Use of Antibiotics in Agriculture

Abstract

This chapter discusses the use of antibiotics in agriculture. Attempts to control plant diseases by the use of antibiotics have been made by plant pathologists all over the world since the discovery of penicillin. One of the greatest needs in the world is the production of food for billions of people. Such production requires the use of pesticides; however, their use generates the possibility of environmental pollution. Environmental hazards caused by conventional agricultural chemicals are classified in two categories: a non-selective toxicity; concentration and accumulation of toxic compounds in the environment. Pollution-free pesticides, therefore, should have selective toxicity to target organisms and be susceptible to photolysis and degradation by soil microorganisms. Because agricultural antibiotics are sprayed at very low concentrations, the amount of compounds sprayed in a unit area is far less than of other conventional pesticide chemicals. Also antibiotics should be rapidly degraded by soil microorganisms. Therefore, it is expected that the use of agricultural antibiotics will not generate environmental pollution.