Bio-control Agents in Sustainable Pest Management and Mechanisms of Action, Selection, Formulation and Challenges in Agriculture

                      The agri-food industry bears a significant responsibility to meet global food demand with products that are not only nutritious and of high quality but also safe. As highlighted throughout this review, BCAs such as Trichoderma and Bacillus offer a viable and sustainable alternative to conventional chemical pesticides. These beneficial microorganisms have demonstrated their ability to enhance crop productivity, promote soil health, and improve resilience against various diseases, thereby contributing to eco-friendly agricultural systems. Understanding the mechanisms of action, selection criteria, formulation processes, and challenges.           Altogether, there appear many emerging technologies and opportunities to achieve the goal of reducing pre-harvest crop losses. As I stated previously, none of these alone are likely to be a panacea for pest management except in very specific contexts. Production of GM crops has grown steadily over the past three decades, but even for those crops this technology has not entirely displaced the use of chemical pesticides. The extent to which we can lessen our dependence on pesticides in the foreseeable future—modifying the goal from reducing pre-harvest crop losses to achieving acceptable or optimal yields with fewer chemical inputs—will rely not only on advances in the science of pest management, but also on society's willingness to accept newer technologies along with their inherent, and presumably lesser, risks. As one expert explained, we may need a crisis in food production or prices to deviate from current pest management practices, as in the industrialized world, “the alternatives all come down to economics.” Going forward, risk and regulation will be key determinants of pest management practice. We should hope, at the least, that government regulatory decisions are informed by good science in the future.

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