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Suggested Citation:"Why develop new pesticides?." National Research Council. 1956. Safe Use of Pesticides in Food Production; a Report [by] W.J. Darby, Chairman ... [Et Al.]. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/18543.
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Suggested Citation:"Why develop new pesticides?." National Research Council. 1956. Safe Use of Pesticides in Food Production; a Report [by] W.J. Darby, Chairman ... [Et Al.]. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/18543.
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SAFE USE OF PESTICIDES IN FOOD PRODUCTION The pests of crops and livestock are controlled better today than was con- sidered possible only a decade ago. This has been accomplished primarily through use of newly developed pesti- cides. Many of these new materials are synthetic organic compounds, in con- trast to the inorganic compounds and sulfur used predominantly prior to 1940. The use of pesticides in the United States has increased four-fold in the past 20 years. Production of active in- gredients, exclusive of diluents, carriers, and conditioning agents used in formu- lation, was about 215 million pounds in 1935. By 1944 the amount had increased to 513 million pounds and by 1952 to 1,025 million. In 1954, the production of organic pesticides alone had reached 419 million pounds. The organic insecticide produced in largest volume was DDT, of which 97 million pounds was manufac- tured. At least 25 new materials found major markets during this era of expansion. These materials were developed because they had the ability to destroy, prevent, repel, or mitigate the activity of in- sects, weeds, fungi, nematodes, rodents, or bacteria. It is reasonable to assume that biologically active materials such as these might be harmful to domestic animals and man if consumed in ap- preciable quantities. Many people became concerned over the possible public health problems as- sociated with this situation in which many new biologically active materials were being introduced and rapidly find- ing widespread application. The Food Protection Committee of the National Research Council undertook a study of the situation in 1951 and published a general review of the problems involved and the principles that should be con- sidered in developing new pesticides ("Safe Use of Chemical Additives in Foods." National Academy of Sciences, Washington, D. C., December 1952). Many of the basic principles set forth in that report were recognized in the drafting of Public Law 518, the 1954 amendment of the Food, Drug, and Cos- metic Act of 1938. The time has come to review the sub- ject again, in light of existing laws, to see what hazards are involved in use of pesticides, the procedures used in de- veloping new pesticides, and how the legal machinery operates to safeguard our food supplies. WHY DEVELOP NEW PESTICIDES? Even the most ardent advocate of using chemicals to control pests on food crops would admit that they should be used only when other practical means of control are not available. However, it is recognized that use of chemicals will have to be continued and even ex- panded and that additional materials must be developed if crops are to be adequately protected. It is well to exam- ine this position before discussing the safeguards that are being used. Plants in North America are attacked by about 3000 species of insects and as many plant disease agents. The de- struction caused by these pests has in- creased as crop culture has been inten- sified and land repeatedly sown to simi- lar crops, and as varieties have been bred to genetically pure lines to increase productivity. The apple, for example, is exposed to attack by about 100 insects and a similar number of disease-causing

organisms. The severity of their attack varies from season to season and in the various geographical areas where the apple is grown, but at least 20 of the pests are a constant menace. The or- chardist must, therefore, protect the crop regularly if he is to produce mar- ketable fruit. As is generally known, unsprayed apple and peach trees bear fruit but the yield is poor. Most of the fruit set on such trees falls before it ripens and that which matures is so scabby and wormy that little of it is acceptable for human consumption. Some persons may prefer to eat a scabby apple or a wormy peach rather than one protected by chemical treatment. This choice may be available to the suburbanite with a few trees in his backyard, but it is denied the general population. The orchardist can neither produce enough fruit to supply the popu- lation adequately nor maintain quality sufficiently high that fruit will be pur- chased or, under existing regulations, permitted in interstate commerce if pests are left uncontrolled. It seems evident that the American people cannot be fed adequately unless crops and livestock are protected from insects and other pests. Although great effort has been made to lessen pest dam- age by mechanical means, changing crop culture, and breeding of new crop vari- eties, farmers have been forced in re- cent years to rely more and more upon chemicals for pest control. No one knows exactly what would hap- pen if use of pesticidal chemicals on the farm should be abandoned, but it is safe to say that we could not commercially produce apples, peaches, potatoes, citrus, and tomatoes, to mention only a few crops; and yields of many others would be drastically reduced. As an illustra- tion, one might examine what happened to the the tomato crop in the eastern United States in 1946 when it was not being sprayed with fungicides. The late blight fungus swept up the eastern sea- board, destroying over 50 per cent of the crop in ten states and causing a loss of at least 25 million dollars. Tomato yields in Pennsylvania, for example, dropped from 5.4 to 2.7 tons per acre and the farmers were so discouraged that to- mato culture declined from 34,200 acres to 19,400 acres in two years. A com- parable situation developed in the Mid- west when millions of acres of sweet corn were jeopardized by the European corn borer during the period 1940-1945, and sweet corn production was aban- doned in many areas. Only the develop- ment of suitable spray programs for tomatoes and corn restored the crops to an economically sound basis in these two areas. The agricultural economy suffers heavily from pests in spite of all the control measures now employed. Esti- mates of crop losses vary, but estimates released by the U. S. Department of Agriculture in 1954 placed the annual loss from plant diseases at 2.8 billion dollars, from insects at 2.0 billions, and from weeds and mechanical damage at 2.4 billions. This amounts to about 20 per cent of the production of our farms. In order to offset this loss on the farm an extra 88 million acres must be culti- vated. Loss subsequent to harvest equals the product of 32 million acres; much of this loss is caused by pests. Obviously, there is need for continued improvement in pest control practices. The search for better pesticides must go on. The agriculturists and their tech- nical advisers should have available a wide range of materials to help in their battle against crop pests and diseases. The pest control specialists must have access to the largest possible assortment

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