Comparison of substitutive chemicals recommended by manufacturers and agricultural institutions for cotton pest control

Abstract

Indian farmers can obtain information on pesticides from the manufacturers, agricultural institutions and the formulators. Literature form the first two sources was compared with a view to know the cost to farmers and substitution products for cotton pest control. The price of active ingredient was higher by 9.5 per cent in wattable powders than for dusting powders. The cost of the active ingredient in liquid formulation was higher by 43 per cent than dusting powder. The price indices for unit cost of active ingredient in liquid formulations were: 1 liter packing 104.1, 0.5 liter 109.7, 0.25 liter 112.7, and 0.1 liter 121.4, where 5 liters = 100. In these products marketed by large companies, the price index of the smallest packing was even higher. Prices of the same chemicals showed a variation of +12/-10 per cent over the average price.