Biopesticides What are bio pesticides?

All the living organisms, which are cultivated in the laboratory on large scale and are used and exploited experimentally for the control of harmful organisms, are, called biopesticides. The examples include insects, virus bacteria, fungi, protozoan and nematodes. Commercial status World open market management and use of synthetic agrochemical and their unjudicious use are responsible in giving new horizon in the plant pests and diseases control. Food grains, milk and milk products and meat are treated with the chemical pesticides the quantity of which have crossed the minimal quantity prescribed (permissible limits) by World Food Organization (WFO). In 1940, the agrochemical DDT was introduced and was killing 600 species of insect at that time very actively and hence was used intensively. The intensive and unjudicious use of DDT created resistance problem in insects toward DDT and now only few species of insect are being killed by these pesticides. In 1990 the use of biopesticides as compared to synthetic insecticides was only 0.5% and recent data indicate that it has increased tremendously with Bacillus thuringiensis (BT). The interesting aspect of this that where as the market for synthetic pesticides reached a plateau, the market for biopesticides is increasing at the rate of 10 to 25% annually. Advantages The government is emphatically encouraging the use of biopesticides. The manufacturers are being given subsidy, no-licensing fees, and financial assistance and also encouraged to export. These are the reasons, which form the basis of commercialization of biopesticides. Some of them are: 1. Research expenditure: As compared to research on insecticides, research on biopesticides is cheap and fast. 2. Product development rates: As compared to biopesticides the formulation of synthetic insecticides is very difficult. 3. Registration charges: Side effects (nontarget effects), such as pollution problem and human toxicity of various insecticides is also very high Governments are cautions in issuing registration of insecticides. The registration charges are also very high. 4. Selectivity: Biopesticides are selectively toxic to certain groups of fungi only. Hence there is no possibility of pollution of environment and soil and there is no danger of residue problem in food and other eatable materials and also in animal food. Disadvantages There are lots of limitations in popularizing the wide spread use of biopesticides. Some of them are listed here: 1. Reliability: Since there is no stability on the effect of biopesticides farmers always look towards them with doubts. Because most the agents of biopesticides are living; several factors like temperatures, moistures, pH, ultraviolet spectrum and soil factors adversely affect the mode of action and their effectively is affected. 2. Natural control of population: After the maxima have reached, then autolysis starts and the effectivity is low. Biopesticides agents face stiff competition with other microbes, which may start controlling the biopesticides agents. Soil and their factors also control the population of biopesticides agents through a process called as self control buffering effect on population increase. 3. Specificity: Because of certain selectivity in their controlling effect towards insect-pest and pathogens, the farmers do not give prominence to biopesticides. Another pertinent point is that biopesticides are

slow in action as compared to synthetic pesticides. 4. Shelf life: Biopesticides have a very short shelf life as compared to insecticides. The distribution of biopesticides in the market is also very erratic Biopesticides and IPM Integrated Pest Management envisages use of pesticides for the control of pests at absolute necessities that to with great judiciousness. Biopesticides are an integral part of IMP. A range of parasitoids, predators and pathogens of pests, insects and weeds have been found effective but they were not commercially exploited because of quick knock down effect and easy availability of chemical pesticides. However, the problems created by synthetic pesticides kindled interest of scientists in biopesticides. Consequently predators like cryptolaemus, parasitoids like Trichogramma, insect pathogens like Bacillus thuringiensis and NPV, were commercialized for pest management during the past decade. Several fungi and bacteria are screened for their bioactivity towards several pathogenic insect-pests and fungi and the success rate has been very high. http://www.indiaagronet.com/indiaagronet/pest_management/CONTENTS/biopesticides.htm Use of Biopesticides for Sustainable Agriculture Green Alternatives in Pest Management Agriculture has had to face the destructive activities of numerous pests like fungi, weeds and insects from time immemorial, leading to radical decreases in yields. With the advent of chemical pesticides, this crisis was resolved to a great extent. But the overdependence on chemical pesticides and eventual uninhibited use of them has caused serious health and environmental problems. Green Alternatives - Biopesticides Biopesticides or biological pesticides are derived from natural materials like animals, plants, bacteria, and certain minerals. For example, garlic, mint, neem, papaya and baking soda all have pesticidal applications and are considered biopesticides. According to the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), at the end of 1998, there were approximately 175 registered biopesticide active ingredients and 700 products. The most commonly used biopesticides are living organisms (bacteria, viruses and fungi) which are pathogenic for the pest of interest. These include biofungicides (Trichoderma), bioherbicides (Phytopthora) and bioinsecticides (Bacillus thuringiensis). Advantages of Using Biopesticides

