INTEGRATED PEST MANAGEMENT (IPM): A PAN UK BRIEFING December 2018
Integrated Pest Management (IPM) is an approach to managing pests, diseases or weeds under which chemical pesticides are used only as a last resort, if at all. It sits in direct contrast to the majority of conventional agriculture in which pesticides tend to be the first weapon of choice for dealing with unwanted organisms. One of the basic principles of IPM is that decisions on whether and when to apply pesticides should be based on direct observations of the health of the crop in each field. In contrast, farmers who prioritise chemical pest control often make scheduled or ‘insurance’ applications, without checking whether pest levels justify the application of pesticides. The adoption and implementation of successful IPM strategies is an effective way of reducing pesticide use. As an EU Member State, IPM has supposedly been at the heart of the UK’s approach to agriculture since the adoption of the EU Directive on the Sustainable Use of Pesticides in 2009. However, possibly due to a fundamental misunderstanding of how IPM systems work, the UK has adopted a piecemeal approach that cherry picks individual IPM techniques rather than implementing the whole system approach. A whole system approach to IPM is essential if the full range of benefits for farmers and reductions in pesticide use are to be achieved. Since the 2016 Brexit referendum, the UK government has restated its commitment to making IPM central to the UK’s approach to crop protection.1 The current review of UK agricultural policy is an opportunity to develop and put in place incentives and mechanisms to promote the widespread uptake of genuine IPM by UK farmers. There is little disagreement that current levels of pesticide use are having a negative impact on the UK’s natural environment.
Consequently, delivering a ‘Green Brexit’ will require substantial reductions in pesticide use and support for farmers to switch to more sustainable forms of pest control such as IPM. This PAN UK briefing provides an overview of the key features which comprise an IPM system, explores how IPM is currently being implemented in the UK, and provides recommendations to the UK Government for increasing the uptake of IPM by farmers. Annex 1 describes how some key agroecological principles could be put into practice in the context of British arable farming. Annex 2 provides a brief case study describing the experience of French farmers using Integrated Production methods in wheat rotations in order to reduce pesticide use.
What is IPM? IPM tackles pests and diseases through the use of a combination of different control methods, based on good crop husbandry (cultural and agronomic practices), physical, plant breeding or biological control methods, underpinned by effective pest, weed and disease monitoring strategies. There is no doubt that, properly implemented, IPM systems can effectively deal with harmful pests and diseases whilst maintaining crop yields, farmer income and delivering a more environmentally-sustainable agricultural system.
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