Pesticides are in the middle of a tug-of-war. Because they are poisons,many people don't want them around,yet their value in protecting crops and combating disease cannot be denied.

Given this conflict, making precise predictions about pesticide use is difficult, but it is possible to discern some trends. One observer foresees that scientists and pesticide manufacturers will engage in a "persistent quest to design and develop a safer range of pesticides, and evolve new and novel strategies to control insect pests and minimize crop damages."Clearly, the strong government regulation that took shape in the 1970s in the United States will continue.America is unlikely ever to go back to the days of government-encouraged spraying without limits, or allow pesticides to be invented and marketed without stringent requirements for testing and labeling.The rest of the world is moving...