The value of information in integrated pest management of corn rootworm and European corn borer in Minnesota

The value of information in integrated pest management (IPM) of corn rootworm (CRW) and European corn borer (ECB) on continuous corn is estimated in this research. A bioeconomic model for corn is developed considering CRW and ECB. Economic thresholds are estimated for each pest, and the sensitivity of the estimated thresholds to relative corn and pesticide price changes is analyzed. The value of pest information to individual farmers and the economic justification of scouting data collection methods are also examined. A bioeconomic simulation model is used to generate net revenue distributions under different management strategies and economic conditions. To incorporate stochastic behavior into the model, the performance of each strategy is simulated under many random states of nature. By evaluating a wide range of strategies, the model is used to identify preferred pest management strategies for CRW and ECB. Changes in producer welfare associated with different pest management strategies are measured by changes in the levels of certainty equivalents. The results indicate that flexible decision rules which base CRW control actions on information are preferrable to fixed CRW decision rules of routine control and routine no-control. Hence, scouting for CRW information are economically justifiable. When the cost of acquiring information is considered, CRW beetle counts are better sources of information than egg counts, and combined egg and beetle counts. Based on this study, the best control action for ECB is routine no-control, and scouting for ECB information is not economically justifiable. The results also indicate that the value of information differs with producer risk preferences. However, the optimal pest control action is invariant to different levels of absolute risk aversion