Scientists discover pesticide in cloves
Scientists discover pesticide in cloves
By Joko Sarwono
BOGOR (JP): After nine years of study, experts from the
Research Institute for Spice and Medicinal Crops (Balittro) in
Bogor, West Java, discovered a chemical compound that can kill
nine types of fungi that cause diseases in plants.
The compound, a phytopesticides which the researchers call
eugenol, is obtained from clove.
Mesak Tombe, who headed the team of researchers at Balittro,
says the compound is able to kill eight pathogen fungi he
identified as: Fusarium oxysporum f.sp. vanillae, F. oxysporum,
F. solani, Sclerotium rolfsii, Phytium sp., Phytophthora
capsici, Rizoctonia solani and Rigidoporus lignosis. The fungi
are said to affect vanilla, cashew and pepper.
The phytopesticide is safe for humans and animals. "Our
laboratory testing showed that eugenol did not have any side
effect on worms, fish or chickens," Mesak says.
Balittro places a high priority on researching
phytopesticides, which are environmentally friendly. The
discovery is expected to cause a jump in the price of clove,
which plummeted in the 1990s, when the phytopesticide is produced
on a mass scale.
Mesak says the mass production of eugenol would allow clove
farmers to sell their products to the pesticide industry.
Currently, most of the clove goes to cigarette factories.
"In the future, farmers will have a stronger bargaining
position and this will encourage farmers to plant clove," Mesak
says.
Eugenol is found in all parts of the clove plant, although it
is most strongly concentrated in the flowers. Even the dried
leaves of clove contain the compound.
"If the farmers prefer to sell the flowers to other
industries, the pesticide factories still can buy the dried
leaves; so it will never run out of raw materials," Mesak said.
The discovery is also expected to encourage local
industrialists to get into the phytopesticide business, which in
turn will help reduce Indonesia's dependence on imported
pesticides.
According to Mesak, Indonesia imported about US$200 million
worth of pesticides each year.
"If the home industry can supply just 30 percent of the
pesticides, we would be able to save a lot of money," he says,
adding that there was a factory that expressed interest in
producing eugenol.
Imported pesticides costs at least Rp 100,000 per liter, which
is too expensive for most Indonesians. While locally produced
pesticides cost only Rp 30,000 per liter.
Mesak plans to commercialize the discovery next year and he
has registered with the government for a patent.
Eugenol has been produced on a limited basis and has been used
by vanilla and cashew nut farmers in Bali and Sukabumi and by
pepper farmers on Bangka island.
A.A. Sofyan, the chairman of a 118-strong vanilla farmers
group in Sukabumi, is one of those who has used the
phytopesticide.
He said he was satisfied with the results. Just a week after
he sprayed eugenol, the diseases were gone and his vanilla grew
better.
"Now my vanilla grows very well and the harvest is coming
soon," he said when attending a recent seminar in Bogor on
the discovery.
Sofyan, who has grown vanilla since 1982 in Sukabumi, said the
pest worst affected his vanilla farm in 1997, when an estimated
50 percent of his plants had the lethal fungus.
He tried the locally made eugenol in early 1999 on Mesak's
recommendation.
Soelaksono Sastrodihardjo, an expert on phytopesticides, said
he hoped the use of eugenol would help reduce the negative
effects of imported pesticides on the environment.
According to Soelaksono, some 200 types of pesticides are
currently on the Indonesian market and farmers spray about 18,000
tons of them every year.
He said the uncontrolled use of pesticides was responsible for
pests' increasing resistance to the pesticides.
"The pesticides can poison the farmers, pets and animals
useful to human beings," he added.