Integrated pest management: A global overview of history, programs and adoption

Abstract

World-wide, integrated pest management (IPM) has become the accepted strategy for plant protection over the last five decades. Cotton growers in the Cañete valley, Peru were amongst the first to adopt a combination of pest management practices to save the cotton crop from the ravages caused by pests despite applying 16 insecticide sprays on average. However, it was not until 1959, that the concept of "integrated management" was born in the United States of America (USA). A panel of experts from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) put the concept of IPM in operation in 1968. Advancements made in IPM systems for developing sustainable pest management strategies in the USA, Europe, Australia, Asia, Latin America and Africa have not generally resulted in wider adoption of IPM, though there have been some successes. Pesticides remain the main-stay of many IPM programs throughout the globe. In the USA and Europe, there is government legislation and mechanisms for implementation and evaluation of IPM programs, especially in Europe, where IPM innovation systems involving the government, researchers, farmers, advisory agencies and market forces are part of a system to reduce pesticide use. In the developing countries farmer education in IPM has gained impetus since 1989, through the Farmer Field School (FFS) extension methodology, originally developed for educating farmers in rice IPM. The FFS model of extension has spread from Asia to Latin America, Africa and Eastern Europe. In the developed countries the systematic periodic evaluation of IPM programs provides feedback for improving and formulating future strategies, but in many developing countries there is no periodic evaluation of IPM programs for assessing the extent of adoption and long term impact. This chapter provides a broad overview of IPM programs, policies and adoption of IPM practices in the North America, Europe, Australia, Asia, Latin America and Africa.