Critical terms during development and commercialization of microbial agents for the control of plant parasitic nematodes.

The original vision of phytonematodes' biocontrol has been to reduce the pest population by natural enemies with the active involvement of the human role. Two main arguments against the use of chemical control to combat plant parasitic nematodes directed both the consumers and the producers to look for alternatives: health risks to the customers and ecological concerns. At the beginning, there had been many expectations about the potential of biocontrol to substitute, or at least to reduce dramatically, the treatments with chemicals to control phytonematodes. However, problems regarding the techniques and other concerns relevant to different issues of biocontrol resulted in polarizing attitudes toward this discipline. This chapter discusses the difficulties and restraints faced by the developers, producers and/or the consumers (farmers), including: (i) health and ecological concerns; (ii) production techniques; (iii) efficacy of the product in the field; (iv) field application protocols; (v) shelf life of the final product; and (vi) registration. The projection of global biological control taking over chemical control is also mentioned.