Abstract
Traditionally, rice farmers in Asia were thought to be unable to comprehend biological control because it was too esoteric. This perception was exacerbated by vested interest that prefers to maintain monopoly of information. Hence, between 1950 to 1990, the preferred method of extending technical information to farmers was to package them in “simplistic” messages. For example, prophylactic chemical control was a common approach of many extension systems in Asian economies during that period despite evidence from ecological studies to the contrary. In fact, the dogma that chemical control is equal to modern agriculture persists to this day in some countries. Such an approach often exaggerated yield loss figures to scare and justify use of chemical insecticides which eventually resulted in further yield losses. There has been increasing evidence that in tropical Asia, natural enemies are ubiquitous in rice fields and are responsible for keeping populations of rice herbivores in check. The rise of the brown planthopper as a serious pest was linked to regular use of insecticides. Outbreaks of this delphacid in tropical rice resulted from destruction of effective predators.
Published Version
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