An economic evaluation of IPM practices in cabbage production in Cameron Highlands, Pahang
Concerns on the negative effects of pesticide use in developing countries have motivated the development of Integrated Pest Management (IPM) programmes in these countries. In Malaysia, the IPM collaborative research support programme (CRSP-IPM) was established to specifically address the widespread misuse of pesticides in cabbage cultivation in Cameron Highlands, one of the major vegetable producing regions in the country.
IPM adoption in cabbage production includes research on the optimal use of pesticides, complementary weed control strategies, and alternative cultural and biological controls. Results of this study showed that the programme would generate economic benefits which include improvements in water quality, food safety, pesticide application safety, and long term sustainability of pest management systems. The calculated economic benefits in terms of aggregate cost savings per season for 102 farmers were RM57,433 for insecticides, RM1,840 for herbicides, and RM311 for fungicides.