Pesticides in the modern agriculture. Risks and alternative approaches

The crop protection from harmful pests has a central role in the agricultural production. Means of conventional technology for cultivation are based on the intensive application of chemical pesticides for decades, leading to a load of the environment with dangerous chemicals and disruption of biological balance in agricultural farming systems. As a result of the massive overall application of synthetic insecticides, some resistant insect species appeared which raises the need of introducing of new and more powerful pesticides for their control. The negative consequences of chemical pest management provoke scientists to look for an alternative to the intensive use of chemicals. As alternatives of the conventional farming are integrated crop production and organic agriculture, which requires continuous improvement of technology for plant growing and mostly, for plant protection. Integrated pest management is the rational application of a combination of biological, biotechnological, chemical, physical, agricultural and breeding measures, where the use of chemical plant protection products is limited to a certain minimum, which is necessary to maintain the pest population and the damages caused by them within the range below the economic harm. Integrated production of plant output is directed to maintaining stable agro-ecosystems, preservation and enrichment of biodiversity on the farming area, rational combination of plant protection products with the mechanisms for natural control of pests on agricultural crops, optimization of additional costs and adverse impacts on the environment and human health by reducing the use of PPP. Organic production of agricultural crops is based on the use of non-chemical methods of pest control and application of natural resources for this purpose, as well as techniques, contributing to the improvement of soil fertility. The final result of both technologies is increasing of biodiversity and the production of ecologically clean products, free of pesticide residues in them, which leads to protection of the environment and ecosystems and the health of the consumers also.BG; bg; EFSAfocalpoint@mzh.government.b