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There is still a lot of skepticism on the efficacy of microbial crop protection products and farmers still remain hesitant using them. John Hart
Whenever the topic of microbiological crop protection products comes up, the words “snake oil” can appear. Biologicals are said to hold great promise as a powerful tool for farmers to move beyond synthetic pesticides and fertilizers, but they are still in their infancy, experiencing growing pains.
Katie Barnhill is a senior research scholar with the Genetic Engineering and Society Center at North Carolina State University. She has done extensive interviews with farmers on the use of microbiological crop production inoculants, and explained farmers remain hesitant, due to continued skepticism on the products’ efficacy.