Pesticides

A pesticide is a chemical substance or a mixture of chemical substances that is used to destroy, control, or repel pests in a controlled environment. Pests are organisms that cause plant growth to be stunted or that cause the plant to die as a result of eating it. There are many different types of pests that can harm agricultural crops, resulting in significant financial loss. Insects, rodents, fungi, slugs and snails, bird mites, and weeds are just a few kinds of pests to consider.

A Brief Overview of the Past

Pesticides have been around for a long time! Pesticides were utilised by many ancient civilizations to protect their crops from insects and other pests. Elemental sulphur was employed by the ancient Sumerians to protect their crops against pest attack. In contrast, mediaeval farmers experimented with poisons on common crops, utilising arsenic and lead as a starting point.

Body lice and other pests were controlled by the Chinese with the help of arsenic and mercury compounds. While the Greeks and Romans employed oil, ash, sulphur, and other materials to protect themselves, their cattle, and their crops from numerous pests, the Chinese and Japanese used a variety of other materials.

Meanwhile, in the nineteenth century, researchers concentrated more on natural procedures employing substances derived from the roots of tropical vegetables and chrysanthemums, as well as other plants. Dichloro-Diphenyl-Trichloroethane (DDT) was discovered in 1939 and has since become the most widely used insecticide in the world due to its high effectiveness and rapid spread. DDT, on the other hand, has been prohibited in nearly 86 nations as a result of its biological effects and potential danger to humans twenty years later.

Definition of Pesticides

Pesticides are defined as follows by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO); a substance or mixture of substances intended for preventing, destroying, or controlling any pest, including vectors of human or animal disease, unwanted species of plants or animals, causing harm during or otherwise interfering with the production, processing, storage, transportation, or marketing of food, agricultural commodities, wood and wood products, or animal feedstuffs, or substances that may be administered to animals for the control of insects, arachnids, or other pests.

Benefits of Pesticides

Pesticides assist farmers in keeping expenses down by allowing them to grow more food on the same piece of land with less input. When compared to vegetables cultivated with pesticides, organic veggies require a higher level of investment due to the necessity to hand weed the crops.

Pesticides can help to limit the spread of waterborne infections as well as diseases transmitted by insects. It aids in the prevention of the spread of diseases transmitted by insects and rodents.

Pesticides are used to conserve and protect the environment because they can help to prevent deforestation, soil erosion, and the depletion of natural resources. Pesticides are also used to protect and preserve wildlife.

The usage of pesticides can aid in the improvement of crop yields, which in turn can help to boost the revenue of farmers. It will raise the living standards and overall quality of life of farmers.

Pesticides allow farmers to save valuable time by protecting their crops from weeds rather than spending hours clearing weeds from around their crops. Farmers will save time and money by not having to till the field over and over again in an attempt to grow their harvests if their crop is protected from pests.

Pesticides enabled developing countries such as India to transition from being food importers to food producers. Crop protection assists farmers in protecting their crops while also providing a bumper yield to the general public.

Pesticides extend the shelf life of food products in storage chambers or warehouses, allowing them to remain fresh for longer periods of time. They also aid in the prevention of large post-harvest losses caused by plant diseases and pests, as well as the preservation of food that may be consumed safely.

The negative impact of Pesticides

Pesticides have a variety of negative consequences on our environment, health, and even the atmosphere within our homes. There are several of these consequences that can be listed, including the following:

Environmental Consequences

As they are applied to crops, chemical pesticides are responsible for contaminating the environment. Despite the fact that their impacts are short-lived, if they are allowed to linger in the environment, they may begin to cause dangerous environmental and health problems. When chemical pesticides are sprayed on crops, they have the potential to spread to areas outside of the original target area.

Effect on Crops and Soil

Pesticides reduce the soil’s quality, which in turn degrades the quality of the food and the amount of food produced. Food contaminated by chemical pesticides loses its nutritional value and becomes nutrient depleted. We consume pesticides when we eat fruits and vegetables such as apples and lettuce or potatoes and strawberries. These pesticides enter our bodies and can cause a variety of illnesses. While these chemical pesticides are designed to destroy organisms that are found on crops, they are also detrimental to other living things in the environment and environment.

Health Consequences

Various pesticides can cause both short-term health problems (acute) and long-term disorders, depending on the chemical used (chronic). Rashes, nausea, diarrhoea, disorientation, breathing difficulties, eye irritation, and other acute symptoms have been reported. Chronic impacts can result in birth abnormalities, malignancies, brain damage, and reproductive harm, among other consequences. Before signs of chronic health problems appear, it can take months or even years for them to materialise.

Conclusion

Because of the widespread usage of pesticides, the term “pesticide” is frequently used interchangeably with the term “plant protection product.” Agricultural pesticides are often used to eradicate or manage a wide range of agricultural pests that can cause damage to crops and livestock as well as diminish farm output. For the most part, pesticides used to control insects, weeds, rodents, and mildew are the most regularly used. Fungicides are used to control fungi, mould, and mildew are the most commonly used pesticides.