Biopesticides are obviously less harmful than conventional chemical pesticides. Biopesticides generally target one specific pest or a small number of related pests in contrast to broad spectrum chemical pesticides which affect, apart from the pest, other beneficial insects, birds and mammals. Biopesticides are more effective in smaller quantities and decompose quickly and thus do not cause the kind of environmental problems associated with chemical pesticides. When used in Integrated Pest Management programs, biopesticides can greatly reduce the use of conventional pesticides, while the crop yield remains high.

Biofungicides using Trichoderma Trichoderma is a fungus which is present in nearly all soils and other diverse habitats. They attack and parasitize other fungi. So far, Trichoderma has been successful in controlling every plant-pathogenic fungus against which it has been used. Preparation of Trichoderma biopesticide is cheap and requires only basic knowledge of microbiology. Bioherbicides Using Pathogenic Fungi Biological control of weeds (herbs) is the deliberate use of its natural enemies to control their growth. According to Alan K. Watson of the Plant Science Department at McGill University, Canada, successful bioherbicide development has occurred for weeds like water hyacinth and water fern, strangler vine, northern joint vetch, round-leaved mallow and dodder. Fungi like Phytopthora palmivora and Colletotrichum gloeosporioides have been successfully used in the control of weeds. Dr. Watson has pointed out a successful experiment in which a fungal pathogen, Puccinia chondrillina, (of the weed Chondrilla juncea, which occurs in wheat fields) had spread over most of eastern Australia in the period of nine months after it was liberated, and is estimated to be saving the wheat industry $10-20 million per year, without any need for extra inputs. Bioinsecticides Using Bacteria and Fungi Bacillus thuringiensis (BT) produces a proteinic toxin which it releases inside the gut of the insect after being ingested. Once inside the gut, the toxin induces paralysis of the midgut and brings about cessation in feeding. This ultimately results in the death of the insect. In his FAO document, Professor V. Taborsky of University of Agriculture, Prague, Czechoslovakia enlists the main sources for the production of BT preparations as strains of the subspecies kurstaki, galeriae and dendrolimus. Another promising candidate, according to Professor Taborsky, for the control of insect pests is the fungus Metarhizium anisopliae. It has been successfully used for the control for the insect pest Clones punctiventris, the sugarcane spittlebug, Mahanarva postica and Colorado beetle Leptinotarsa decemlineata. This fungus attaches to the cuticle of the insect and penetrates the host exoskeleton. Once inside the host body, it produces chemicals called destruxins, which ultimately cause the death of the insect. Current Scenario and Future of Biopesticides At present there appears to be a situation in which biocontrol agents would provide a viable commercial option, where conventional chemical control does not give sufficient control or where there is a case of insecticide resistance; where conventional chemicals are too expensive; or where government restricts application of chemicals. This is because either there is still no awareness as far as hazards of chemical pesticides are concerned or there is general disillusionment as to the efficacy of biocontrol methods. Whatever the scenario, further research and development of biological pest control methods must be given high priority and people in general and agriculturists in particular must be educated about the dangers posed by handling and use of chemical pesticides. The general public should also demand farm products where chemical pesticides are not used. All this will lead to a general enlightenment about the

