Biopesticides: Challenges

The indiscriminate use and the negative impact of pesticides have made scientists to search for eco-friendly alternative for the management of pests for healthy and safer environment and to prevent the hazard to man and livestock. The essence of the global plant protection research of this era is to confront the twin challenges of urgent need to increase agricultural yields yet to conserve or improve the natural resources for the future.

This search has ended in economically viable and environmentally safer alternative, the biological control. This technology either standing alone or as a component of integrated pest management has attracted increasing interest, partly in order to reduce dependence upon pesticides. The success of biological control is influenced by the efficiency, virulence, compatibility and mass production of the bioagents. In turn, the success of mass production and marketing mainly depends on cost effectiveness and viability of the bioagents. In view of this, the mass production of the fungal and bacterial antagonist, Tirchoderma viride and Pseudomonas fluorscens on various cheaper and easily available raw materials was done.