Biopesticides for Pest Management
11
Meenatchi Rajamani and Aditi Negi
Abstract
Biopesticides are the biological agents used to control the pest population. It
includes the use of botanicals, microbial pathogens such as fungi, bacteria,
viruses and natural enemies of pests such as parasitoids and predators, nematodes
and semiochemicals. Biopesticides play an important role in sustainability of
agricultural bioeconomy. The ecosystem benefits rendered by the agriculturally
important biological resources warrant inclusion of biopesticides in Integrated
Pest Management Programmes. This chapter elaborates different types of
biopesticides, their mode of action, formulations available, successful proven
biological agents used in the suppression of pests, advantages and disadvantages
of each method.
Keywords
Bioeconomy · Biological organisms · Biopesticides · Biological Pest
Management
11.1 Introduction
Biopesticides are the biological agents or plant-based products used to control the
population of injurious organisms to the ecosystem. They are naturally occurring
substances from living organisms (natural enemies) or their products (microbial
products, phytochemicals) and their by-products (semiochemicals) that can control
pests by non-toxic mechanisms (Salma and Jogen 2011). They are considered as
M. Rajamani (*) · A. Negi
Department of Primary Processing, Storage and Handling, Indian Institute of Food Processing
Technology, Thanjavur, India
e-mail: meena@iifpt.edu.in
# Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2021
V. Venkatramanan et al. (eds.), Sustainable Bioeconomy,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-7321-7_11
239
11
Meenatchi Rajamani and Aditi Negi
Abstract
Biopesticides are the biological agents used to control the pest population. It
includes the use of botanicals, microbial pathogens such as fungi, bacteria,
viruses and natural enemies of pests such as parasitoids and predators, nematodes
and semiochemicals. Biopesticides play an important role in sustainability of
agricultural bioeconomy. The ecosystem benefits rendered by the agriculturally
important biological resources warrant inclusion of biopesticides in Integrated
Pest Management Programmes. This chapter elaborates different types of
biopesticides, their mode of action, formulations available, successful proven
biological agents used in the suppression of pests, advantages and disadvantages
of each method.
Keywords
Bioeconomy · Biological organisms · Biopesticides · Biological Pest
Management
11.1 Introduction
Biopesticides are the biological agents or plant-based products used to control the
population of injurious organisms to the ecosystem. They are naturally occurring
substances from living organisms (natural enemies) or their products (microbial
products, phytochemicals) and their by-products (semiochemicals) that can control
pests by non-toxic mechanisms (Salma and Jogen 2011). They are considered as
M. Rajamani (*) · A. Negi
Department of Primary Processing, Storage and Handling, Indian Institute of Food Processing
Technology, Thanjavur, India
e-mail: meena@iifpt.edu.in
# Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2021
V. Venkatramanan et al. (eds.), Sustainable Bioeconomy,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-7321-7_11
239