benefits of biopesticides and will force governments to make policy decisions reducing the use of chemical pesticides and increasing the use of a green alternative. http://environmentalmicrobiology.suite101.com/article.cfm/biopesticides_a_step_towards_sustainable_agric Role of DBT in the development of Biopesticides Biological control of pests and diseases has undergone a great deal of development in the last one and a half decade in India. Both Center and State Governments have been strong supporters of Integrated Pest Management (IPM) with main emphasis on biological control. Realizing the potential of biocontrol and taking cognizance of the need to extend this technology from laboratory to field, Department of Biotechnology (DBT) has gone in a big way to support a major programme in this area since 1989. DBT has made concerted efforts towards the development of biopesticide technology in the country in the last 15 years in a systematic way by launching various programmes and projects. The main objective of the programme is to develop safe and efficient biopesticide formulations, as well as cost effective commercially viable mass production technologies of various biocontrol agents / biopesticides (which include microbial pesticides- baculoviruses, entomopathogenic fungi and nematodes, antagonistic fungi and bacteria, parasitoids and predators; pheromones, other semiochemicals; botanical pesticides and plant growth regulator) for use under Integrated Pest Management and their bioefficacy tested through large scale front line field demonstrations against the key pests and diseases of economically important crops in varied agro-climatic zones. DBT established a National Biocontrol Network Programme (NBNP) in 1989 to study the management of key insect pests, diseases and weeds of economically important crops viz., cotton, sugarcane, tobacco, oilseeds, pulses, vegetables, fruits, spices and plantation crops. This network is a continued activity of the Department. Almost 200 R&D projects have been implemented so far in ICAR/CSIR Institutes and SAUs throughout the country. Based on the technology developed through DBTs, NBNP, two model production units for biocontrol agents were set up at TNAU, Coimbatore and Madurai to assess their commercial viability. Already some private individuals, entrepreneurs, progressive farmers, unemployed agricultural graduates and science graduates have started producing biocontrol agents. During 1993-94, a time bound, goal oriented mission mode programme was launched on the development, production and demonstration of biocontrol agents under IPM in 15 States. Under this programme, 20-production units and 2 repository centers were set up in various States with the main objective to revalidate and fine-tune the technology packages best suited for various agro-climatic zones and also to develop farmers oriented technology packages for their large-scale adaptation and adoption. The cost of crop protection was optimized and income / profit maximized through demonstration trials. Economic benefits have been realized in terms of yield increase, monetary gain and reduction in the pesticide consumption. Successful demonstration trials under this programme (55000ha) have culminated in the recommendation of specific biocontrol agents as an ecofriendly option in IPM modules by various State Departments of Agriculture Subsequently a major R&D programme on Biological control of crop pests and diseases under IPM as a component of Integrated Nutrient Management (INM) programme was launched in 1998-99 on the role

of biological resources for Integrated Nutrient and Pest Management (INPM) for increasing agricultural productivity in existing cropping systems. It was launched at 14 centers in 12 states with the main aim to develop cost effective, sustainable and eco-friendly modules / package of practices in different ecosystems and also to demonstrate the sustained preservation of ecosystem by conducting front line demonstrations in identified clusters / adopted villages by adopting IPM and INM techniques. Several cost effective, sustainable and eco-friendly IPM-INM modules in different ecosystems have been developed for various crops viz., rice, Pigeonpea, and chickpea, french beans, soybean, lentil, green pea, mustard, tomato, brinjal, capsicum, cauliflower, cabbage, chilli, coconut etc. The cost-benefit ratio of IPM-INM modules worked out at large scale trials showed significant tilt in favor of adopting the technology by farmers for different crops. Achievements made in the National Biocontrol R&D Network Programme, mission mode and INM-IPM programme are: i) Development and standardization of cost ii) Effective and commercially viable mass production technologies of about 30 candidate biocontrol agents/ biopesticides iii) Demonstration of the field efficacy of biocontrol agents/ biopesticides under different ecosystem in various economically important crops covering 1, 80,000 ha. iv) Economic benefits realized in the IPM trials by computing the cost benefit ratio in terms of a) monetary gain; b) yield increase; c) reduction in pesticide consumption v) Several cost effective, sustainable and eco-friendly IPM-INM modules have been developed for various crops vi) Sustained preservation of the ecosystem has been successfully demonstrated in IPM-INM adopted villages. vii) General awareness created about the biocontrol based IPM technology among the extension functionaries and the farming community. viii) Gap of availability of sufficient quantity of biocontrol agents along with the quality control and their adoption and adaptation in farmers field have been bridged to a considerable extent. Mass Production Technologies Developed Standardized cost effective and commercially viable mass production technologies of various candidate biocontrol agents/biopesticides viz. a) Microbials- NPVs of Helicoverpa armigera, Spodoptera litura, Hyblaea puera, Spilosoma obliqua and GVs of Chilo infuscatellus and Plutella xylostella, Trichoderma viride, T. harzianum, T. koningii, T. virens, Myrothecium verrucaria, Aspergillus niger, Bacillus subtilis, Pseudomonas fluorescense, Beauveria bassiana, Verticillium lecanii, Nomuraea rileyi, Debaromyces henseni and Pochonia chlamydosporia b) Parasitoids and Predators Trichogramma chilonis, T. polae, T. japonicum and Chrysoperla carnea c) Entomopathogenic Nematodes (EPN) - Steinernema carpocapsae,

