The Biopesticide Alternative an Overview

With few exceptions, however, synthetic pesticides do pose some risk to humans and the environment. For this reason, in the remainder of this chapter we explore a new, less risky group of alternative pesticides, which are available nearly directly from Nature. 

Numerous substances are produced by plants, animals, and microorganisms to protect themselves from predators, locate sources of food, suppress or avoid 

Biochemical pesticides include all naturally occurring substances (or their structurally similar synthetic analogs) that are intended for use as attractants, repellents, desiccants, semiochemicals, plant and insect regulators, and induced systemic response (ISR) and systemic acquired response (SAR) inducers. 

Microbial pesticides include any microorganism that can be used as a pesticide, as defined by the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) [28]. Biopesticide microorganisms include, but are not limited to, protozoa, algae, fungi, bacteria, and viruses. 

---