Chapter 1 - Significant Advances in Biopesticide Production: Strategies for High-Density Bio-Inoculant Cultivation

Abstract

Biopesticide production has become a topic of intense research because of the application and use of this kind of bioactive agents to replace some traditional pesticides that are synthesized chemically, which are applied to food commodities. Worldwide, the market of biopesticides grows annually at a rate of 45% in North America, 25% in Europe and Oceania, 15% in Latin and South American countries, and 7% in Asia. Trends in the modern agriculture reflect an increment of the use of fungal and bacterial biopesticides for which the design of efficient bioprocesses and strategies to improve the productivity and stability of these bioactive agents is a necessity. In this chapter, biological control is described in detail, with particular focus on the significant advances in the production of biopesticides. Also, biocontrol is focused as an alternative to some synthetic chemical treatments that cause environmental, human health, and food quality risks. Recent data about the state of the art of production of biopesticides by solid-state bioprocessing of agroindustrial wastes is discussed, and finally we describe some strategies for high-density bio-inoculant cultivation, describing the influence of water stress as one the best conditions for the production of fungal spores, which is an inexpensive biotechnologic option for modern agriculture in developing countries.