S. biocornutum, S. seemai sp. n., and Heterorhabditis indica. d) Pheromones Insects sex pheromone lures for Chilo sacchariphagus indicus and Scirpophaga incertulas.

Bioefficacy Demonstration Field efficacy of aforesaid biocontrol agents Biopesticides were tested at multilocation covering various crops viz., cotton, rice, chickpea, tobacco, groundnut, sunflower, sugarcane, sesamum, soybean, black gram, green gram, pigeon pea, lentil and other pulses, cauliflower, tomato, chilli and other vegetables, spices, tea, coffee etc. Substantial area of land (1, 80,000 ha. approx) was covered in various agroclimatic zones of the country for managing pests and diseases of important crops.

Technologies developed and their status of transfer Several mass production technologies of biocontrol agents / biopesticides have been developed, standardized and transferred. The fermentation based technologies of 3 biocontrol agents viz., Trichoderma viride, T. virens, Bacillus spp. and 3 biofertilizers viz., Rhizobium spp, Azotobacter spp., and Azospirillium spp. have been transferred as an integrated package for biopesticides and biofertilizers to M/s Prathishta Industries Ltd., Secundrabad (A.P.) and M/s Haryana Biotech, Gurgaon. Mass production technology of Aspergillus Niger (AN27) was transferred to M/s Cadila Pharma. Mass production technology of HaNPV(Heliokill), SlNPV (Magic), SoNPV (Spilocide), Phule Trichocards (Trichogramma chilonis), Phule Trichoderma have been developed, formulated, branded and being produced and supplied to farmers in large quantities for demonstration. A solid state fermentation technology of Trichoderma harzianum has been developed at Indian Institute of Spices Research (IISR) Calicut and transferred to 10 private entrepreneurs in the states of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. Mass production technologies of HaNPV (1000 LE/day) and SlNPV (500 LE/day) developed at UAS, Dharwad are ready for transfer. HaNPV (1000 LE/day) has also been developed using local strains / resources at RARS, Lam, Guntur and have been transferred to five industries. A mechanized system of mass production of Trichogramma chilonis has been developed at IARI and ready for transfer. At G B Pant University of Agriculture and Technology, Uttaranchal, mass production technologies of two high temperature tolerant strains of Trichogramma poliae and T. japonicum have been developed and negotiations are on for technology transfer. Mass production technologies of Trichoderma viride and Pseudomonas fluorescens developed at Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore have already been transferred to various industries. At Kerala Forest Research Institute (KFRI), Kerala, mass production technology of HpNPV against Hyblaea puera (teak defoliator) has been developed for teak forest ecosystem. Techno-economic feasibility has been studied. Seven formulations of this NPV have also been developed and mode of application on teak trees has been standardized and perfected. Technology is ready as a full package for transfer. In the case of Steinernema carpocapsae and Myrothecium verrucaria, technologies are being fine tuned for up scaling the production and increasing the shelf life for commercialization. The pheromone technology for the management of Internode Borer (Chilo sacchariphagus indicus) of sugarcane has been developed at SPIC research foundation and is ready for transfer. Rice yellow stem borer (Scirpophaga incertulas) has been successfully managed through sex pheromone technology and demonstrated at multi location trials (300 acre). This technology has been developed at IICT, Hyderabad in collaboration with and DRR.

