[Is chemical pest control coming to an end?]

Problems that arise when chemical control of pests is applied--risks for producer, applier, consumer and the environment as well as development of resistance against pesticides--have led to the conclusion that other forms of pest control have to be searched for to guarantee production of sufficient crops in the future. Out of the many available methods to prevent or reduce pests two methods seem to offer most possibilities for the near future: development of (partial) host-plant resistance against pests and the search for natural enemies of pests (the so called biological control). In this article the development of biological pest control is described and a comparison is made between working methods, efficiency and risks in application of chemical and biological control. Several examples are given of successful biological control projects as applied in greenhouses in the Netherlands.