Results of calculations on the economic potential for alternative (low input, sustainable) farming systems in a small grain-row crop region of the Northern Plains are reported. Two sets of alternative farming systems, in which no chemical fertilizers or herbicides are used, are compared with various conventional and reduced till systems. In Farming Systems Study I (FSS1), an alternative rotation consisting of oats, alfalfa, soybeans, and corn is compared with conventional and ridge till rotation systems composed of corn, soybeans, and spring wheat. In Farming Systems Study II (FSS2), three systems with an emphasis on small grains are compared. An alternative system rotation consisting of oats, sweet clover, soybeans, and spring wheat is compared with conventional and minimum till rotation systems comprised of soybeans, spring wheat, and barley. Results of baseline economic analyses show that alternative farming systems can be competitive with more conventional systems in at least some situations. The alternative systems entail markedly lower direct costs, and the alternative system in FSS2 has approximately the same net returns as the comparable conventional and minimum till systems. The FSS1 alternative system has positive but somewhat lower net returns than the comparable conventional and ridge till systems. Sensitivity analyses were conducted with alternative system crop yields, chemical fertilizer and herbicide prices, and varying assumptions about future Federal farm program support levels and acreage set aside requirements. The yield sensitivity analyses show that one alternative farming system requires yields about 5–10 percent above those of the comparable conventional system to produce the same net returns. However, the other alternative system is competitive with a conventional system even with yields 5 percent lower. Analyses varying chemical fertilizer and herbicide prices reveal that the alternative farming system in FSS1 becomes competitive with more conventional systems when fertilizer and herbicide prices rise by 50 percent. The alternative farming system in FSS2 is already competitive at current fertilizer and herbicide prices. In some cases, sensitivity analyses with Federal farm program provisions indicate that reductions in farm program benefits increase the economic competitiveness of alternative farming systems. However, important exceptions occur. Results indicate that not only the level of future farm program benefits, but also the form of program provisions and compliance requirements, will affect the relative competitiveness of alternative farming systems.

Serious side effects from the conventional use of traditional chemical pesticides for routine arthropod pest management have prompted the investigation and development of alternate strategies for the minimization of pest damage. Insect sex pheromones have been proposed as a potential group of alternative control agents for over twenty years. The possible uses of these substances for insect control are discussed and factors influencing their development for pest management are presented. The scientific research and commercial development of oriental fruit moth mating disruption is presented as a case study for the commercialization of this approach. Advantages and limitations of pheromone-based control tactics are presented. Mating disruption technology is starting to find its place in a number of diverse cropping situations. The use of pheromones for pest control promises to be an important component of the ongoing challenge to develop alternatives that may help to solve major environmental and human health problems associated with chemical pesticide use in agriculture.

The frequent assumption that there are relevant and meaningful parallels between agriculture in the U.S. and in Less Industrialized Countries (LICs) is critically examined. Based on the results of a survey of LIC students enrolled in the College of Agriculture at the University of Minnesota, recommendations are made to more carefully focus the approach and direction of LIC student eduction. We conclude that the education and training of agriculturalists in U.S. institutions of higher learning does not relate sufficiently to the resource base and domestic needs of farming cultures in the LIC countries. A case is made for the benefit of practical experience through work with farmers whose practices and applications accommodate and reflect the realities of low-input farming practices in the LICs. Appropriate paralleled farming systems in the U.S. are typified as “organic,” “biological,” “regenerative,” or “sustainable,” and LIC students could be given experience on these farms as a part of their degree program in school.

Soilborne plant pathogens cause major economic losses in agricultural crops, and the present methods for control of diseases brought about by these pathogens are inadequate. Alternatives are also needed to substitute for the use of chemical fungicides. Many of these are known to induce tumors in experimental animals and are thus regarded by some investigators as potential human carcinogens when present as residues in food and water. In addition, such alternative control measures are needed because of the potential threat of development of resistance to fungicides, especially systemic fungicides, by fungal plant pathogens, and because of nontarget side effects on other plant pathogens and on beneficial microorganisms. Alternative disease control is sometimes possible through development of crop plants resistant to disease. Unfortunately, however, resistance is lacking or not available for many diseases caused by soilborne plant pathogens. Another biological means of controlling disease which is presently gaining much attention is biological control. Several systems of biological control are presently being explored and may be developed in a few years into reliable alternatives to conventional chemical control methods. The use of the mycoparasite Sporidesmium sclerotivorum, for example, against several diseases caused by Sclerotinia species is promising. Talaromyces flavus may in the future be exploited for use against several wilt diseases caused by Verticillium dahliae. Finally, practical control of several diseases caused by Pythium spp., Rhizoctonia solani, and Sclerotium rolfsii may eventually become possible through the use of Trichoderma spp. and Gliocladium virens. Development of these biological control systems will require much additional research directed toward a better understanding of the basic biology and mechanisms of action of beneficial fungi against plant pathogens. In addition, extensive cooperation will be required among research scientists, governmental agencies responsible for regulating the use of pestcontrol systems, and most importantly, private industry to develop biological control agents for the market and to coordinate acceptance and use by producers and acceptance by consumers.

The number of species of insect pests, estimated to be maximally 10,000 worldwide, forms only a small part of the millions of species of plant-eating insects. Chemical pest control is becoming increasingly difficult and objectionable in terms of environmental contamination so that other methods of pest control need to be developed. One of the best alternatives is biological control. Natural and inoculative biological control has already proven successful against a variety of pests over large areas. One is inclined to forget, however, how successful a biological control program has been as soon as the pest problem has been solved. Other types of biological control involving the regular introduction or augmentation of natural enemies are better known, although these have been applied on a much smaller scale; a survey of the present-day application of these latter types of biological control is presented here. Phases in the implementation of biological control are illustrated and needed future developments in research are discussed. The main limitation on the development of biological control is not the research, since natural enemies are easier found and with a much lower investment than new chemical pesticides, but rather the attitudes held by growers and disinterest on the part of industry, policy-makers, and politicians. The first priority for those concerned with the development and application of safer pest control should, therefore, be to change the perceptions that these other groups have of biological control.

Biological pest control techniques usually have identifiable costs and constraints that they must overcome before they will be adopted by farmers. Many biological control agents are developed in the public sector and need economic assessments at an early stage. The methods often have hidden costs related to farm labor adjustments or initial costs of development. Living biological controls frequently escape, and they may be disrupted by pesticides, regulations, or farm commodity programs. Pest control registration procedures and small markets also present obstacles. Area-wide implementation programs and changes in incentives for researchers may speed development and adoption of biological controls.

The extent to which pests should be managed by biological versus chemical methods has been a burning public policy issue since about 1950. A thorough policy analysis is needed to facilitate movement beyond the status quo. Such analysis should: a) review the extent of adoption of ecologically selective methods of pest control that have emerged from the last three decades of research, b) examine changes in policies, legislation and institutional arrangements that would foster more rapid and widespread adoption of environmentally benign pest controls, c) assess the role of biological controls in facilitating survival of farms during periods of economic adversity and in increasing the competitiveness of American agriculture, d) evaluate opportunities to use ecologically selective pest controls to improve water quality, to reduce environmental impacts of pests and of farming practices, and to preserve the usefulness of pest-resistant crop cultivars and pesticides, and e) identify options and mechanisms to further increase the flow of private and public resources into biocontrol research, development and implementation. A committee of highly accomplished and respected citizens needs to be formed to conduct a thorough analysis of the above and other issues related to the long-term economic viability of farming and to the development and widespread adoption of agricultural practices that will conserve and improve the resource base, and that are devoid of negative impacts on the environment and public health.