Popularization Several extension activities were organized at the instance of DBT for creating awareness among the farmers on the large scale use of biocontrol agents under IPM. About 75000 farmers were benefited by various extension activities which included regional workshops, training programmes, agroclinics, agrifair, farmers ghosthi, krishi melas, farmers field schools etc. Initiatives taken by DBT to facilitate the registration and commercialization of biopesticides The Department has taken initiatives to facilitate the registration and commercialization of biopesticides. As per the gazette notification of the Central Insecticide Board, Ministry of Agriculture, and Government of India dated 26th March, 1999; the biopesticides have been put under the Insecticides Act 1968. As such, the generation of toxicological data and bioefficacy data has become a pre-requisite for the registration of the biopesticides. With a view to facilitate the commercialization and quick dissemination of the newly developed ecofriendly technologies, Department has organized an interactive workshop on Eco-friendly technologies of Biopesticides and Biofertilizers for Crop Management on 17-18th April, 2000. Several important issues related to the registration and commercializations of biopesticides were addressed and various recommendations emanated which were taken up with the concerned ministries. At the initiative of the Department, the Directorate of Plant Protection Quarantine and Storage, Dept of Agriculture, Ministry of Agriculture convened several meetings of the technical group of the registration Committee of the Central Insecticides Board (CIB). The existing data guidelines/data requirements for the registration of biocontrol agents/biopesticides were reviewed, simplified and streamlined as per the recommendation of DBT. The revised guidelines have been issued by CIB in November, 2000. Further, to overcome the constraints in the registration of biopesticides developed through the Departments R&D effort, the department has taken a pro active step and decided to provide support for the generation of toxicological data for the registration of biopesticides in a phased manner. In the first phase, nine potential biopesticides viz., Trichoderma viride, T. virens, T. harzianum, Beauveria bassiana, Nomuraea rileyi, NPV of H. armigera, NPV of S. litura, NPV of Hyblaea puera and Myrothecium verrucaria have been taken up for generation of toxicological data from two identified CSIR centers. In the second phase, other 8-10 biopesticides will be covered. Referral laboratories for quality control of biopesticides In order to ensure the quality control of the developed biopesticides, DBT has also designated seven referral laboratories in the country for certifying / accreditation of the biopesticide products. These centers are Assam Agricultural University, Jorhat; University of Agricultural Sciences, Dharwad; Mahatama Phule Krishi Vishwavidyalaya, Pune; Regional Research Laboratory, Jammu; Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi; G.B. Pant University of Agriculture and Technology, Pantnagar and Allahabad Agricultural Institute Deemed University, Allahabad (U.P.). These centers have developed sufficient core competence as well as infrastructure through DBTs support for handling quality control and assurance parameters of the biopesticides under existing regulatory guidelines. Market Survey of Biopesticides

Department is making a systematic approach for the commercialization of the biopesticide technology developed through R&D effort. At the instance of DBT, an extensive market survey study is being carried out by Biotech Consortium India Limited to assess the gap between region wise demand and supply of biopesticides based on agricultural practices, crops and their crop profile. The authentic data generated through this study would help in attracting entrepreneurs for commercialization of the technologies and also in creating awareness among farmers for proper selection and usage of biopesticides and their purchase from a suitable dealer. In addition, this study will also help the policy makers in taking decisions for further development of biopesticides in the country. http://www.dbtbiopesticides.nic.in/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=39