An economic analysis of soybean pest management strategies in Virginia

The two principal objectives of this study were: (i) to estimate and compare net revenue associated with alternative pest management strategies for Virginia soybean producers, and (ii) to compare attractiveness of different pest management options when net revenue risk is considered in conjunction with the corresponding level of expected net revenue.

The method used to complete the first objective was to modify 1983 Virginia Cooperative Extension Service soybean budgets to correspond with alternative pest management strategies and then compare the average net revenue of the alternatives. The method used for completing the second objective was to develop a simulation model of net revenue for a representative Virginia soybean farm using alternative pest management strategies. Probability distributions of net revenue were generated and then compared using stochastic dominance analysis.

Results from the net revenue comparisons of both expected net revenue and net revenue risk suggest that producers would prefer strategies which incorporate an integrated pest management (IPM) approach to pest control rather than an approach which relies completely on pesticides. Since pesticide usage is associated with negative environmental effects, the IPM alternatives, which in general decrease pesticide usage, would be preferred from the social as well as the private viewpoint.