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Hoes to Herbicides: Economics of Evolving Weed Management in the United States

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  • Scott M. Swinton

    (Michigan State University)

  • Braeden Deynze

    (Michigan State University)

Abstract

Over the past century, U.S. field crop farmers have controlled weeds with progressively less costly technologies, moving from hoeing and draft cultivation to motorized cultivation to selective herbicides to broad-spectrum herbicides associated with herbicide-tolerant (HT) crops. The advent of herbicides had the effect of reducing both capital and labor costs by reducing the number of field passes required for effective motorized weed control. The advent of HT crops again reduced both labor and capital costs. These innovations have attracted widespread adoption by farmers. Today, HT crops and broad-spectrum weed control are used by virtually all field crop farmers except those producing for markets that will not accept genetically modified crops. The accelerating spread of herbicide-resistant weeds (an adaptive evolutionary response to extensive reliance on a few herbicides) is triggering U.S. farmers to increase and diversify their herbicide use, increasing both financial costs and selected health and environmental risks.

Suggested Citation

  • Scott M. Swinton & Braeden Deynze, 2017. "Hoes to Herbicides: Economics of Evolving Weed Management in the United States," The European Journal of Development Research, Palgrave Macmillan;European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes (EADI), vol. 29(3), pages 560-574, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:pal:eurjdr:v:29:y:2017:i:3:d:10.1057_s41287-017-0077-4
    DOI: 10.1057/s41287-017-0077-4
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    Cited by:

    1. Reardon, Thomas & Echeverria, Ruben & Berdegué, Julio & Minten, Bart & Liverpool-Tasie, Saweda & Tschirley, David & Zilberman, David, 2019. "Rapid transformation of food systems in developing regions: Highlighting the role of agricultural research & innovations," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 172(C), pages 47-59.
    2. Wen-Tien Tsai, 2020. "Status of herbicide use, regulatory management and case study of paraquat in Taiwan," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 22(3), pages 2673-2683, March.
    3. Braeden Van Deynze & Scott M. Swinton & David A. Hennessy, 2022. "Are glyphosate‐resistant weeds a threat to conservation agriculture? Evidence from tillage practices in soybeans," American Journal of Agricultural Economics, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 104(2), pages 645-672, March.
    4. Steven Haggblade & Bart Minten & Carl Pray & Thomas Reardon & David Zilberman, 2017. "The Herbicide Revolution in Developing Countries: Patterns, Causes, and Implications," The European Journal of Development Research, Palgrave Macmillan;European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes (EADI), vol. 29(3), pages 533-559, July.
    5. Niklas Möhring & Martina Bozzola & Stefan Hirsch & Robert Finger, 2020. "Are pesticides risk decreasing? The relevance of pesticide indicator choice in empirical analysis," Agricultural Economics, International Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 51(3), pages 429-444, May.
    6. Alessandro Bonanno & Valentina C. Materia & Thomas Venus & Justus Wesseler, 2017. "The Plant Protection Products (PPP) Sector in the European Union: A Special View on Herbicides," The European Journal of Development Research, Palgrave Macmillan;European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes (EADI), vol. 29(3), pages 575-595, July.
    7. Böcker, Thomas & Möhring, Niklas & Finger, Robert, 2019. "Herbicide free agriculture? A bio-economic modelling application to Swiss wheat production," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 173(C), pages 378-392.
    8. Harun Alptekin & Abdullah Ozkan & Ramazan Gurbuz & Muhittin Kulak, 2023. "Management of Weeds in Maize by Sequential or Individual Applications of Pre- and Post-Emergence Herbicides," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 13(2), pages 1-18, February.
    9. Ervin, David E. & Breshears, Elise H. & Frisvold, George B. & Hurley, Terrance & Dentzman, Katherine E. & Gunsolus, Jeffrey L. & Jussaume, Raymond A. & Owen, Micheal D.K. & Norsworthy, Jason K. & Al M, 2019. "Farmer Attitudes Toward Cooperative Approaches to Herbicide Resistance Management: A Common Pool Ecosystem Service Challenge," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 157(C), pages 237-245.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    weed control; herbicide; genetic modification; herbicide-tolerant crop; technological change; labor saving; agricultural innovation;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • Q12 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Agriculture - - - Micro Analysis of Farm Firms, Farm Households, and Farm Input Markets

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