or insect damage.

ERS, USDA, 1990


26/90

Pesticide Use Driver:

Developed Countries Shortages of workers to weed fields

starting around the 1950s-60s

Herbicides greatly reduced the need for

weeding by hand


27/90

California: Weeding Vegetable

Crops 1940s 1960s

Thousands of legal temporary workers from Mexico

in theBracero (Strong Arm) Program


28/90

Millions of people weeded

U.S. cotton fields into the 1950s

Hand Weeding


29/90

Decline in Hand Weeding

1950s - 1960s Millions of Workers Left

Southern States for Urban

Factory Jobs

TheBracero program ended in

1964

Hand Weeding Was Replacedwith Herbicides


30/90

Japanese Rice Weeding: 1950s

500 Hand Weeding Hours/Ha : 1 Billion Hours Total


31/90

Herbicide Treated Rice: Japan

Untreated Treated

2 herbicide treatments give season-long weed control


32/90

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


33/90

EU Rice

Risotto Milanese Paella

90% Self sufficient in production

400,000 hectares


34/90

Le Mondine: Italy, 1950s

In the 1960s,workers left fields forfactory jobs.


35/90


36/90

EU Rice: Today

Two herbicide applications per hectare replace hundreds

of hours of hand weeding.


37/90

Pesticide Use Drivers:

Developed Countries Need to produce more food for growing

populations

Pesticides have effectively controlled

pests leading to yield increases


38/90

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


39/90

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

1910 1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010

1950 = 100

U.S. Farm Output


40/90

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


41/90

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

Chemicals


42/90

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


43/90

U.S. Rice: Weeds Not Well

Controlled Before Herbicides

Hand Weeders Not Used

Untreated Herbicide

Treated


44/90

U.S. Rice Yields

0

2000

4000

6000

1899 1914 1929 1944 1959 1974 1989

Lbs./

Acre

Herbicides

Introduced

Herbicide

Adoption

Complete


45/90

Herbicides

Contributed directly to improved yields due

to increased efficacy Facilitated the adoption of other yield-

increasing practices

Herbicide Effectiveness ContinuouslyImproved 1950s-Today


46/90

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


47/90

Pesticides are used widely in agriculture in the

United States. Their application has improvedcrop yields and increased the quantity of freshfruits and vegetables in the diet, thereby

contributing to improvements in public health.

NAS, 1993


48/90

Canada Wheat Yields

0

1

2

3

1910 1935 1960 1985 2010

MT/Ha

Herbicides

Introduced

Grass Control

Herbicides

Introduced


49/90

Australian Grain Belt


50/90

Tillage: Australia

Dries out the soil and delays planting


51/90

Australian Wheat Yield

1930-2010 (Trendlines)

Herbicides

introduced

10% No-till78% No-till

44% No-till

0

0.5

1

1.5

2

1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010

44% No-Till

HerbicidesIntroduced

10% No-Till

78% No-Till


52/90

Japanese Rice

Japan is self-

sufficient in rice

Average person

eats 5 kg of

rice/month


53/90

Japanese Rice

Famines due to rice

blast

1695, 1783,18331837

Last major rice blast

Outbreak : 1953

Fungicides have

prevented outbreaks

since then

Rice blast


54/90

Monument to fungicidal rice blast

control in Nankoku, Japan


55/90

Norway

5 million people

Short growing season

Imports 50% of foodsupply

Pesticides used on

>90% of crop acres


56/90

Norwegian Government

Questions

What if food imports are cut off?

Could a basic diet support the

Norwegian population?


57/90


Questions




Yeswith pesticides


58/90


Questions




Yeswith pesticides

Without pesticides20% of the population

could not be fed


59/90

Pesticide Use Drivers:

Developing Markets

Shortages of workers to hand weed

fields

Need to produce more food for growing

population


60/90

China Weed/Crop Status: 1980s

43 million hectares heavily infested

17.5 million tons of grain lost

Weedy maize field in China


61/90

Hand Weeding in China

Millions of Farm Workers are Moving

to Urban Areas


62/90

Herbicide Use: China

MillionHectares


63/90

China Wheat (#1 in World)

Wheat losses due to rust

(million tonnes)

19506.0 19643.2

19901.8

20021.3

Now: Treat 6 million

hectares with fungicides

Wheat rust


64/90

Crop Yields : China

0

2

46

8

1978 1984 1990 1996 2002 2008

Rice Wheat Maize

Ton/Ha


65/90

Indias Economy

8% annual growth in GDP

500 million skilled laborers need to

be trained by 2022


66/90

Rice in India

Hand weeding


67/90

India: Soybeans

Herbicide treated plot Untreated plot


68/90

India: Crop Herbicide Market

217

416

0

100

200

300

400

500

2005 2010

Million

US$

Phillips McDougal


69/90

Brazil: Soybean Production

0

15

30

45

60

75

1952 1962 1972 1982 1992 2002

Million

Tons


70/90

Soybean Rust Pustules

Brazil: First

appeared 2001 By 2003: Spread to

entire country

Yield losses up to

75%


71/90

Brazil: Spraying Soybeans

Fungicides increase yields by 43%


72/90

Brazil: Soybean Fungicide

Market

25

200

600 600

800

0

200

400

600

800

1000

2001 2003 2005 2007 2009

Million

US$


73/90

Sub-Saharan Africa

43 Countries

700 Million People 180 Million Farms


74/90

African Yields (Tons/hectare)

Experimental Plots

Average Farmer

Maize

8

1-2

Rice

4

1

O ti l Yi ld


75/90

Optimal Yields on

Experimental Plots

Plant at Right Time

Weed at Right Time

Fertilize at Right Time

Hand Weeding is the


76/90

Predominant Weed Control

Practice in Sub-Saharan Africa

50-70% of the

labor in cropproduction is

spent weeding

C t i t Ti l


77/90

Constraints on Timely

Hand Weeding

Women can be too

tired or sick (malaria) Fields can be muddy

Competing time

demands: child care Pregnancy


78/90

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.


79/90

The Spraying of Chemical Herbicides

is an Alternative to Hand Weeding


80/90

Herbicide Experiment: Kenya

Weedy Herbicide Treated

Maize Yields +53%

Bean Yields +94%

H bi id U S llh ld


81/90

Herbicide Use: Smallholder

Farms

1-5% use herbicides

Lack of training of farmers

Lack of training of Extension Serviceworkers

Lack of spray services


82/90

Herbicide Use: Lack of Interest

Weeds are seen as womens work

Governments dont take seriously

International development agencies arereluctant to support pesticide strategies


83/90

Regional Crop Pesticide Markets

Phillips McDougal


84/90


Phillips McDougal


85/90


Phillips McDougal


86/90


Phillips McDougal


87/90

Cereal Yields by Region

0

1

2

3

4

1960 1970 1980 1990 2000

MT/Ha

Latin

America

Asia

Africa

FAO


88/90

Chronic Undernutrition:Prevalence of Underweight Children

R. Paarlberg, 2010

0

20

40

60

1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005

%

Africa

Asia

Latin

America


89/90

Conclusions

Pesticide use increases crop production

With more crop production,malnutrition decreases

Freeing labor from the drudgery of

hand weeding is central to economicgrowth


90/90

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