GROWING resistance – both in the field and in farmers' minds – has provoked an upsurge in interest in biopesticides across the world.

These are certain types of pesticides derived from natural materials such as animals, plants, bacteria, and certain minerals and they have taken market share off the more conventional pesticides available, growing by 24%.

According to industry market research specialist, Kline Research – which is based in the US – a growing awareness of their favourable features, such including safety and efficiency as well as stringent legislative requirements, are driving the market changes.

The biopesticides market grew 24% from 2014 to 2016, globally to more than $1.8bn, and is expected to continue growing at double-digit rates over the next decade, driven by robust growth in countries like Brazil, China, and Europe.

Currently, the US, China, and Italy are the largest markets, accounting for almost 80% of the total global sales. The US also has a large consumer biopesticides market, which accounts for almost 12% of global biopesticide sales.

Field crops, such as maize, soyabeans, and cotton, leads the market with more than 36% of the total, while vegetables, like tomatoes, carrots, and leaf lettuce, is the second largest crop segment.

The use of biopesticides as live microbial products in seed treatments increased in almost every country surveyed. This was seen as a highly efficient way to apply them and is both cost effective and easy to apply. In most cases, they are applied in combination with conventional pesticides for broad spectrum control, to economically control nematodes or soil-borne diseases and give seedlings a healthier start.

There are more than 100 different biopesticide active ingredients identified in the study. Together, three bacillis bacteria-based products account for about 22% of the global biopesticides market, growing about 6% from 2014 to 2016.

Those produced from botanical extracts, including pyrethrin, azadirachtin, and various other plant extracts, account for about 10% of global sales, while the top three fungi-based products account for about 7% of sales.