Chemistry Reference
In-Depth Information
CHAPTER 12
Agricultural Chemicals
12.1 OVERVIEW
Global population growth is about 1.3% every year, and the population is
expected to reach seven billion by 2015 and nine billion by 2050 [1]. In the
time it takes to read this sentence, another 20 people will have been added to
the world's population [2]. The number of malnourished people in the world
has been estimated at 852 million. Each year, hunger and malnutrition are
responsible for the deaths of six million children. In want of food, people
plow forests and the world annually loses 9.4 million hectares of forests [3]. A
hectare (ha) is 10,000 square meters and 9.4 million ha is about 36,000 square
miles or about the size of the entire state of Indiana. Exacerbating the food
problem is the use of crops as fuel. For example, in the United States, corn
is used to make ethanol for gasoline. In Brazil, sugar cane is used. There are
other efforts to use crops such as soybean for biodiesel. It has been estimated
that food production will have to increase 70% by 2050 to feed the growing
population [4].
“Pesticides” is a general term and includes substances that kill weeds (her-
bicides), insects (insecticides) and fungus (fungicides). Although the terms
might be “bad words” in some circles, it is only because of the use of these
agricultural chemicals that the problem of food supply and deforestation is
not worse. Agricultural chemicals, along with improved farming techniques,
give us hope that we will be able to feed the increased population in the future.
It takes about 11 years to bring a new agricultural chemical from discov-
ery to the market and one estimate has the cost at about $200 million [5].
Another estimate is at an R&D price tag of $265 million, with only one of
140,000 potential candidates making it to market [6]. The global agricultural
chemicals market is about $38 billion [7].
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