Manufacturing of Pesticides

Manufacturing of Pesticides

Agrochemical products commonly referred to as pesticides or crop protection products play a vital role in controlling pests and diseases that threaten our food supply. Agrochemicals comprise a wide range of products for both professional and home applications including insecticides, fungicides, herbicides, sanitizers, growth regulators, rodenticides, and soil fumigants. “Pesticides" is a general term that includes insecticides (for insect control), herbicides (for weed control), rodenticides (for rodent control), fungicides (for control of plant disease fungi), miticides (for mite control), as well as wood preservatives, disinfectants, products that control algae, etc

Food crops must compete with 30,000 species of weeds, 3,000 species of nematodes (roundworms) and 10,000 species of plant-eating insects. We know that despite the use of modern agrochemical products 20-40% of potential food production is still lost every year to pests. These losses can occur while the crop is growing in the field, when it is in storage and in the home. In short, an adequate, reliable food supply cannot be guaranteed without the use of crop protection products.

According to AIG Environmental, there are two Levels of pesticide manufacturing:

♦ The Primary Source: The manufacturing of modern pesticides is generally a two-step process. It begins within a concentrated, highly experienced group of large international organic chemical companies who develop the basic PAIs (Pesticide Active Ingredients), the lethal, deterrent, or growth-altering components in pesticides.

Typically, PAIs are derived from:

o Petroleum

o Coal

o Natural Gas

o Feedstocks

o Inorganic Acids

o Biological Sources

♦ The Second Phase: From these primary sources, the PAIs are shipped to the second